# Too scared to walk



## Ricardo (Jan 28, 2010)

I have an 8 mo pit bull terrier puppy. What do you all recommend I do if I cannot get him to walk yet because he gets scared of random things while going on the walk? I am not always able to identify what it is that scares him, but he reacts by falling to the ground and refusing to move.


----------



## MissMutt (Aug 8, 2008)

Have you tried bringing treats on walks and giving him lots of praise for walking with you?

Have you tried walking in different locations at different times?

What is it that scares him?? -- commotion, noise, people, other dogs, etc. Try to think about the situations where he gets the most scared. Try to find commonality between them. What is going on at those points?


----------



## Ricardo (Jan 28, 2010)

Yes I have tried food but it is not a powerful motivator with him. He doesn't even finish his regular meals most of the time. He loves a squeaky toy but it only works for the first 5 minutes. 

I try walking him in the mornings before I go to work while its still dark. He was scared of a garbage bag last time. Another time it was a flag.


----------



## MegaMuttMom (Sep 15, 2007)

We got our dog as a rescue when he was 7 months old and we had all kids of problems like you are having. It took forever to figure it all out but, the first thing was a sewer grate at the end of our driveway that he wouldn't walk past. Then it was garbage bags, garbage cans, pretty much anything he had never seen before he reacted to with fear.

What helped us most was patience, lots and lots of patience. I would also toss treats onto the sidewalk ahead of him and he would sometimes be motivated to slink ahead and eat them. Other times, he was just too afraid.

One of the best things we did was to take him to obedience class. By working with him, he learned to trust us more, and he became a much more confident dog. By the time he was a year old, he was actually looking forward to walks.

Even now though, at age 3 and a half, he very occasionally freezes in fear or barks up a storm if he senses somethings "not right". It can be something as silly as a log has fallen in a trail that hasn't been there before or a pile of snow on top of a stump that looks very different. But, once I tell him it's OK, and go to investigate the scary item with him, he gets over it and the next time we pass by, it's as if there was never anything that scared him.

The moral of the story is, time, patience, training, treats and trying to not push too hard and too fast all helped with my dog. 

I think this is a lesson as to why, when a pup is in that very young age, it is very important to expose them to as many different situations as possible. They need to learn that unexpected things are not to be feared. My dog was not out in the real world at that age, and missed a lot. 

Our big stumbling block right now is elevators. Who knew that one day he might need to go in an elevator but, I swear he is convinced he will die if we ever make him get in one again


----------



## Ricardo (Jan 28, 2010)

MegaMuttMom said:


> We got our dog as a rescue when he was 7 months old and we had all kids of problems like you are having. It took forever to figure it all out but, the first thing was a sewer grate at the end of our driveway that he wouldn't walk past. Then it was garbage bags, garbage cans, pretty much anything he had never seen before he reacted to with fear.
> 
> What helped us most was patience, lots and lots of patience. I would also toss treats onto the sidewalk ahead of him and he would sometimes be motivated to slink ahead and eat them. Other times, he was just too afraid.
> 
> ...


I just adopted my puppy Mars 4 days ago. He was rescued from a dog fighting ring bust so it's very likely he didn't get the experience he needed as a puppy. 

I've registered for an obedience class that starts in a couple of weeks, and I'm trying to work on basic commands before that.

From what I understand, walking is the best form of exercise because of the social and physical reinforcement. Since he is not yet able to walk for a decent amount of time, what did you replace his walking exercise with? Is a game of fetch good enough?


----------



## MegaMuttMom (Sep 15, 2007)

Ricardo said:


> I just adopted my puppy Mars 4 days ago. He was rescued from a dog fighting ring bust so it's very likely he didn't get the experience he needed as a puppy.
> 
> I've registered for an obedience class that starts in a couple of weeks, and I'm trying to work on basic commands before that.
> 
> From what I understand, walking is the best form of exercise because of the social and physical reinforcement. Since he is not yet able to walk for a decent amount of time, what did you replace his walking exercise with? Is a game of fetch good enough?


Since he is new to you, he may not need much but to learn to trust you. For right now, being in the house and going out to pee/poop and play some fetch should be fine. My dog is VERY physical and he gets tons of exercise every day but, when we first got him home it was all about helping him not be afraid and to learn what it was like living with our family. His brain was very busy so, his body did not require as much exercise. Lots of short training sessions are a great way to wear a dog out. Thinking is tiring for dogs 

Look for the stickies about NILIF (nothing in life is free) and Doggie Zen. Both of these things are great ways to build your relationship with your dog and to help him have good manners and self control in the house.


----------



## fattymcfattybags (Jan 27, 2010)

Try just playing fetch with him in different areas. Parks, fields, etc.. Make sure it is fenced off so he cant get into traffic or get hurt. Make sure there are alot of different noises goin on around him like cars or construction or someone shaking plastic bags. If he gets scared by something, dont pay attention to it and act like it is nothing and toss the ball or kong. That way he is just there to have fun and try not to get him to worry about the things going on around him. Alot of stuff runs down leash, so you have to act like you dont have a care in the world, then eventually he should too.

Also take him into places like Petsmart and PetCo, just put him in the buggy and take him around. You can also use places like Home Depot, they are usually pet friendly. He is going to be a little scared to start off with, but if you socialize him and make those scary things part of his everyday life, eventually they will be just another thing to him.


----------



## Labsnothers (Oct 10, 2009)

If getting out in front and coaxing doesn't get a puppy moving, try dropping behind it and running by in baby steps calling ''Go, go, go!'' In a happy, excited voice.


----------



## Maura (Mar 17, 2009)

By eight months of age he should have been exposed to things like garbage bags. Since he wasn't, you have to work with him like you would a puppy. Teach him a cue that means, look at this. It could be hello, look, whatever you want. Start with having him sit then pointing at an object and saying the cue. Presumably he goes to the object. If it's a toy he'll pick it up. Go around the house pointing and giving him the cue. Go outside and give him the cue. Point at things he's never paid any attention to. If you want to use food as a reward, don't feed him his breakfast and use the breakfast kibble as treats. Put the kibble near objects, under objects, or give from your hand. Finally, point to something that is truly new to him. 

Continue with the game for a couple of days without really going for a walk. On your walk, cue five old things, one new thing, five old things, one new thing. Another poster mentioned that he has to trust you. He is learning to trust your judgement as to what is safe, so make sure everything is a stationary object that is safe. You can later use the cue to have him approach a person.

Clicker would work well for this.


----------



## Ricardo (Jan 28, 2010)

Thanks for all of your inputs. Hopefully at least one of these will do something positive for him.


----------

