# Cant get puppy to walk with leash. Please help me



## eddie2563 (May 22, 2009)

Hello all,

I have a GSD named Lady that is 2 months old. My problem is I cant her to walk with a leash, she just sits there and bites it. If i pull it shes sits and refuses to move. I have also purchased a choker chain but I dont like to use it much. if she does move, she leads and the only thing that causes her to move is shes following her a scent. I know she shouldn't lead and that she should walk beside me regarding me as the pack leader. I know how it goes (ive seen the show)







So any suggestions to make her stop biting the leash and for me to walk her? Is she still to young? Ive seen "head Leashes" do you think that would be better? from what i can tell it keeps the leash out of her mouth.


----------



## mastercave (May 2, 2009)

When I brought Dudley home at 8 weeks, I had him wear his collar and leash all the time. Even if we weren't out for a walk, he dragged his leash around the house and yard. If I was walking around the house, I would walk him around with me. At first he would bite at it, but eventually he stopped after he got used to it. When we go for walks, he seems to be in good behavior. 

I'm thinking about buying a Gentle Leader for him, but I haven't had too much pulling problems yet. ::knock on wood::


----------



## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

First off, do not use a choke/prong collar on a 2 month old puppy. That's wayyyyy to young to be using that type of collar. I can't speak for all pups, but mine was the same way. She would just sit down and chew on the leash at first. She just wouldn't budge at first. Keep in mind that your pups only a couple months old and she's just away from her mother and brother and sisters. Everythings new to her. 

Now back to your question about how to get your dog walking. I hope your pups motivated by treats because they can be a big help in getting your pup to walk. What you want to do is positively reinforce that walking is a good thing. Everytime your pup takes a couple steps make sure to reward her. Give her a treat and praise what a good girl she is. Let her take another couple steps and repeat with the praise and treat. If she sits down and doesn't want to budge, try running ahead a little and make some exciting sounds to motivate her to start walking again... when she does... praise and treat.

A 8 week old pup shouldnt go for long walks anyway, so go to the end of the block and thats it at first. Do this a couple times a day and ill bet anything that lady will be walking on a lead soon enough.


----------



## BowWowMeow (May 7, 2007)

Your puppy is just a baby! Expecting a nice loose leash or even expecting enthusiastic walking in an 8 week old puppy is asking way too much. And you absolutely should NOT be using a choke chain on a dog that young--you could injure her throat and no pup needs a training collar when they're that little. 

Start letting her drag the leash around in the house so that she gets used to it. And start carrying a toy and/or treats with you walks. Make yourself fun, fun, fun and reward her for absolutely every tiny step she makes in the right direction. 

At this age is she's walking at all on a leash she's doing really well.


----------



## umzilla (Nov 2, 2007)

Try a harness and lots of excitement from you. Clap, run, have a toy, etc. Right now it sounds like the leash waving in front her her face is more exciting than the concept of a walk, so she bites it! She's a baby and has no idea what she is missing out on.

Christine


----------



## mastercave (May 2, 2009)

Have to agree with others who says she's just a baby. While my boy had his leash on all the time, at 8 weeks, he wasn't really motivated to move. At about 10 weeks, the puppy behavior started to develop...


----------



## Basisud (May 8, 2009)

With my lab I had to use a treat to convince her to follow me. If I let her sniff it and started walking, she would follow the scent and it was a really good heal technique at first. Now she is walking great but she is always pulling. (I am currently in classes with her to work on her obedience. Thanks Suzi.) With my new GSD pup, he loves to follow her and he has never needed (but still gets) treats for walking. As everyone else said, Absolutely no choke/prong collars for pups of this age. If a regular collar is not working out, go with a harness. Thanks and good luck with your pup!


----------



## victoria_warfel (Nov 29, 2007)

Distract with treats and toys. Use a flat collar- not too tight. Keep the session light and easy.


----------



## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

> Quote:I know she shouldn't lead and that she should walk beside me regarding me as the *pack leader.*


That's not true.

Kind of an 'old wive's tale' and certainly not appropriate for an 8 week old puppy. Kind of like thinking of a 1 yr old human toddler that wanders all over as trying to dominate mom/dad in the house. When they are that young they aren't mature enough to show real dominance.

I'd prefer my pups to WANT to be with me rather than be forced and 'have' to be with me. Creating that bond of love and mutual fun and respect is way more important. 

Truthfully, at 8 weeks, I only use a leash when I have to. And I'd NEVER expect a formal 'heel' position (right by my side, which takes year(s) of training and you only ask if for fairly short periods of time, never an entire trip outdoors)..

http://silvia.trkman.net/ms09.htm is more like I want with my puppies.................. great video...


