Hi folks,

Update and quick question. Texas is doing great, no problems with my other dogs, however, we are working with clicker training, but seems to be stubborn walking on a leash at times. He will sit and sometimes backs up, resisting being walked. He will move forward if I lure him with treats. I feel he should walk without constantly using food to get him moving.

Any suggestions?

 Quote: Ellen Dondero

Hi folks,

Update and quick question. Texas is doing great, no problems with my other dogs, however, we are working with clicker training, but seems to be stubborn walking on a leash at times. He will sit and sometimes backs up, resisting being walked. He will move forward if I lure him with treats. I feel he should walk without constantly using food to get him moving.

Any suggestions?

Yeah, chill out and take him inside. He's probably tired.

I've noticed this with my puppy and I got pissed for about 30 seconds before I realized I had probably tired the little guy out.

I thought he was tired but he does this sometimes when I first take him out, looking at me like I am not doing this! It can be frustrating!

There is nothing wrong with motivating him to move forward with treats or something else he likes. If that what it takes do it and once he is consistently moving forward and walking you can begin to weed out the extra motivation.

I have a friend that just got a Dobi pup. He is now 12 weeks and most basic training is going well but he is having trouble getting the pup used to walking on a leash.

Be patient be consistent and most of all be in charge. Your dog should walk because he loves to. He just doesn't know it yet. He will soon.

Sounds like you have a puppy. A puppy who has absolutley no idea or understanding what in the world he is supposed to be doing.

This is not something which comes naturally to a dog - if not for humans, they'd be running around rolly polly with all their siblings digging holes in the dirt and eating sticks and bugs. It is something which has to be gently trained, has to be fun and enticing and have something in it for them... ie: rewards or toys.

I'd try taking a squeeky toy or ball and entice him to move forward with you playfully. Simply show him that what you are looking for is forward motion and that when he does that - he gets to play and gets treats. You will be able to lengthen the times between toys and treats as he gets the idea and all the sudden the leash will mean he gets to go have fun instead of being "controlled".

EVERYTHING you do at this point is teaching him something, so just make sure you are teaching him being with you on a leash is a blast. Puppies play, so make it playful. Have fun... he is going to grow fast and soon you'll be missing this stage. Really.

I would resist applying pressure of any kind until the puppy realizes that following around you outside is the greatest thing evar!

That said I did have one puppy who would completely shut down once the leash was hooked up to the collar inside, or outside with zero pressure. For him I needed another option so I went with a harness like http://leerburg.com/1152.htm until he got over it and we could go back to the collar.

Barbara- Thank you for responding. The toys and treats work to a point but he really shuts down, I am done attitude, and I know that at this point it is not from being tired. I don't want it to end in a negative manner, so I never push, but go back to playing.

Melissa- shutting down is exactly what he seems to be doing, he does not like anyone touching his neck or doing anything with the collar,he has hated the collar since day one. Asking about the harness was my next question, this is what I was considering trying, thank you for the suggestion.

Roger has been doing this a lot. When he does it, I just pick him up and put him on the grass. He only seems to park himself and 'shut down' (not the term I would use) when he is on hard surfaces.

The other day he did it, and so I just picked him up and took him to his pee/poo area. After he did his business he started pulling me across the concrete!

There's a reason he's doing this, and it shouldn't be too hard to figure out unless you've got a dog with a truly weird temperament.