Hi,

I stupidly thought dogs would like going out for a walk! Our new puppy has suddenly decided that as soon as he gets 10 metres out of the front gate he'll sit (or lay) down and refuse to budge. He doesn't appear scared of anything and doesn't react when any cars go past, he just won't walk!

I think it is a battle of wills and he is testing us to see if we'll pick him up (guilty I'm afraid sometimes when I'm in a bit of a hurry) but it seems strange because for the first week or two he loved walking round the block sniffing at all the new things.

Our dog trainer has said we should just keep walking but short of physically dragging him down the road by his neck this is impossible. (He's quite strong for such a small animal!). I've also tried tempting him with treats but he'll walk along until I give it to him and then promptly sits down again.

It wouldn't be so bad but he has so much energy and tears round the garden like a mad thing and I'd love to try and tire him out a bit on a walk.

Any suggestions?

Pop him in the car and drive to a big park or field,i bet he will be more than interested in running around off lead and investigating :)
I never take my dogs round the block anymore,they have done it a hundred times and are just bored of it now,take him somewhere with new sites and smells,he may need a little more stimulation than an on lead walk around the block.

How old and what breed is he? :)

Thanks, that's a good idea. I'll try and take him somewhere interesting tonight. I'm a bit wary about letting him off the lead though. I'm not sure I'm confident enough with his recall!!

He's a Tibetan Terrier and is 14 weeks old by the way.

I find good offlead behaviour's easier to train when the pup's young and nervous and doesn't want to get far from 'mum'! Once older and more confident the owner's boring and they want to go off and explore - and that's when the problems start, with owner calling and pup learning that he can ignore the calls and do what he wants. Letting offlead in a nice safe place as soon as possible after vaccinations, and when they still can't run very fast ;) can make recall training very much easier.

Also you may not think he isn't showing fear, he may be of a stoic breed that doesn't do panic mode just shut off mode.  If he is still very young he could be finding it all overwhelming.

I am rehabilitating a rescue of around 18 months at the moment.  She had not been on lead before I had her to stay 3 weeks ago.

I have found a Harness of the static type (not the stop pull sort that tighten) which has two D rings above the snap across the shoulders, excellent to get forward propulsion without pulling on the neck. 

Both Hicraft and Canac do this style (have had both as she chewed th Canac one up as I left it on her, so had to buy another )

What the harness seems to do is provide uniform pressure around the body and seems also to be reasuring.  Worth a try, the small size two one cost me a fiver and this one (Hicraft) third size£7

Thanks for your advice.

I had thought about a harness as I feel it distributes the pressure a bit better. I'll look out for the ones you recommend and give them a try.

All the best with your rehabilitation work. It seems incredible that the poor little mite has not been out on a lead and is 18 months old. I admire your  dedication and hard work. (I'm finding puppy training difficult enough!)

I have a westie who did exactly the same thing. It took 45 mins to walk what should have been 15 mins. He would stop and stare at everything around him. It gradually got better and now he strides out ahead of me in true westie walk style. I used to carry some treats in a bag around my waist and encourage him along. If he walked beside me he would get a treat. If he stopped or lagged behind I would recall him and reward him when he caught up. This was extended to keep walking when he caught up with me rather than encourage him to stop again.

Thanks all, for your advice. My mum took him out the other night and he was sitting down as usual when our dog trainer walked by (she handily lives a couple of doors away!). Anyway, she couldn't coax him into moving much either so she went to get one of her Boxers. Off they trotted like the best of friends all the way down the road! Perhaps he just needed to be shown what to do!
He's been much better since. I bought one of those harnesses on Saturday but I can't even get him into it, he just tries to chew it and turns himself upside down so back to the usual lead I think!
Just one thing I was a bit worried about. When I took him out tonight he managed to find a packet of Maltesers that someone had dropped. Before I even realised he had eaten one. I know chocolate is toxic for dogs. Do you think I should be worried?

One malteser will be fine :)

Daisy

Thanks for the prompt reply! I just hope he hasn't got a taste for them. This pup will eat absolutely anything!

Milk chocolate isn't as bad as dark - cocoa powder is the worst - but it just depends on the weight of the dog as too how dangerous the amount consumed is. My older dog (a rescue and used to be a bad scavenger) had a couple of bad incidents with chocolate when he was younger. We have all learnt to keep any chocolate on very high shelves or, preferably, in secure cupboards :)

Daisy

What kind of harness did you get as the one I mentioned is simplicity itself to put on, just lay on floor put one leg in one hole other in the other, and then snap the parts together at the shoulder.

Alternatively if he is lying on his back get the legs in roll him over and there you go.

How old is he?

I got it from Pets at Home. (There own make). It has a collar with two D rings on, then you're supposed to put another bit through the D rings, under each leg and back up to the collar. He just keeps going for my hands when I try to get the straps under his legs. He's being a little horror with everything at the moment. I'll try it again when he's a bit calmer! The one you mentioned sounds easier though.

He's 15 weeks old today.

1 will be fine. It hardly contains much coco.   You just have to make sure all foods are kept safely  away from dogs.
Here is a guide list you may find helpful. I was always over cautious about chocholate  but still lost my wonderful young dog to an unknown to me toxin... raisins..and we were always so careful never to leave any foods out. So now I treat the more deadly foods listed like I would treat antifreeze or bleach. Take care.


