Puppy Not Walking

[jaysiin]

we have a 2-3mths old kelpie pup which we got from the rspca.

so far he knows he to sit and play fetch. however he hates the leash.

we have tried letting him walk around the yard with the leash just hanging from him.

we have tried treats each time he gains distance when we hold it

we have tried a choker chain to get him going.

we have searched as much as possible online

but to all fail ends. he will just sit down and wont move or he fights back pulling in the opposite direction...

if we can not get him to walk, we are intending to take him to puppy school and hopefully we get somewhere.

any tips would be helpful guys

[whiskedaway]

When we got Akira she HATED the leash. For us, because she's so food motivated, the thing that worked was one person holding the leash and the other in front of her, coaxing her along with food. Because she followed the food (and got STACKS of rewards for one step, then two steps, then a few steps) she forgot that someone was holding the lead. However, one thing to be aware of is that we got so excited just by her walking on lead that we rewarded pulling and all other sorts of behaviours. Now we have a massive problem with pulling, and it's possible we could have nipped it in the bud at twelve weeks old, rather than still be fighting with it at nine months.

[Nekhbet]

you dont use a choker chain on a pup that young, their necks are very under developed

start with a normal flat collar and a light leash. Walk away from the pup holding his favourite treats, turn to face him and call him excitedly, when he comes give him a treat and make a fuss. Keep repeating this.

If he wont budge give tiny little pops and wiggles to encourage him to follow you. You will need to practice in the backyard first so he gets used to the whole concept. THen move onto you standing up and calling him to you then move away a little to get him to learn to follow. If he wont budge again, little pops and wiggles until he does.

If he plonks his bum down walk backwards very slowly and pop pop pop gently to get him up and moving, dont stop moving yourself. Dragging = putting on the brakes, little jiggles on the leash will get him moving again.

Oh and book yourself in for a good puppy training/preschool ASAP

[W Sibs]

Hi! Welcome

we have tried letting him walk around the yard with the leash just hanging from him.

What have you done to encourage him him walking. Do you call him over and make it the best thing ever when he walks towards you? Have you encourage him to come towards you?

we have tried treats each time he gains distance when we hold it

Does he trust you enough to get food off you? Maybe he isn't food motivated and maybe he will walk to you if you had a toy? (squeaking toys are best).

Sometimes it's best to ignore them and let them figure out what to do. If you have the leash on him, walk around the yard and he is bound to follow you to see what you're up too.

we have tried a choker chain to get him going.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don't use a correction chain on a puppy that young. You are punishing him for something he doesn't know or understand. Correction chains are only used for correction. This pup doesn't understand why he is getting punished for.

Also, keep in mind... It's still a very young puppy who's in a new home. He is still very young and settling in and learning to trust you guys.

You have to make the leash fun for the puppy. Put the leash on him and then just let him be. walk around the yard and encourage him to come to you, give him a toy and if he likes toys.. play with the toys with him.

Emmy doesn't like the leash when we first put it on her (you should see the tantrum she put on)... I just ignored her and continued doing my own thing, when she stopped and looked at me... I called her out in a very happy voice and then she walked slowly towards me and that's when I act like it was the best thing ever. she got cuddles, kisses and treats. Also, when she walked with the leash, I took her to the front of the house. I wanted to associate that when I have the leash.. it means we are going somewhere. She loves going out.

BTW.. what's the pups name? And, where's the pics?

[PupPup]

Had the exact same problem with my boy and we are only just starting to get out of the habit, so I'm hearing ya.

Very frustrating but stick with it cause he'll work it out eventually.

We discovered he would walk when we took him somewhere new, not around our neighborhood. It encouraged him to want to walk and explore so we found different tracks, parks etc. Now we have introduced him back into walking around our neighborhood and he goes really well.

We also use a lot of treats and at one point were taking toys with us or squeekys.

As with Akira, Harvey now is starting to pull more so he's gone from one extreme to another and I think it is because we have been so focussed on just getting him to move. This is my next challenge! Stop him from pulling!

Good Luck.

[jaysiin]

tried with treats all day yesterday. sooo fustrating. he either pulls the leash and think its a game of tug of war or sit downs and wont move.

we have a busy active lifestyle and we were hoping to take him for lots of walks/runs as we currently excerise everyday 2-3hrs. but i cant even get him to walk in a sensible manner for more than 10m. he is still very young minded so i hope that is the case...

tried to upload pics, but they are over the limit.

[Rebanne]

try putting the leash on and following him around the back yard rather than have him follow you, giving him praise/treats as he moves around. Attach a piece of light rope, without any loops so it can't get caught up, put his food down a few feet away and let him drag the rope over to the bowl. Let him drag the rope around the house and yard, with supervision for a couple of days. Get him to come to you for a reward off lead 1st, then add a lead into the equation.

