# Dog won't always walk or won't go the direction I want



## Am210 (Jul 2, 2015)

A bit of background: we adopted our hound/terrier mix from the local Humane Society a year ago. She was about 2 at the time, and they described her as "sociable" and "a couch potato". She is our first dog ever, and we thought we were getting an "easy" dog. We have come to learn that she is reactive/fear-aggressive with people outside our family and we have worked with a trainer/therapist on those issues. She's not the easy dog we thought we were getting, but we love her and we're managing the best we can. 

One of the current problems we are having is that she won't always walk as much as she should. She could really use more exercise than she is getting. Sometimes, we get her outside and she'll walk perfectly, for as long as we'd like to go. Other times, she just wants to get right back inside after peeing, etc. We also would like to have more control over the direction we take her. If she doesn't want to walk in a particular direction, she simply puts her head down and pulls back the other way. We always have treats with us on walks to use as counter-conditioning when we are near people but it doesn't seem that luring her with treats to walk is a good solution. Sometimes I stop and pet her for a minute and then she'll walk again in my chosen direction, but not always. We usually just give in and let her dictate where and when we walk, but shouldn't we be the ones to control the length and direction of the walks?

Thanks so much for any advice!


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## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

Am210 said:


> A bit of background: we adopted our hound/terrier mix from the local Humane Society a year ago. She was about 2 at the time, and they described her as "sociable" and "a couch potato". She is our first dog ever, and we thought we were getting an "easy" dog. We have come to learn that she is reactive/fear-aggressive with people outside our family and we have worked with a trainer/therapist on those issues. She's not the easy dog we thought we were getting, but we love her and we're managing the best we can.
> 
> One of the current problems we are having is that she won't always walk as much as she should. She could really use more exercise than she is getting. Sometimes, we get her outside and she'll walk perfectly, for as long as we'd like to go. Other times, she just wants to get right back inside after peeing, etc. We also would like to have more control over the direction we take her. If she doesn't want to walk in a particular direction, she simply puts her head down and pulls back the other way. We always have treats with us on walks to use as counter-conditioning when we are near people but it doesn't seem that luring her with treats to walk is a good solution. Sometimes I stop and pet her for a minute and then she'll walk again in my chosen direction, but not always. We usually just give in and let her dictate where and when we walk, but shouldn't we be the ones to control the length and direction of the walks?
> 
> Thanks so much for any advice!


The treats should not be used as a bribe but rather as a reward. Reward her when she walks the way you want her to, reward when she's walking with out/next to you, etc.

Do it very frequently at first, maybe even every couple of steps.

Gradually over time you can decrease the reward frequency as she gets more comfortable with you.


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## petpeeve (Jun 10, 2010)

ireth0 said:


> Do it very frequently at first, maybe even every couple of steps.


This. 

If the dog is exhibiting the behavior you want (walking along), you should "pay" the dog for that, right while the behavior is occurring. Don't stop to give your dog a treat, instead learn to either 1) give the dog a treat from your hand, while in motion or 2) if the dog is small, perhaps use a device such as a long-handled wooden spoon with peanut butter etc or 3) toss a single treat on the ground, slightly forward. The main point being, keep moving. You should develop and use a marker word such as "yes" or "good" (used slightly prior to delivering each treat) to pinpoint the desired behavior, as well.


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## Am210 (Jul 2, 2015)

Thank you, both! I just tried this and it worked...partially. I'm sure it will take longer than one walk to fix. I did throw the (very tiny) treats out ahead of us as she was walking well. She does however stop to sniff things A LOT, zig-zagging in front of me to follow scents, and I usually let her do this, thinking she's enjoying it. Should I not let her stop to do that?

Another problem we run into is that she tends to freeze up with every noise we hear in the neighborhood, no matter how far away. Then I need to coax her into walking again.

Oh, and today's additional issue was that she was terrified of a neighbor's inflatable Christmas reindeer and dog decorations, growling and barking at those. Sigh.


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## cookieface (Jul 6, 2011)

Am210 said:


> Thank you, both! I just tried this and it worked...partially. I'm sure it will take longer than one walk to fix. I did throw the (very tiny) treats out ahead of us as she was walking well. She does however stop to sniff things A LOT, zig-zagging in front of me to follow scents, and I usually let her do this, thinking she's enjoying it. Should I not let her stop to do that?


I'd let her sniff to a reasonable extent, it's good mental stimulation for her. I would try to stop the zig-zagging for safety reasons, but if it doesn't bother you, you don't think you'll trip, and she's not in danger, it's not a big deal. I don't let mine cross in front of me on regular walks, but if we're exploring relatively open areas, I give them more freedom.

