Stubborn Doodle...anyone have a Doodle who decides when he wants to walk and when he doesn't?!

[Dexter's Mom]

Does anyone have a stubborn Doodle who decides when he/she wants to walk and when he/she doesn't?

 

Dexter has a mind of his own. And he's lazy. Has been since the day we got him. When he was a puppy he just wanted to sit or lay down when we were out walking. For the most part he still just loves to lay down or cuddle. We were able to break him of the walking habit until recently when he has decided to test us again. He's very good on a leash...doesn't pull, doesn't go crazy...he's just trying to be the boss and tell us when he wants to walk. He just puts the breaks on and its very hard to get him going. Coaxing doesn't work, positive verbal reinforcement doesn't work. We really haven't tried treats because we've been trying to work on training without them as much as possible.

 

Another issue we have is that he has a hard time walking by people or other dogs without stopping because he just wants to say hi. That's partially our bad because we've taught him to sit and/or lay to greet people and dogs since he's a big boy (just about every dog in our neighborhood is much smaller). But now he doesn't know when to sit/lay and greet people, and when to keep walking. He just automatically goes to the side and sits or lays down (it looks like he's being a very good boy, but when you just want to keep walking its frustrating). He also has a hard time if someone is immediately behind him (he wants to look back at them and doesn't watch where he's going)...or if someone is across the street (same situation, he wants to watch them). If we're walking in a group (of people or dogs), he does better, but he can't lead the group without looking back and running into things LOL.

 

Has anyone experienced anything like this, or have any recommendations? We're currently in an intermediate obedience training class (we've trained him ourselves thus far). He's by far the best dog in the class. This should be a great class for him because it really works on commands with distractions, which he obviously needs help with.

 

Thanks!

[Tara L P]

Hi,

I'm not sure how to address your specific problem, however I do suggest this website: www.dogbreedinfo.com/articles/dogwalk.htm.

My Ella does the whole watching dogs/looking around her thing and she can be a puller. I've started using the techniques in this article and I can tell a big difference. Some days, when I can tell that I've let the discipline slip, I'll go back, re-read it again and think about it while we're walking. I can feel and tell Ella's reaction to me when I am exuding confidence and calmness! It's pretty amazing. This goes back to Cesar Millan's dog pack idea. Keep reading the article--it eventually gets to how to get the dog to walk properly. I have to hold Ella's leash pretty short so that there's no way for her to walk in front of me. When she starts to pull on it, I tug straight up just a bit and she gets the picture. Another good reinforcer is to make her sit/stay for a little bit..that always helps. Anytime Ella starts staring at another dog, i give her a quick tug and say her name so she'll focus back on me.

I know that the article doesn't say one single word about dogs who won't walk, but I have a feeling it has to be stemming from the problem of the dog thinking it's in charge.

Hope this helps!

[Dexter's Mom]

The article is great, thanks! Everything helps and I'm sure if you fix one problem, you fix many. Great advice!

[Sue Z. + Finley]

This happens to us all the time. On almost every walk, Finley gets tired after 15-20 minutes of walking and sits down on the sidewalk refusing to get up until he is ready (usually a minute or two). I was concerned enough about this problem to ask the vet on our last visit. He told us, "maybe he's just tired - no big deal, he's still a puppy." (Finley was a year old the beginning of May.) I have noticed that if I walk him every other day, he doesn't seem to have as many issues with walking. I just try to throw the ball in the backyard and play other games instead of going for a walk. Even when we play "throw the ball" Finley tires after five minutes or so and wants to go inside. I think he likes air conditioning more than the heat, or he's just a lazy little guy haha!

BTW we do all of our exercise early in the morning - not in the heat of the day. I don't like the heat either.

[Meridith and Lola]

Lola will plop down and stop walking quite often as well though I don't attribute it all to being lazy - it's much more strategic than that. She will lie down on her side - playing dead. People come over (live in NYC so lots of people) bend down to see if she is ok and then she rolls on her backs and gets a belly rub. It's really very funny and puts smiles on everyone's faces. She will also jump on park benches with or without people on them and settles in to watch what is going on. The funniest is when when she jumps on a bench with people on it and snuggles up to them. So cute. I've only had one person get angry when she did that but I'm a little more cautious now when I see what she is up to!!