You do realise that it could be some months before your dog can be exercised for long periods of time?

Edited December 4, 2010 by Rebanne

[jaysiin]

I am aware he is still young but we do not have intentions for him to last that long. my main goal is to walk him around the block which is approx 20mins and from that, i hope i can improve.

I just bought a new harness and tried using that as a new "walking"... how can i say it... thing.

I picked him up like a baby and put him in the front yard out of his comfort zone.

threw smackos pieces in front of him and we are gaining 1m per smacko piece. however going closer to the backyard gate, we will go the whole way (12m).

i will keep trying this and hopefully we may get somewhere....?

[Rebanne]

20 mins of on leash walking at 2 -3 months old is too much. By all means, once he is comfortable with the leash, walk him past a couple of houses and back again but be careful of doing too much too soon.

he'll grow up quick enough

[LizT]

At one obedience Club I attended (all breeds) whenever this occurred with a 'stubborn" pup the instructor made the handler just keep walking and drag the pup along. I hated seeing this done and was glad my GSD was happy to bounce along beside me.

Admittently the pups eventually engaged their rear ends because they had to. I prefer a gentle encouragement and enticement. Does he follow you around without the lead? I find puppies who are happy to 'follow feet' the easiest to lead train.

[jaysiin]

after many google and youtube searchs, i notice there are many ways to train your puppy. i have tried tugging on the lead, and not. i have pulled him a couple of times... and 70% of the time he comes eventually.. but i dont want to scare him off the leash. he is very stubborn. however he personality is rather.... baby-ish. just want pats, hugs and plenty of games of fetch and tug-o-war.

sometimes he even cries at the back door seeking attention. if i just sit outside with him, that is enough to keep him quiet while he chews his toys. but once i leave him and walk inside he cries.

[corvus]

Maybe you are going too fast for him? Perhaps you could try putting the leash on and just feeding him treats constantly for about a minute and then taking it off again. Leave him alone for a while, then put the leash back on and give him another couple of handfuls of treats one at a time, then take it off. Do it several times a day. My guess is sooner or later he will be comfortable enough with the leash on that he'll start to forget about it and move around with it on.

[Starkehre]

Hi Jaysiin, you mention your puppy is 2-3 months.

Between 8 and 13 weeks of age there is a huge difference.

Do you not know how old your pup is?

Is there a chance that your pup is only 8 weeks old?

If by chance your pup is only 8 weeks old or close to that, you should not be expecting any walking except for maybe 2 house lengths at the most. And what may have occured is all these desperate attempts of yours have literally turn him off walking and the leash.

It does sound like you are in way too much of a hurry to get legs on your dog for these long walkies you wish to do with him.

I would take the pressure off for a while. Put the leash away for a few days or a week. Take him out and about in your arms and let him experience the big wide world.

I understand how frustrated you are and at this stage it probably seems like things will never get better, but they will. I think with all this emphasis on leash walking and trying new methods "all day" is only goin to put things backwards. Personally I would be spending some quality time rebuilding that negative feeling that may have developed between yourself and the dog by doing so much work on something that is clearly not going "your way".

It is perfectly normal for a puppy to want pats, games hugs etc at that age. That is not to be frowned upon. All training should be mixed up with fun stuff etc when they are so young. I know you have your heart in the right place, but it just sounds like you are taking this way to seriously and pushing way too hard.

Stress less, and do some other stuff with him for a while. Keep the leash on whilst supervised for short stints as you have done, but leave it alone. Just remove it after a short time and treat.

You may find in another 2 weeks he will have matured a lot and is ready for another go, but get some help selecting the most suitable method for your pup and stick to that one method for a while and stop swapping and changing.

Good luck with him. You will get there.

Edited December 4, 2010 by dyzney

[persephone]

Your puppy's behaviour is

...well...babyish?

your puppy IS a BABY !!!

sometimes he even cries at the back door seeking attention. if i just sit outside with him, that is enough to keep him quiet while he chews his toys. but once i leave him and walk inside he cries.

he is a BABY ...and needs company.He misses his mum and other pups he was with.... and as dogs are PACK animals, they need to hang out in groups ...YOU are his pack now- but you shut him outside - of course he will cry......

Until pup has been fully vaccinated, he should not be walked much anyhow- he is a risk of catching parvo, which can be fatal

and as someone said .. an EIGHT week old pup is MUCH different than a TWELVE week old pup ...in size, brain development and attitude.

Can you post a photo- or link us to one , so we can see your puppy?

have a read here- it may help you to have some more information.....don't be in a hurry- you have 12 or so years to train this dog

CLICK here

and

CLICK here

[sallyandtex]

Congratulations to you for getting a pup from the shelter!

We got our wonderful kelpie Sally from the rescue when she was 12 weeks old.

