Walking Madness

[Natalie Van Roekel]

Hello! I am really struggling with walking Walter (4 months Goldendoodle).  He's not so much a leash puller, he's a stopper. He wants to sniff and chew everything along our walks and will not just walk!  

Also, and what's the bigger issue, he'll get into a mode where all he wants to do is stop and bite my shoelaces, jump on me, hump me, bite, play, etc. and no interest whatsoever with walking. i've tried drop it, leave it, let's go, etc. with treats and does not work at all.  It's really difficult when we are a ways from home and he gets into this phase. Simply stopping in my tracks doesn't work, because he'll just start humping/jumping on leg. 

Please help!!

[VScott & Lloyd]

I would suggest super irresistible treats to get him up and walking again. My Lloyd will also stop and bribing him with yummy treats he can't refuse usually works. I know it would be ideal for them to just listen and do what we say but I have to remember they are still puppies. Lloyd also will go a little crazy and jump and bite on the leash when it seems like he's done walking. I tell him to sit and drop and if he doesn't listen then I spray my can of compressed air. That definitely makes him drop the leash but then he'll go into the zoomies....and then he's done and we continue our walk.

Good luck!

[Missy]

Hello!! what a cutie Walter is!

You might want to post over in 'Training Forum' or do a search over there for techniques.

It sounds like Walter does not want to walk!  ha ha  Our pup at that age was not much of walker either.  He would just sit down in the road and look at me.  I never pressed the issue, but kept working with him and the lead in the yard. When I practiced walks in the yard, I held treats in my hand (tiny pieces) and we walked several paces, then treat was given.  extending our distances each day. (short bursts of time each day Day 1 was 2 minutes)  Fast forward a year and our pup looked forward to walks.  I could grab the leash and the dog would beat me to the door. These pups have a real good nose, and everything smells good to them. I sometimes have to remind our dog with a quick tug on leash, "head up, no stopping".  If you let the dog stop, then he will think this is how you take walks!! and as they get bigger....they can really lunge off the sidewalk!

You might want to start instructing Walter on appropriate behavior you want from him. For the biting, we were told to squeal high pitched when bitten and that seemed to work out well. or toy replacement for hand. teaching dog what is appropriate to chew on.

teach Walter to 'sit'.  and when you stop, put him in a sit/stay!!

You can do this!! you are training up a child and he wants to please you!! Stick to the plan!!

[Lisette Palmer]

Do you think he might be getting tired?  My doodle puppy would get tired of walking and want me to pick him up the 1st month I had him. I don't walk very far as I can't so he does pretty well now.  

[Amy and Annabelle]

Hot or tired. Annabelle gets too hot on walks if it is much above 70 with high humidity. All she wants to do is lay under a shade tree or be carried.

[Amy and Annabelle]

Annabelle was like that at about 3 to 4 months old. Leash biting and biting at my shoes or pant legs was the worst. I had to bring out the heavy artillery to break her of it. If we were home she would go into her crate for time out. But out on walks, I had to give her small pieces of boiled chicken breast to get her to stop. The bagged treats wasn't worth it to her. When she started with the biting, I would stop, step on her leash so she couldn't move much and stay there for 30 seconds or so. I would keep doing that until she walked a few steps behaving and then I gave her the chicken. I would keep giving her chicken until she started the biting again. Then we stopped, and started the whole thing over. Eventually she got the idea that stopping was no fun and walking got her chicken. I only used the chicken to break of her bad habits, and then gradually took it away when I felt comfortable that she could behave on a walk without it.

[Sue]

At 4 months a pup is still young and will tire quickly....Lexee had the same problems and I cut down my walks to 15 minutes 3-4 times per day and the walks got a lot better....Just imagine if you asked a 3 yr old child to go for a 15 minute walk.....there would not be much interest but as they get older they have more interest...I believe it is the same with dogs...Start off with 10 mins and then gradually increase.... Keep me posted...

[Shannon F]

We have a 4 month old too! I use a Kurgo harness instead of a collar. The Kurgo gives me a little more control than say an Easy Walker. When Harper stops I give him a bit of a tug and lift to signal I'm going to keep going. I want him to be familiar with his neighborhood but not lolly gag around. For the jumping etc. I noticed Harper was doing similar stuff when he was frustrated or nervous so I praise him like crazy when he's walking well and continue to do so if something startles him. I say a lot of "good boy, let's go." I keep him on a six foot leash with the loop in my right hand and my left hand holds the leash (I'm left handed, you may find the opposite suits you) like an L in front of me, he only has about a pace of slack because we are working on heal. This helps because if he starts to jump or run in front of me I can swing my arm away from my body like a hinge and he moves away from me. If he really acts up I stop and make him sit. I'm a bit of a task master on walks because we are there to exercise and train, but I still want him to have fun. I say all this to say, he is doing really well now and hardly ever acts up on our walks so it worked for us, hope this helps!.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I would be aware of fatigue for a young pup and not overwalk.  I sounds like that may be the issue if it happens at the end of the walk.  If that isn't the case, walk briskly and insist she follow along (pull her with you) until you get into classes. In other words, there is a time to allow sniffing around and a time for walking with you.  If you bribe with treats, hold one in your hand just in front of her face and out of reach as you walk - let her have a bit as she correctly walks with you. Don't bribe her to get started, just begin walking.

[Helen & Kirby]

Mix it up

Sometimes run, then walk.  Then stop for a minute or two.  Then walk real real slow.  Then jog.....you get the idea.  Turn left, turn right, do a u turn.  Then he has to pay attention to you, and the running part seems like fun!  Stand on the leash if he jumps/humps you.  Keep it short, but do as many short "walks" a day that you can.  Have fun!

[Jessica, Loki and Moose]

I politely disagree about running (miles, not quick little bursts) with a puppy, running any puppy this young can be very harmful  to their joints. Also if a puppy is over heating or reaching exhuastion (as someone mentioned it could be) this also isn't going to help them at all. 

In general dogs should not be running at all on a leash until 12-18 months depending on a vets recommendation and the size of the dog, the larger the dog the longer it takes for their growth plates to fuse. In large breed dogs it takes the full 18 months for them to fuse and since doodles are by default mixed breeds (most have some amount of large dog genetics in them), I and I think most vets would say to error on the side of caution and stick with 18 months. I am a distance runner and have throughly researched this and also got two opinions from different vets and they both recommend waiting to run at all until they were/are 18months old. Sure dogs run at the dog park or in the back yard but the difference is that when they aren't on a leash, and therefor feel like they must keep up with you to please you, they will stop when they need a break or when they are reaching their limit. If you are running with your puppy for long distances they might not tell you that they can't handle this.

I agree with VScott with the high value treats.

Good luck! 

[Natalie Van Roekel]

Thanks everybody for the advice and help! I also don't want to have him run lengths at this point so just a puppy. Also, it is really short works that this happens on, and the bigger issues is not so much him getting tired, but him getting TOO worked up and jumping/biting/humping.

I will definitely try higher value treats!

Thanks again!