How To Walk A Dog

[Guest]

Hoping for some help, constructive criticism, whatever dolers have to offer.

I have a 12-18 month (desexed male) JRT that I am fostering. He has been with me for 2 weeks and is a shy and timid dog.

day 1 - refused to come within 3 metres of humans, 2 mins into meeting he has not left one of my JRT's(Blister) side - best buddies, dumb & dumber, tweedledee and tweedledum.

day 12 will come to me (not my OH), but very slowly. and if he is laying down, I can about 80%of the time, walk up and pat him. He follows me around our yard off lead and comes when he is called. Still follows Blister everywhere. Still BFF's

He doesn't walk and I don't know how to get him to walk.

I have tried choker chain,harness and a collar /lead. I have tried tying him to my dogs (obviously one at a time) As soon as he is connected to the lead, he lays down. Refuses to move. The only option is to drag. He will walk around the yard with his harness on and the lead no problems, but as soon as I pick the lead up - He drops and will not move. He is not food orientated, tried chicken,sausages,devon, cheese,schmackos,liver treats,doggie chocolate,jerhigh etc etc. I have the patience and I am not forcing him, just not sure HOW TO?

Looking for any help/advice

Thanks

Edited November 10, 2011 by Guest

[megan_]

re: the shyness, just ignore him and let him approach in his own time.

Re: the walking, take it very slowly. Here is the method that I used for a dog that completely shut down when the lead was on:

i) Tie a tiny bit of cord (say 5 - 10 cm) onto their collar. Leave it on and let them go about their business, getting used to something being on their collar. You must supervise though so that it doesn't get caught. Remove.

ii) In the next day or two, tie a slighly thicker cord. Repeat as above until the dog is oblivious to the cord.

iii) Try it with a very thin puppy leash. Again, just let them do their own thing. Don't try to walk them. Remember to supervise to prevent a strangled dog.

iv) Now try it with their normal leash. Again, let them drag it around. Leash goes on before feeding time (leash = I get yummy things)

v) Once you've done all the above and the dog now is comfortable with the leash, now you can try and walk it. Try walking in the house at first. Again, repeat until the dog is comfortable. Then try going down the driveway, back home and ending it. Then just a little bit more...

All of this was done on a flat collar and leash. I certainly wouldn't be using a check chain on a dog that was frightened of walking.

[Guest]

Thanks megan,

I will certainly give this a go. If it worked for you, it might work for me. Our biggest worry is he has been hit by a lead/rope. But we can't change his history, but can help path his future.

The biggest issue, is as soon as we pick the lead up, he stops, but I am guessing patience and time will help. I will be starting on this this arvo

Thanks for your time and advice. I really appreciate it

[megan_]

My guess is he's still a bit wary of you. Maybe give the walking a rest, ignore him and wait until he is coming to you for attention?

[Guest]

My guess is he's still a bit wary of you. Maybe give the walking a rest, ignore him and wait until he is coming to you for attention?

He is definitely still wary of me. I totally ignored him for the first week, and I believe that worked best. He does have a little trust in me now, but he does not like my OH at all.

He doesn't actually walk up to me yet, unless my dogs come to me. As soon as that happens, he comes over and is willing to be patted. but he doesn't come over on his own accord. Maybe a bit more time - there is no rush

I just want to take baby steps, but I will be trying your baby steps and see how we progress.

[persephone]

My guess is he's still a bit wary of you. Maybe give the walking a rest, ignore him and wait until he is coming to you for attention?

yep .. he gets NOTHING . no food or water, unless it is from your hands. you hold the bowls ..or pieces of food ...

I did this once with a kelpie we were given to shoot .. she had lived in a kennel/run .. had plenty of food.. but no attention. She had no respect or liking for , or dependence on, humans.

So for a few days .. I was her sole provider. She ate every morsel off my hand ..drank only when she used a bowl I held ..and after a couple of days , the message started to sink in .. and she would look for me to approach ...then she learnt about praise and eye contact ... and only THEN did we start attempting to do anything else with her .

So - take it slow ..do not force a collar/harness/leash on this guy ....you need to wait until he is communicating with humans before asking him to do things .

[megan_]

It took six months for Lucy to walk outside!

[Guest]

that could be spot on persephone. We think he hasn't had much contact with humans. We believe if he could live in a house with dogs only, run by dogs, he would be fine. But as soon as you throw a human in the mix - he is outta there.

But he does like the water and we have a pool. My 2 dogs climb in and sit on the top step, maybe that could be a starting point with him? We also have a little shell pool which Blister uses.

I feel crappy cause he is not getting enough exercise/stimulation being stuck in my backyard, and if we go out, he tends to dig his way to China which is obviously boredom.....