My friends have a cockapoo, their first dog. They have a problem with him which I haven't come across before. When they get ready for a walk, he refuses to walk to the car and they have to bribe him or pick him up. Once on the walk he is obedient and like a normal dog. However as soon as he sees the car park he lays down and refuses to move! Leading him by the nose with a treat only helps for a few yards and then he lays down again. They have even pretended to drive off but he still won't move. They have started to pick him up and carry him as a last resort. Given that he is a very large cockapoo of 15kgs at 7 months old, it is not easy. Has anyone any suggestions as to how they can deal with this?

My current flat coat behaviours similarly as a pup. The only way to get her in the car was to pick her up . I am sure it was some sort of fear of getting in the car as once In she was fine.so treated it as u would with anything a dog is uncomfortable with and no force but working at her speed
We.gradually got over it with treats
, games in the car and feeding in the car.
It was not a quick fix by any means but slowly we got.there.
Your friends maybe in for picking her up for a while yet. It could.be worth trying other cars as I found brooke accept so scars and not others after a while until the fear was over come

They need to work out what the dog doesn't like about the car or the car journey.
Is he caged in the car and he doesn't like it ? Does he get travel sick ?

I've got a poodle and she has certain things she doesn't like, so I'm wondering if it's a breed thing or an individual thing.
My dog doesn't initially want to go for a walk. She runs upstairs and starts shaking so I have to either carry her or shepherd her downstairs. She growls when I put the harness on, but once it's on she has a shake and is happy to go.
She won't pass someone on the pavement, she crosses us over the road.
She has lots of little foibles. We just live with them.

I've got a poodle and she has certain things she doesn't like, so I'm wondering if it's a breed thing or an individual thing.

I have a Poodle, she's my first Poodle after having had many other dogs over many years. So I don't have a lot to compare to, other than that there were a lot of Poodles in my life when I was a child, and that's why I always wanted one of my own. (Even though it took 50 years!) My Poodle loves everyone, all humans, all animals, she's not scared of anything, she loves going for walks and travelling. We went to a Poodle show back in the summer, where most of the dogs were not showdogs but pure pets like mine, and what really impressed both myself and my husband was that every single dog there, regardless of what size Poodle they were, were just like mine. Happy, friendly, outgoing fearless, everyone said hello to the other dogs, everyone had fun - it was the most amazing experience for us as we're so used to dogs that can be suspiscious of strangers and often don't like dogs they don't know. So my personal impression of Poodles is different.

Going back to the original question though - I have had dogs like this. Many don't like travelling as pups. Even when you think that the reward of ending up on a nice walk would be enough to get them over it, it doesn't. I've had pups refusing to go anywhere near the vehicle. The one thing I found that has worked for every dog I tried it with, was to NOT have the dog caged or behind a tailgate etc, but instead use a dog seat belt and sit next to the dog. They've then eventually learned that cars are fine and have been able to move on to travelling in a cage. I've also found that it helps with car sickness.

He travels on the back seat with a harness and always has done. Interestingly when I took my friend out for the day in my car, he happily jumped in the boot with my dogs. He is also not particularly food orientated and won't eat breakfast so they feed him on the morning walk. He also has other behaviour issues which I wouldn't be happy with eg if he is digging a hole and they try to stop him, he growls at them and also periodically tries to bite the husband's legs but not my friend's. They are taking him to agility which he loves but not dog training. I have 2 cockapoos (and a golden) and have had no issues with any of them so I'm pretty sure it isn't a breed thing. One of my cockapoos did suddenly refused to leave the garden for walks but 2 days of leaving her behind cured that and now she is the first at the gate! I am looking after him next year and there is no way I could pick him up so I have a vested interest in getting this sorted out. I wondered whether their training is inconsistent as he seems to be in charge and my friend's husband is reluctant to take any advice as he thinks he knows all about dogs having had a family dog as a child. On walks he runs off out of sight but does come back when called. I wondered whether the car issue is not in isolation from the other issues. Any advice welcomed.

I agree Goldmali.  I've been a Poodle person almost all my life.  I even took my last Toy Poodle girl to Gundog demonstrations.  When the gun went off she didn't flinch.  So I know that  you're totally correct about them.

However, my last Border Collie was petrified of the car.

However, my last Border Collie was petrified of the car.

Why on earth would ypu take a Border Collie to Gundog trials:????