Known  Food Toxins To Dogs:
Fruits, Vegetables, Food

Apple, Almond, Apricot, Peach, Wild Cherries, Plum, Balsam Pear, Prunes and similar fruit: Diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, (Stem, Seeds and Leaves) The seeds of most fruits contain cyanide, which is poisonous to dogs as well as humans.

Avocados: The fruit, pit and plant are all toxic. They can cause difficulty breathing and fluid accumulation in the chest, abdomen and heart

Broccoli: reported to be pretty potent gastrointestinal irritant

Cherry: rapid breathing, shock, mouth inflammation, heart rate increase

Chocolate: seizures, coma, hyperactivity, rapid heart beat, tremors, death. Bakers chocolate is the most dangerous. A dog can consume milk chocolate and appear to be fine because it is not as concentrated but is still very dangerous.
* 1 oz per lb of body weight for (2 oz per kg) of body weight for bakers chocolate
* 1 oz per 3 lbs of body weight (1 oz per 1.5 kg body weight) for semi-sweet chocolate
* 1 oz per 9lbs of body weight (1 oz per 4 kg) for milk chocolate
* Please keep in mind that these are only guidelines, and if you suspect your pet had ingested chocolate, please keep an eye out for ANY signs of poisoning! Every dog reacts differently to quantity.

Coffee/Tea Drinks/Foods containing caffeine or sugar: may cause many of the same symptoms chocolate causes

Cocoa Mulch: ( used as  garden compost )contain potentially toxic quantities of Theobromine, a xanthine compound similar in effects to caffeine and theophylline. It is lethal to dogs and cats. A new problem and is now causing a lot of deaths.

Cooked Bones: uncooked bones should be safe but if they are cooked you should refrain because they deteriorate and easily splinter. Can cause extensive damage to internal organs and passage ways, may times resulting in death.

Macadamia nuts:cause locomotory difficulties. Dogs develop a tremor of the skeletal muscles, and weakness or paralysis of the hindquarters. Affected dogs are often unable to rise and are distressed, usually panting.... while painful, seems to be of short duration.

Mushrooms: acute gastric effects, liver and kidney damage, abdominal pain, nausea, salivation, vomiting

Nutmeg: tremors, seizures and death

Tobacco: nausea, salivation, vomiting, tachycardia (rapid heartbeat)

Onion: (cats are more sensitive), gastrointestinal upset, hemolytic anemia, heinz body anemia, hemogloinria, destroys red blood cells

Grapes, Raisins, Prunes: kidney failure, as little as a single serving of grapes or raisins can kill a dog. It takes anywhere from 9 oz to 2 lbs of grapes and raisins (between .041 and 1.1 oz/kg of body weight), to cause severe vomiting and diarrhea, and possible kidney failure

Salt: excessive intake can cause kidney problems

Raw Eggs- many people feed raw eggs to their dogs but keep in mind that they can contain salmonella. Dogs do have a higher immunity against salmonella poisoning but are not immune and have been reported to get it from uncooked eggs.

Thanks so much, that is really helpful. I'm surprised about apple. I didn't realise that was bad. He hasn't had any, but I thought he could.
Hopefully the one malteser hasn't done any damage but he has been really hyperactive so I'll keep an eye on him. Hopefully its just a coincidence!
I'm going to have to keep a close eye on him because he is such a scavenger, he hoovers round the floor seeking out anything edible!

I'm surprised about apple.
it's not the whole apple...just seeds and stem and in large quantities. And seriously one malteser is nothing to worry about.

I'm going to have to keep a close eye on him because he is such a scavenger
yes the scavengers realy need a sharp eye...get into good practices from the beginning. Teach leave with lavish rewards to make it worth his while and get a good recall around food so later on you have a greater chanceof alling him away from picnics, dead birds and chicken bones he might find when you are out.

My house is quite open plan so my last dog could scavenge and even though I'd put everything away sometims he would steal bread or something as with a family no matter what I tell them and no matter how freqently I idy up thy don't listen. So my two young dogs are crate rtrasined and will always sleep in their crates then I don't have to worry.  The crates are fantastic... I wish I'd known about them when we had Jack because they would have saved his life.

Anyway...have fun... pups are like fully fledged  hyperactive toddlers!

We've discussed apples quite recently.  The cyanide is in the pips but in tiny quantities.  We don't stop our children eating apples and they don't come with a warning so I'm not worried about them.  My dog loves apples and she also eats raw broccoli.

She lived in the country, and the dogs had grown into a large pack.

She now walks happily in heavy traffic, with tail up striding out, and only the most unusual things that she hasn't encountered before phase her for a moment or two.

Really she woudl be ready for homing now, with the owner understanding she needs ongoing socialisatioon to more types of people and situations.

She is now actually approcaching people for attention, especialy when they visit as opposed to just remaining passive.

Starting to play with objects now, and rolls over for a gentle rought and tumble with me.

She has never known any cruelty, just hasn't been used to this level of human contact, and such varied expereinces.

I think for the time being it would be best to carry her for a bit and then put her on the ground and then let her walk a bit and then carry her again. It is very daunting for a small pup to see things from ground level. If they are up high they get used to the sights and sounds and smells. Good Luck.

With the reluctance to walk I thought you were going to say she was a pekingese!
I agree with Brainless I start all the pups in a puppy harness now, and have never looked back.I take food with me, or their favourite toy,whichever they are most interested in.Always better to take them with a dog that walks already.I start them off round my garden,and then the field.Within a couple of days they are dancing around when that lead comes out!