Does not like to go on walks :(

[OurFirstPup]

Hello,

I've been patiently trying to teach my Penny to talk, but she does not like it. She runs around in the backyard like a rocket, and goes up to the front yard, but when we get ready to go on a walk, she will not walk away from the house. If I carry her to the end of the street and set her down, she will walk back just fine; as soon as she sees our driveway, she darts down to the backyard. Treats don't work - she will walk a few steps to get a treat, and then sits her butt down again. Anything I can do? I do not think the problem is with a leash - she tries to pull herself out of harness when we go away from the house, but walks fine back. Thank you!

 

[larrygs]

I assume she is quite young. If so, it is a new and scary world. I would slowly "socialize" her with differnent experiences and just expand at her pace. You don't want to frighten her. That can last a long time. Tastier treats might help some.

Our pup was pretty bold in the litter and at home. However, early on she was also hesitant to venture out on a walk and clearly was much faster going home. LOL, sort of miss those days. Now she wants to pull us down the street to explore the world and not come home.

I also occurs to me there could be something frightening for her at the end drive. You might try driving to other locations. However, my hunch is she will be changing as she gets older and gains confidence.

 

[sargboxerluv]

If she is really young, she is probably just not ready to go away from her home. You might try carrying her to the end of the drive and let her walk back. Then she can see that it is ok to go down there, and she gets the experience of walking back.

I fostered a male boxer around a year old who was terrified to be outside! I would open the door to take him out and he would pee as soon as his feet hit the cement and charge back inthe house. For 2 days a drug him out for his walk. The entire time he would go in circles looking back at the house, he would even spin while he was pooping and trample all over it!

I gave up (because my back was killing me from dragging his 70# butt) and got a coupler to take both him and my female. I had wanted to keep them seperate because I thought he had demodex mange which is not contagious to my knowledge, but he hadn't sen the vet yet) and my girl was aggressive toward him. He was Mr brave as long as she came. Actually he was still anxious cause he barked at everything, but he walked and sniffed everything and stood still when he pooped.

My point in telling you that was, if it doesn't get better, please get professional help. You don't want to be dragging your pup when it is no longer a pup!

 

[OurFirstPup]

larrygs, she is young - 10 weeks. She is very boisterous in the backyard, and she does run to the end of the driveway on her own, sniffs around the front yard, so I doubt she's afraid to go there. In fact, neighbor's front yard has mushrooms on it, which she loves (it's hard to catch her once she pounces on one, she eats them!!).

sargboxerluv, as in my original post, I do carry her to the end of the street, and she walks back fine. I have a sneaking suspicion of her not wanting to be led - if she's "leading" when we're going back, she's very good. I don't know if a 10 week old can exersize her Alpha status, but it's something I'm also working on.

I've never encountered a puppy not wanting to walk, hopefully it's temporary. The neighbors love watching me carry her down the street with her head onmy shoulder watching them

 

[johann]

larrygs, she is young - 10 weeks. She is very boisterous in the backyard, and she does run to the end of the driveway on her own, sniffs around the front yard, so I doubt she's afraid to go there. In fact, neighbor's front yard has mushrooms on it, which she loves (it's hard to catch her once she pounces on one, she eats them!!).

sargboxerluv, as in my original post, I do carry her to the end of the street, and she walks back fine. I have a sneaking suspicion of her not wanting to be led - if she's "leading" when we're going back, she's very good. I don't know if a 10 week old can exersize her Alpha status, but it's something I'm also working on.

I've never encountered a puppy not wanting to walk, hopefully it's temporary. The neighbors love watching me carry her down the street with her head onmy shoulder watching them

I doubt that its her trying to be alpha. Its much more likely that she's just worried, or doesn't understand what she is supposed to be doing.

Does she like peanut butter? Put some on a wooden spoon (or some other long utensil) and lead her down the street like that. Only took 1 walk like that with Johann to catch on that walks=fun.

 

[OurFirstPup]

I think she does like peanut butter - she was licking it out of the kong pretty well. However, I left a frozen kong with peanut butter in her crate when I was leaving the house, and found PB untouched in it when I returned 2 hours later. She may have been too upset to eat it.
I think I will wait a couple of weeks before taking her on a walk again. Our vet said it was OK for her to go, but in Jan Fennell's book she advises against walking until they're 14 weeks old, so we have another 3 weeks till then. I'll have her run around with a leash at home/backyard for now; by then, maybe she'll be interested in rabbits we often see on the street
I made a toy for her out of a long pole with a small toy attached by a rope, sort of like fish on a line. She loves chasing it, and slept like the dead afterwards, didn't wake up even when we were eating chicken wings nearby!

 

[johann]

Its safer for them, healthwise, to wait until they've had all their vaccinations too. That way there's much less of a chance of picking up some sort of bug while they're out and about.

I'm pretty sure Johann would do anything for peanut butter. He lives for the day when his peanut butter jar is empty.....because then we just give him the jar to clean out.