If she really likes to sniff, nose work would be a good activity for you and her. It's easy, fun, and a great confidence builder for timid dogs.



> Another problem we run into is that she tends to freeze up with every noise we hear in the neighborhood, no matter how far away. Then I need to coax her into walking again.
> 
> Oh, and today's additional issue was that she was terrified of a neighbor's inflatable Christmas reindeer and dog decorations, growling and barking at those. Sigh.


She sounds very timid; my younger dog is fearful, so I sympathize. When he encounters something "scary" I talk to him in a happy voice, feed treats (lots of treats), and, if he seems interested, allow him to explore the scary thing at his own pace (obviously you can't do that for noises).

You might find these resources helpful:
Counter Conditioning: a Visual Explanation 
fearful dogs
How to Help Shy, Anxious, or Fearful Dogs
scaredy dog


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## Kathyy (Jun 15, 2008)

Ginger's favorite walking game is getting to chase down tossed treats. Try asking for a sit or down then toss away from her within leash range and do it both directions not just to get her to walk but to make walking more fun for her.

Sassy adored walking but found new slightly scary things for a year after we adopted her. I know she was exposed to all that stuff, she was picked up as a stray at least twice before she came home with us! Max jumped out of his skin at an empty car trailer of all things for a month before he decided it didn't eat dogs and the time a snake slithered across the trail meant I had to carry him or drag him at that spot for a year or so. I liked that, being afraid of snakes is a good thing and I was sorry the fear went away. Dogs are weird.

Try the opposite of getting her to move along. When she stops to sniff/stare/react to things stay put until she indicates she has absorbed all that new stuff and can move along. Bucky is a frantic mess at new. I stop and wait out the tantrum, sniff or stare, When he moves to my side and sits or moves closer and looks at me I praise, often treat and then move forward. I always treat for moving along during the brief spells he has a loose leash. When he is feeling comfortable he can walk for 30 steps LL, when he is overwhelmed I could click as he lunges but he won't respond to the click so when he is moving at a speed showing he is over the top I just stop and wait for his brain to reengage. 

I did the treats to continue with Max and he took 5 years to get comfortable walking. I sure hope Bucky gets comfortable sooner than that, I need a walking buddy!

Look for signs of being overwhelmed. Maxwell who stressed down had 'whale eye' where you saw too much white in the corners of his eyes, head was held rigidly upright, tail tucked and he clung to me. Bucky who stresses up hits the end of the leash hard and oscillates at the end often standing on his hind legs at the same time, vibrates, rapid shrill barking, tongue is out but there is a strong groove down the center showing he is tense. Neither dog could hear me or take food.

I started walking him just out the door and turned around when he got frantic. Then I would wait him out and walk further. When waiting him out got tedious I turned and walked home. You could do a x strikes and go home. I always retrace my steps so he is more comfortable for half the walk. Repeat many times daily if you can although once a day is fine, allows the new to sink in.

Walks aren't all that great an exercise for dogs, really. They need to get out and about if they can tolerate it, some dogs cannot. I am determined my dogs will walk and hike with me and I hope in a year Bucky can go anywhere for as long as I please easily. For now it is those short training walks, training in the house, running at top speed next to my trike where he is quite badly behaved at times and fetch/flirt pole in the yard.


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## MysticRealm (May 30, 2007)

Tossing treats on the ground for her may encourage her to be sticking her face down to the ground. She's already a hound, she needs no extra excuse to be wanting to be nose to ground.


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## ireth0 (Feb 11, 2013)

MysticRealm said:


> Tossing treats on the ground for her may encourage her to be sticking her face down to the ground. She's already a hound, she needs no extra excuse to be wanting to be nose to ground.


At this point I would just want to get her moving and thinking walks are not scary. If excessive sniffing becomes an issue I'd worry about that down the road.


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## Am210 (Jul 2, 2015)

Thanks for the continued help! It's comforting to hear other similar experiences.



> I'd let her sniff to a reasonable extent, it's good mental stimulation for her. I would try to stop the zig-zagging for safety reasons, but if it doesn't bother you, you don't think you'll trip, and she's not in danger, it's not a big deal. I don't let mine cross in front of me on regular walks, but if we're exploring relatively open areas, I give them more freedom.
> 
> If she really likes to sniff, nose work would be a good activity for you and her. It's easy, fun, and a great confidence builder for timid dogs.



The zig-zagging doesn't really bother me. I watch her closely and just want her to enjoy being outside and walking. I'm intrigued by the idea of "nose work" - where could I find examples of what to do?



