Content
- Why does the dog stop during the walk?
- Puppies - Learning
- Adult dogs that don't know how to walk
- stress or fear
- pain and illness
- an old dog
- a correct ride
- Distraction
Sometimes when you go out for a walk, your dog may stop and no longer want to walk. Rest assured that you are not the only one, there are many people who go through the same situation.
The fact that your dog does not want to walk on the street can indicate several factors, so in this article by PeritoAnimal we will help you with practical and efficient solutions that will guide you to solve this problem.
know why your dog doesn't want to walk in the street and know what to do to solve this problem.
Why does the dog stop during the walk?
The fact that your dog stops in the middle of the street can be for many different causes and, it is our duty to observe our pet's behavior to know what is happening and why it is doing it.
If you can't identify the causes that make your dog not want to walk, at PeritoAnimal we'll show you the most common causes:
- Your dog is learning to walk.
- Did not learn to walk correctly.
- He suffers from stress and does not relax during the tour (the fact that he smells the soil, excrement, etc., is an indication that he is relaxing).
- Afraid (of dogs, bicycles, cars or people).
- There is pain in the foot pads.
- There is another kind of pain.
- It's an old-age dog.
- It doesn't take the breaks the dog needs.
- Entertain yourself with a stimulus that attracts you.
One time identified the cause, you must act as soon as possible and, for that, keep reading this article to know the practical solutions in each of these cases.
Puppies - Learning
If you have a puppy that is discovering the street for the first time, it's normal that you don't want to walk and stop every now and then. Your puppy is in the moment of socialization, a process of learning about the environment, other pets and people, in which he wants and must discover everything that surrounds him.
It is essential to allow you to do what you feel like, at least away from home, this way you will understand that the tour is a time dedicated to your entertainment, fun and relaxation. You must allow it to stop, smell it and take time to discover everything that surrounds you. Also, remember that you should pay attention to everyone to prevent your puppy from suffering from a bad experience as it could result in trauma in the future.
To prevent the dog from stopping constantly you can use an older dog as a guide, to encourage and teach you to behave naturally in the street. You can also use treats to capture your attention, keep you walking, and reward proper behavior during your walk.
Adult dogs that don't know how to walk
There are adult dogs that, due to poor socialization or an incomplete learning process, do not know how to walk properly, they seem to be little used to walking. In general, abandoned dogs that did not receive the proper attention in its most important stages of life.
For this, we can use a system identical to the previous one and adopt or walk a dog that has already assumed walking in the street as a natural act. It is beneficial to use another animal to help you relax and understand the rules of walking in the street. Dogs are social animals that live within a pack, so it is not surprising that others are used as an example. dogs can learn even as adults.
To prevent him from stopping if he doesn't want to walk, it is essential to teach him to walk again little by little, reshaping his behavior in the street. We recommend that you use calm and relaxed environments, give you treats and prizes, and guide you calmly on the street. Do not scold or punish him, this will only make the situation worse.
stress or fear
Those dogs that do not fulfill the 5 animal welfare freedoms are susceptible to stress. There is also the case of scared dogs, when they are usually left to their own devices, bitten by other dogs or run over by a bicycle.
In these cases it is therapy needed by the ethologist specialist, since it is not a simple problem of lack of learning, your dog suffers and feels sick during the walk. Before resorting to a professional, it is essential that you notice the factors that make your dog suffer from fear or stress, bearing in mind that the more you know, the better you can help. These can be many and will depend on the dog and its history.
You can try to soften the situation by walking through calmer environments, dedicating time to exercise with your pet and making treats and prizes to offer.
pain and illness
There are health problems in the dog that, thanks to clear symptoms, we can easily identify: fever, a tumor, blood... But on the other hand there are diseases that go unnoticed and that we don't realize until after a while.
It is important that we devote at least half an hour to periodically review our pet. This includes palpating the entire body for tumors, checking the ears and eyes for infection, making sure the dog has no fever, checking the foot pads to see if they are not bad, and so on.
If you do this with some regularity, you can anticipate a serious illness and in this case, for example, identify worn pads, a slight fracture or a broken nail.
an old dog
Elderly dogs are pets with very special and particular needs. If your dog is starting old age, it is possible that start suffering from senile dementia or usual age problems such as:
- tumors
- Deafness
- Blindness
- Anemia
- Dehydration
- Obesity
- Muscle pain
- Apathy
Is important see the veterinarian more regularly than in the case of adult dogs (at least every 6 months) and with the same frequency, carry out a blood test to rule out possible anemia.Once the veterinarian identifies the particular case, it is when the owner can understand why his dog, which has always walked well, now stops on the street or comes back, it is about age, the dog is getting older.
To walk an older dog better, remember that you should adapt your pace and not walk longer than 30 minutes. Try to repeat the same places over and over to avoid getting disoriented and pay attention not to bump into any object. Finally, we recommend that you do not pull, as this can make you feel unwell.
Also find out about the care of an elderly dog and activities for elderly dogs.
a correct ride
On many websites you can find very generalized types of phrases such as: "don't let your dog walk you, you must walk him", "he is a very dominant dog" or "make him walk beside you ".
In our opinion, all these statements are from people who are unaware of the positive training, at dog needs and the basic advice for a good tour. It is important to take the time and find out how many times you should walk a dog a day and what are the minimum requirements for your pet to feel good and free from stress.
For a tour to be carried out correctly, must give freedom to the dog to sniff and urinate in a relaxed way, it is important to reward tranquility. In addition, you should take action if you know your puppy has high energy levels by exercising your puppy on a regular basis.
Don't tug or push him if he doesn't behave properly, it's better to give him treats to encourage him to move forward, listen to him, etc.
Distraction
Lastly, let's talk to you about the last reason why your dog might not want to walk down the street, your dog is easily distracted. It may be due to eye contact with other dogs, people who catch your eye, food stalls, etc.
As we have already mentioned several times in PeritoAnimal, it is important to give the dog some freedom during the walk. If you have the need to relate, there is no harm in doing so. Remember that the dog spends time alone, he cannot be with his "friends" whenever he wants, he can only do it during the walk. For this reason, it is important to be permissive and understand that the walk is a special moment in which the dog is the protagonist. Let him be distracted if you wish, do not pull or push him, it is preferable to attract his attention with pieces of ham or treats for animals.
