Is your dog a stubborn Donkey Dog? A lot of dogs pull forward on leash, but some dogs and many puppies pull *backward* or refuse to walk. This happens to French Bulldogs and English Bulldogs all the time! Pulling harder or luring with a treat only makes the problem worse, so what should you do to help your dog or puppy get moving?!
Many of the techniques in my Leash Walking article are still valid, here are some tips just for leash laggers:
- Check with your vet to make sure there’s not a health issue going on that is causing your dog to stop walking (growing pains, arthritis, etc.)
- Circle around your dog, then walk in the direction you wanted to go. That sometimes gets them up and moving.
- Teach Touch (hand to nose) and ask your dog to touch to get him to move. Reward by tossing the treat in the direction you want to walk.
- Don’t bring out a treat to lure your dog forward, as that rewards your dog’s stopping behavior.
- Just wait. When your dog does move, click and toss a treat in the direction you want to walk.
- Teach “Let’s Go” by saying it just before your dog is about to walk anyway. You can make this extra fun by clicking when your dog does move and rewarding with treats or toys.
- Use Silky Leash. Teach your dog that light pressure on the leash means to go in that direction using the Silky Leash technique.
- Don’t pull with constant pressure on the dog. That just causes your dog to go in the opposite directions. Traditional force-based trainers actually use a similar technique to teach dogs to stay!
- Use reverse psychology: tell your dog to “Stay,” wait for a little bit, and then suddenly say, “okay!” and move on. Reward for moving.
The methods I described above assumed that the dog was not fearful, just didn’t want to go forward. If you have a fearful dog, I would teach the Let’s Go cue, but I would also work on desensitizing their fear, so they have less reason to pull back. We have classes for fear and also sell three useful books: Behavior Adjustment Training, Cautious Canine and Help for Your Fearful Dog.
What tips do you have to share? Please post in the comments below. Thanks in advance!
Written by Grisha Stewart, Ahimsa Dog Training, Seattle Tweet This Post!
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May 9th, 2009 at 8:37 pm
Hoping you can help me… I’ve got a 120lb Akita mix who is very willfull. For the last six months (new home) he’s been great, twice daily walks, play in the park – he just really loved his walks! Then, I went out of town for 2 weeks, and while I was gone, my house/dog sitter tried to walk him, and he refused (by getting to end of driveway and lying down). When I returned home, this behavior continued. He will only go to the park now… any other path and it’s a no-go. At 120lbs, if he doesn’t want to move, there isn’t much I can do about it. I’ve continued the routine, but we never make it 50 ft from the house, and we just return. He seems generally afraid (his curly tail goes down, and he won’t look me in the eye) although I can’t imagine why… he’s absolutely the alpha male of the neighborhood and has left his mark EVERYWHERE. Any ideas? He’s pretty chunky, so I need to keep him walking and the park isn’t always accessible! Thanks so much for your time, ~Jamie (and Chewie)
May 11th, 2009 at 2:58 pm
Keep in mind that every consequence has the chance to reward, punish, or not have any effect on the dog’s behavior. If you return home when he plops down, chances are, you’re reinforcing that. If you return home while he’s still walking out at a good pace, you could reinforce that, instead. I’d start out with some loops. As in, 20 feet forward, treat, and then return to the starting place. Then wait a 20-30 seconds and do it again, maybe going 22 feet that time or 25. Then the next loop is 30 feet, and so on. Don’t do too many in a row.
One variation might be to set out (in advance) a string of uber-tasty treats, about 5 feet apart, starting with 25 feet out and going maybe to 60 or 70 feet. That way, they get the reward there, and you walk back empty-handed. Repeat to the next treat, etc. Worth a try! It may be better if those treats are a surprise (i.e., your dog won’t start to get dependent on them), so you’ll have to experiment. Either way, expect to do this for several sessions.
Meanwhile, lower the calories at home so you’re not making Chewie fat. Exercise in the house (fetch, tug, etc.) As long as you’re walking, he’s exercising, even if you’re walking in circles. So take your time with expanding those little loops.
Other possibilities are what I’ve already said in this article. Targeting (dog touching nose to your hand) is a great way to get them to move and get over their fears. If all else fails, get a positive reinforcement trainer to come out to the house to help you.
July 15th, 2010 at 7:46 pm
Our 5 year old yorkie will only walk to the end of our driveway to the curb, and pee. If I gently prod her forward she will go a few more feet very quickly, poo, and then turn around to go back to the house. She only will walk in the direction of the house. Sometimes she will just sit in the street and run in between our legs to avoid walking. She does not like treats very much. My husband just carries her back to the house. I do walk her on a leash but as soon as she’s done her business she tugs and pulls to get back. We had a dog trainer come to the house, but the dog still refused to walk. She only likes to go in one direction, back home. Even if we carry her and place her a few blocks from the house, she will turn herself towards the house and walk very quickly ahead of us ,pulling on th leash to get back.
She was always a reluctant walker. About a month ago, she woke up in the morning with a limp,lifting her right front paw in the air. We took her to the vet who could not find anything wrong. We have been giving her rimydal and she seems to be walking fine,but she is still very stubborn and even attempts to avoid going out by putting her rump firmly on the floor and trying to walk away from the lease which has a soft adjustable thin collar.
The vet wants to take x rays, but she is no longer limping.
Any suggestions would be really appreciated. My husband feels the dog just doesn’t like to be walked
September 27th, 2011 at 2:14 pm
Jamie–sounds like you and I are in similar situations. Teddy will only willfully walk a few paths near our home. In new places, he walks fine, but when we are around our neighborhood, he refuses to walk in certain directions, down certain streets. I feel like I’ve tried everything :/
September 27th, 2011 at 9:11 pm
We see this a lot at the shelter with either puppies or dogs that are new. We find that it often helps to use a buddy system. Get another dog and walker and allow the confident dog to lead the way for the “newbie.” It’s simple, but it works very well. -Kara
September 28th, 2011 at 5:21 am
Hi I need some solid advice. I have a two month old Brt and she is great.playing in the yard, no mess in the house,just barely biting my 11 month son during play.. Until I need to walk her. Her ladyship just wants home. Shell do her business and stop/ sit / lie down. I tried luring/ calling / jumping around like an idiot- so far to no avail. She is Very well bred and vet went ballistic when he saw her. So it must be me.what could I be doing wrong?
September 28th, 2011 at 6:36 am
Thanks, Kara!! Great idea!!!
September 28th, 2011 at 6:43 am
Your dog may be a little fearful. Your puppy class instructor can probably help teach you some positive ways to get the dog to be more confident (and move). Do some research on BAT (if you’re in our puppy class, there is info in the free training manual) and if you can get the ‘Give Your Puppy a Choice’ DVD, do so. We have it in our online store and our ‘real’ store in Seattle.
In addition to the tips above, you can also think of going home as a reward. As she’s walking away, you can say, ‘yes, good girl,’ and let her go home. Repeat.