> She sounds very timid; my younger dog is fearful, so I sympathize. When he encounters something "scary" I talk to him in a happy voice, feed treats (lots of treats), and, if he seems interested, allow him to explore the scary thing at his own pace (obviously you can't do that for noises).
> 
> You might find these resources helpful:
> Counter Conditioning: a Visual Explanation
> ...


Thanks for these! I have seen "Scaredy Dog" and will check out the others.



> Try the opposite of getting her to move along. When she stops to sniff/stare/react to things stay put until she indicates she has absorbed all that new stuff and can move along. Bucky is a frantic mess at new. I stop and wait out the tantrum, sniff or stare, When he moves to my side and sits or moves closer and looks at me I praise, often treat and then move forward. I always treat for moving along during the brief spells he has a loose leash. When he is feeling comfortable he can walk for 30 steps LL, when he is overwhelmed I could click as he lunges but he won't respond to the click so when he is moving at a speed showing he is over the top I just stop and wait for his brain to reengage.
> 
> I did the treats to continue with Max and he took 5 years to get comfortable walking. I sure hope Bucky gets comfortable sooner than that, I need a walking buddy!
> 
> Look for signs of being overwhelmed. Maxwell who stressed down had 'whale eye' where you saw too much white in the corners of his eyes, head was held rigidly upright, tail tucked and he clung to me. Bucky who stresses up hits the end of the leash hard and oscillates at the end often standing on his hind legs at the same time, vibrates, rapid shrill barking, tongue is out but there is a strong groove down the center showing he is tense. Neither dog could hear me or take food.


I do also try the "stopping and waiting it out". I actually prefer that to trying to coax her along when she stops. Sometimes it does work. We do see the "whale eye" at times (not just on walks) and I try to be sensitive to that stress. Sounds like you deal with many of the same issues.



> Tossing treats on the ground for her may encourage her to be sticking her face down to the ground. She's already a hound, she needs no extra excuse to be wanting to be nose to ground.


True, but I didn't want to stop our momentum and this seemed like the best way to go about it.


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## cookieface (Jul 6, 2011)

Nose work info: http://www.k9nosework.com/


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## Kathyy (Jun 15, 2008)

Nosework. Ginger hadn't a clue what that damp black thing on her face was for until her first class. Now she is really pushy about sniffing on walks which we don't mind. It was like a door opened and she discovered a wonderful talent she didn't know existed. So glad I tried it. 

I never have wanted to repress anything my dogs like to do. Sassy dug, we found legal places for her to dig. She liked to destroy, we played tug with newspaper and boxes, had barkfests when it couldn't bother the neighbors and so on. Sniffing too much is seriously annoying. I found that rewarding leaving the sniff much easier on me and the dog, they actually sniff less and my mindset is better as I am noticing something I like rather than being irritated by something the dogs like to do.

I attempt to keep track of how Bucky is doing and if there get to be a lot of those little panic moments I retrace my steps home. I cannot count on walks wearing him out anyway, all these are for is civilizing the poor stinker and if he is losing his mind he isn't going to get any better.


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## Amaryllis (Dec 28, 2011)

Am210 said:


> We usually just give in and let her dictate where and when we walk, but shouldn't we be the ones to control the length and direction of the walks?
> 
> Thanks so much for any advice!


Look at it less as "being in control" and more as keeping her safe.

My dog was an unsocialized, fearful, shut down mess when I got him. The slightest unfamiliar thing would send him into a panic- yellow caution tape, a wet flower drooping over the sidewalk, a plastic bag. I would just follow him. I let him lead for a long time, within reason. I won't let him lead us into traffic, or onto private property, for example, but otherwise, if he wants to turn around, okay. If he wants to go left, whatever. The walks are for his benefit, not mine. I can go upstairs to the gym if I want to exercise myself. I go outside in the rain and wind and cold for my dog's sake. If he wants to turn around and go home, cool, we'll try again later.

Being in control of some things I believe allowed my dog to become much more confident. Again, he's not totally in control. More like with little kids. You let them pick what they want to wear- but between two appropriate outfits you offer, you don't allow them to pick a bikini to wear to church in January.


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## Am210 (Jul 2, 2015)

Thanks for the nosework information (I think she would love this) as well as the other advice! I agree that perhaps my focus on "control" is not necessarily top priority - it's a good point.


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## jaijai (Dec 16, 2015)

We had the same with our puppy ,head down refusing to leave our drive .
I done the same as you and got the same results ,petting encourages the behaviour 
I now treat when shesmoving in the direction i want and on the move ,if she stops for the treat she gets nothing ,it took me a while to learn the technique but shes now walking for 15 mins with treats for stopping at kerbs to cross the roads only 
The problem lay with me with my frustration and wrong rewarding method 
Good luck with it


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