----------



## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I have an 11 wk and for the first two that I had him, no collar or leash(we stayed at home or I carried him). He followed me everywhere around the yard. The exception was the SchH club, we did a scent pad and I put him on leash for that and when we went inside to be evaluated. Really didn't have a problem because it was all new to him. 
He is on an adjustable no-slip right now, I may get a harness if he starts to pull.
Now at 11 weeks we have gone on neighborhood walks, he doesn't chew the leash and walks readily by my side, looking to me often for direction(cars going by). Last night all three dogs went and he kept pace. Boy did he sleep well last night!


----------



## aubie (Dec 22, 2008)

I agree with the others, I didn't have Anna at 8 weeks, I got her at 12 wks, but even then I just let her follow me with no leash on short little walks. If she got tired/distracted/bored I just picked her up and went home. A few weeks later we began leash training/walking. 

This is a good time just for simple play and working on bonding with your pup, not trying to be Alpha, trust me, you'll get your walking in later.


----------



## Annichka (May 14, 2009)

> Originally Posted By: MaggieRoseLee
> I'd prefer my pups to WANT to be with me rather than be forced and 'have' to be with me. Creating that bond of love and mutual fun and respect is way more important.
> 
> Truthfully, at 8 weeks, I only use a leash when I have to. And I'd NEVER expect a formal 'heel' position (right by my side, which takes year(s) of training and you only ask if for fairly short periods of time, never an entire trip outdoors)..
> ...


What an amazing video! I want my puppy to be trained like THAT! Is this what you do?


----------



## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

Leash walking is really unnatural for dogs. Some never seem to care but others take quite a while to acclimate and become trained to walk on a loose leash without pulling.

When my pup was 8 weeks he was not pleased with the leash either. I used a basic nylon puppy harness with the leash clipped on the back and he preferred this much better.


----------



## Jason L (Mar 20, 2009)

When my pup was 3 months old, he went through a period where he just did not want to walk when leashed. It lasted about 2 weeks. It's a phase. It will pass. Just be patient with the little girl. 

But whatever you do, do NOT use the choker! If her problem is she does not want to walk, CHOCKING her is not going to help.

Btw, I would not put too much stock in the dog whisper thing, especially when it comes to dealing with a puppy. How many puppy cases have you seen on his show?


----------



## Annichka (May 14, 2009)

Sigrid now walks on lead pretty happily. We went for a pretty long walk last night and it was really fun. She first encountered the leash about 2 weeks ago (at 8 weeks). We tried several things. 

- we left the leash on most of the time (supervised) so she could "make friends with" it. 

- tugged gently when she wouldn't go, but mostly coaxed and tempted with treats.

- if she really refused to move, I did keep gentle pressure on the lead while coaxing and tempting. I tried to keep it fun by jogging a little, jogging backward away from her and jumping so I looked like a crazy person...then she'd come along to be part of the game (or in fear of this person who is obviously unhinged, bouncing like a jumping bean).

- now, if she really refuses to move and we're in a place where it's safe to do this, I drop the lead and keep walking. In 2 seconds she's running back to me, and she gets a treat for coming along. She doesn't like me walking away, so a long period will pass before she refuses to move again.

I constantly encourage and reward her. Usually she isn't interested in treats while we're walking but I sometimes offer anyway. Mostly, when we're walking, she wants to play games. So I try to engage her the whole time. I also let her stop and sniff things if she seems really curious.


----------



## Sheila (May 14, 2009)

Going through similar thing with Kerchak.
He'll go a little way, then put the brakes on
It is a bit easier for me though, because he follows Dusty like a shadow. I'm hoping he realises that being on the lead can be fun.
Treats definitely help!!!
Good luck and take it slowly, she's still a baby.


----------



## Rhena (Jan 30, 2009)

We never ran into this issue... but I remember in our "puppy" class our trainer said that some puppies will be reluctant to walk because it's in their nature to stay close to their "den." (You can see how it would be beneficial in the wild for them to not stray too far.) 

I'm not sure if this works, but she recommended picking them up and carrying them for half a block or so. This will get them far enough away from their "den" that they'll be more willing to walk.


----------



## GSDinOly (Apr 19, 2009)

I don't know if this helps, Brigitte sometimes will stop and pull back just a bit. What I do is just stop, turn my back on her. I stay still for a few seconds, and then here she comes! Then I tell her excitedly how good she is and come! Seems to work wonders with her, and she keeps trecking right along. She is just 8 weeks old, but I also slipped the leash on her without her noticing when I went to get her at the breeders....I also let her drag it all over. But who knows if this will change, so I do not treat her yet for walking on the leash, just in case I need to overcome stubborness on leash at a later date. Then I will treat her


----------