Over the years I have seen many gunshy dogs of many breeds including working bred labs/goldens/cockers from generations of solid dogs bred to work to the gun. On the otherhand I've seen Border Collies pass their VPG/WT gun tests.

Border Collies are(or should be)bred to work sheep/cattle & that requires acute hearing to work to the whistle. What would your perfect poodle do faced with 500 ewes or a herd of cattle ? Be as steady as a rock & unfazed ?

No advice for the OP other than go back to basics & train their dog

They seem to have caused the problem themselves by being inconsistent. No training other than agility will not make their dog a well behaved pet.

Would they actually welcome any advice on their problem.??

He travels on the back seat with a harness and always has done.

My point was to have somebody sit next to him, to touch him and talk to him - it's always worked for my pups.

> Why on earth would ypu take a Border Collie to Gundog trials:???? <br />

Did you actually read my post?  I've never taken a dog to gundog trials in my life.   However, a Toy Poodle who was obedience trained, and went on to tracking, loved outings, and I took her to a demonstration.

My Border Collie was taken to the vet in my car.  Although why I should have to explain myself to you I really can't fathom.  My response was to Goldmali.

Don't jump on me like that again.

Are they going to obedience classes as this would help both owners and the trainer will soon see if they are confusing the dog too.
As for the vehicle maybe they need to try him in the boot if he jumped straight in with yours and was fine

going back to my experience with this and Brooke wasn't my first dog , just the first with a car issue.
Don't force him in any way to get near the car. Unfortunately I had the trainer at obedience say she would show me how to sort it out. I gave her the lead and to my horror someone who was very gentle and apparently knowledgeable ran towards the car dragging Brooke and then literally threw her in the car .
I was appalled and no it didn't help , poor dog was terrified .

Try different places in the car and see what he is like with other cars especially as he seemed to manage yours.

Make the idea of going near and in the car fun. playing near the car , treats/ his food. Meals never have to be in a bowl so use them for training

As others have said once in the car have someone with him to keep him relaxed. I am no expert but it sound like fear of getting into the car or maybe how he feels in the car.
Unfortunately I had the trainer at obedience say she would show me how to sort it out. I gave her the lead and to my horror someone who was very gentle and apparently knowledgeable ran towards the car dragging Brooke and then literally threw her in the car .
I was appalled and no it didn't help , poor dog was terrified . That wasn't repeated I can tell you

Would your friends take advise from a   good positive trainer ( be careful as to who ) ? are they prepared to work on this as it took us months to get it sorted and in the meanwhile I had to pick her up and carry her to the car. 25kg of fcr is not funny

Obedience classes anyway would be useful given what you are observing . check out the apdt website for positive trainers in their area , most do 121 and all do classses

One of them used to sit in the back with him but don't any longer. He used to be car sick so possibly the memories have stayed with him. They have tried him in the boot but with no success and I assume he was happy to jump into mine because his doggy friends were already in it! I am going to subtly suggest obedience classes and hope my friend's husband takes it on board. Thank's for all your advice.

This could be down to feeling sick when travelling in the car.   My main breed is known for not being good travellers, although it's by no means all that won't travel.   I've never had one who hates getting into the car however.   I'm a firm believer of travelling a dog in a crate, purpose built or not, in a car, if only from a safety point of view.   And in order to accommodate mine, after the first one and our first longer trip with him when we had to fit him, his basket, our bag and his food into our then MG Midget, we had to sadly let the Midge go in favour of a more suitable 'estate' car for him and all the rest.    That shows how committed we were to our hounds.

I think I'd have them carry their dog to the car and have him in a crate, probably covered - our lot always travelled without being sick in the night when it was dark outside.    And even if you do have one that upchucks, over time they should grow through that - we had one but after he picked up what was eventually found to be a grass seed, with LOADS of trips to the vet, by the time all that resolved, he travelled just fine in the car, from then on.  And he was having a vet-end to those trips rather than the trip ending with something pleasant

A bit of a long shot I know. You say he happily got into the back of your car but he travels on the back seat of his own. What sort of doors are the side doors of his own car? One of my dogs was terrified of the noise of sliding doors, to her it must have sounded like thunder. When camping at agility shows where there were lots of vans with sliding doors she used to panic during the night. The sound was not as obvious during the day. Totally forgetting about this I got a car with sliding side doors and even though I wanted her in the back it took me twenty minutes of coaxing to get her near enough to the car to lift her in. Luckily for me and my back it was to an agility show and the pleasure of the show outweighed her fear of the car after the first time.