I am learning alot about Kelpies, and there are some great people on this forum that help out with answers!

Sally is MUCH different to our other dog who passed away last year.

She is now 13 months old, fully grown but SO much still a baby!

She is smart, and is very obedient, but when it comes to other stimulus (esp other dogs), she only has ONE focus...THEM! She is getting better, and once she;s had a little hello or play with the other dog/s she will come when called.

When on the lead, I can't get by without my easy-walker lead. Its a front attched lead so she can't pull FORWARD. She can loose lead without other dogs around OK, but when close to other dogs she wants to pull with a normal collar attachment. We have tried everything, and she is NOT food focussed, so the treats don't work.

We are really happy with this arrangement, it's a bliss using this harness after the pulling!

One of the DOLers, a Kelpie person, said not to try too hard to train to perfection until kelpie 2 years old when they have their "Zoomies" out and become more "sensible"

So maybe give this type of harness a go. Its much better on the neck

Good Luck!!!

[jaysiin]

thanks everyone for their feedback.

rocket is our first canine with my gf and i. i wanted a rotty or a gsd. but she complained they were too big. so we compromised. after 7mths of weekly visits to the rspca we fell in love with rocket.

i have had a ridgeback x and a staffy x previously (when i was younger) and they didnt need to be trained on a leash. just attach and go

with rocket, i found this weird as he wouldnt walk so i googled my way onto this forum.

corvus- i cant walk too fast for him as i cant even take 1step.

dyzney- i went through my rspca papers and his birth date is 27 aug 2010.

quick update....

i had a friend over who had her puppy that walked on a leash... they played and got to know each other....

got her to walk her dog outside just before she left home and i got rocket to follow her. which he did. no treats. as long as he seen her dog, he wanted to follow. still bit scared when a car drives past though.

on the way back, i made sure rocket was ahead of the other dog so he was no longer the follower. and guess what? he walked, then i got he to jog next to me on the way home. (80-100m each way)

when her dog left, he kept pulling on the leash trying to chase after the puppy. will try tomorrow solo and see how he goes.

btw, whats a Dol? and zoomie?

[jaysiin]

photos from when we first got him.

[corvus]

corvus- i cant walk too fast for him as i cant even take 1step.

I meant asking too much too soon. If he won't take one step than maybe you need to go RIGHT back to the very beginning and concentrate on just getting him comfy wearing a leash at all. Counter-conditioning is a process used to change an animal's emotional response to something. By giving him lots of treats while he has the leash on (not going anywhere), you're forming an association in his mind between the leash and good things happening. You could start even further back and give him treats for just letting you put the leash near him if he doesn't take treats with it on. I would get a handful of treats ready, put the leash on, work through the treats in your hand, then take the leash off and repeat several times a day.

[Christina]

Never drag or pull a puppy. A walk isn't supposed to be a nightmare.

Lead on in their own yard waste of time too as they are used to charging around there.

Mine do not respond to treats so this works every time

When puppy sits down or refuses to move try the usual come on, silly noise thing for 30 seconds & if useless totally ignore your puppy & stand still.

The puppy will not sit there forever. It gets bored & starts to move, then its lots of praise.

You will get bored too, but persist, they don't stay there for more than a few minutes. Patience.

If you have another dog taking the 2 out together can work but its a bit difficult, tangled leads & watching them instead of where you are going. Usually does the trick though.

[koalathebear]

photos from when we first got him.

Oh my goodness. He is sooooooooooooo cute I'm not just saying that because I love Kelpies. I'm not a dog trainer and am just speaking from my experience of owning 1.75 Kelpies

First of all, like everyone has said - he's still just a little baby and really not up to great distances. It's bad for his health. Don't worry though - as he gets older, like all Kelpies he'll be totally capable of running 20km a day and not getting tired As puppies though, even Kelpies like to sleep and rest a lot. Thank goodness our two don't expect anywhere near that level of exercise and have fit in with our lazy lifestyles.

Your puppy probably has slightly negative associations of the leash right now. Kelpies love movement so before you try with the leash again, why not put the leash aside and just run around the backyard with him. Run backwards and have him chase after you. Even without treats, he will probably run towards you. If you make crazy happy sounds, he'll be even more inclined to chase after you. After he gets into the habit of following you, then try it with the leash to see how he goes. Our second puppy was originally a bit Leash Stubborn, particularly if we were leading him out in the rain to toilet Like your pup he'd plonk his but on the ground and just stare at us. You can't really force a Kelpie to do things - you have to persuade them. So motivate him with movement, treats and lots of praise. Good luck!

More photos, please and please come and join the Kelpie Subforum. It's not one of the most active threads on the forum but we all adore our Kelpies/Kelpie crosses

Edited December 6, 2010 by koalathebear