This is my darling dog Jordie. My problem is I can’t get him to want to go on walks with me. Whenever I try to take him out, I have to drag him, quite literally, down the street. The only place he will willingly walk is to the dog park about two blocks away. Now, the dog park is fine every once in a while, but I am a walker. I love to walk all over the place and I really wish that bringing him along wasn’t such a trial. He needs to be exercised because if he isn’t he keeps me up all night long. I don’t mind going to the dog park, but it’s a small neighborhood park and there usually isn’t anyone there to talk to so it can get boring. Especially since all he wants to do is sniff around and drink from the water bowl. It’s not really the energy burn he needs. I also live in an apartment with no real yard so it’s not like I can just let him out to exercise on his own.
How do I keep him from dragging on the leash? It can’t be good for him and I want a dog who gets excited to walk with me. Also, I always check his feet for burrs and what not, there is never anything there.
I thought your post was strange - I have never heard of a dog that doesn’t love to go on walks. I thought from the title that the problem might be that he was pulling you down the road.
But then I looked at the picture you provided and… how do I put this politely? He’s very adorable, but he isn’t really, you know, a dog. He probably doesn’t need all that much exercise and you may walk too briskly for him. If you really need to take him with you on walks, I think the only solution is to carry him in a puppy pouch type thing.
You know, this isn’t the first time I have heard someone say something like that, and trust me, though he is small, he is definitley a dog. His breath smells, he eats gross things, he sniffs the butts of other dogs and he is VERY playful and energetic. He really likes to play fetch in front of my apartment, but this tends to annoy the neighbors a great deal so we can’t do it often. He won’t play fetch at the park though because his is too busy smelling where the other dogs have been. Also, on the rare occasion there is another dog at the park, he plays fantastically with them. He is definitely capable of taking long walks. If we go somewhere new or exciting, like a hike in the mountains or the beach or something, he will walk all day. It’s the daily neighborhood walks I am having issue with.
I haven’t done any training classes with him, but I admit it would probably be a good idea. Walking really is the only issue I have with him though. He is VERY smart and picked up all the basic commands I taught him super fast.
I think I may try treats and see how that works. Maybe every couple of blocks give him a bit of cheese (which he LOVES)? I don’t know why I didn’t think of that before.
What’s the climate like where you live? He looks pretty “fluffy” and he’s black - I wonder if he just gets too hot during walks. Is your front yard (where he likes to play) shaded?
I live in Northern California so it can be warm, but being winter, it’s been pretty cool lately, maybe 50’s to 70’s on any given day. No real hot ones this season yet. The walk I take is pretty shaded, but my the front area isn’t really shaded at all except later in the day when the sun is really low. He does, however, have almost immediate access to a cool apartment and water out there.
No need to cast aspersions on the little fluff ball. My sister-in-law has two “Irish farm dogs” (they came from a farm, look a lot like Border Collies but aren’t quite) one will go for walks the other no. Strangely the one you can walk is the portly one who had kidney trouble it’s the bouncier svelter one who won’t go. Just lies down and won’t move. With her dog I suspect it’s a kind of dominance thing - if he’s on your lead he’s not in charge but …
With Jordie could it be a lack of confidence thing ? He’s happy going to the park he knows but maybe he’s afraid of the unknown ?
Could you put his lead on, walk him somewhere in a bag holding it near the ground so he can smell all the tempting smelly things. With luck he might see the benefit of being out of the bag, to be able to get up close and personal with the smells … if he seems keen let him out of the bag and then just continue the walk ? Worth a try ?
You’re the boss not the dog. Unfortunately the dog has just the opposite opinion.
Did you read your posts? It clearly shows you aren’t in charge of the dog and this is not an acceptable thing.
He is in charge when you go out for a walk. He doesn’t walk nice, because he’s distracted because HE not YOU is in charge. Why should he walk where you want to, when he clearly is trying to sniff things and take his tiime. This is important to HIM. Your needs don’t matter to him
See the problem. You need to go to a dog obedence class and put things in the proper order that YOU are the ALPHA DOG and not him.
I agree wholeheartedly with Markxxx. I’m curious to hear just how he keeps you up all night long if not adequately exercised, and why you permit this. A dog crated in another room during your sleep hours will have very limited ability to keep you up, and be more receptive to your kind efforts to exercise him in the waking hours into the bargain.
You need to enact a “nothing in life comes for free” policy with your dog. Be consistent, but plan the activities that make up the routine of his daily life – feeding, exercise, toilet, interactive time with the pack (you) – around your schedule, not his whims. If he is not with your program – oops! he misses out and has less freedom, or skips a meal, or has to feel restless, or what have you. The point is that the natural consequences for behaviour are to fall to the dog, not to you. Maintain this attitude throughout training and your dog will eat and excrete, be active, and be settled on a schedule that works for both of you.
Hi Kkrose, crazy Pomeranian woman here! Jordie is a cute and, from what I can tell from your description and photos, a well bred Pom. Congratulations, he should be a loving companion for many years.
Pomeranians as a breed are prone to collapsing trachea’s, and to begin with I would suggest using a harness or a head lead rather than a regular collar, and with his reluctance to walk along I would lean toward a body harness over a head lead.
When the dog park is the destination, do you give him cues which differ from the cues you give when preparing for just a walk? If he is food motivated then baiting (which you described with the cheese) is a good idea. Give him bits of cheese, (or other, preferably natural, treat) not a mouthful each time. I have a female and a male who both like to take more leisurely strolls than the other Poms headlong dash, and so we walk them separately from the others.
I am assuming that he is a male. How old is s/he, and has s/he been altered? Poms are big dogs in small bodies, and hormones can give a walk a bad outcome.
Poms love the outside, and my feeling is that Jordie is a young male who is coming into his adolescence and is testing his boundaries and dealing with socialization issues. It’s completely normal, if I am on the mark. Just because he weighs four pounds, you must be the alpha.
Poms are also very good “apartment” dogs in that, given the proper mental and physical exertions, they do not require a lot of time exercising outdoors. Lots of fetch, tug of war, kongs filled with yummy treats and frozen broth, etc. can provide these guys with the exercise and mental stimulation they need.
A dog crated in another room during your sleep hours will have very limited ability to keep you up, and be more receptive to your kind efforts to exercise him in the waking hours into the bargain.
I could not agree more wholeheartedly!
I will watch this thread, feel free to email me (in my profile) and we can talk Poms at length. The best of luck for you both!
Using a treat to lure your dog into the position you want him to walk in (at one side, in step with you or close to it) is a great idea! Lots of people have trouble traning little dogs to walk next to them because hunching over to tempt them with a treat is difficult to do while walking. You could use a wooden or plastic spoon with a long handle to reach Jordie if this is a problem. Dip the end in peanut butter, baby food, or squirt a little canned cheese on the spoon and hold it at your side. Start walking and say “let’s go!” If Jordie comes along, great! Dip the spoon down to his nose and let him take a lick as a reward for walking nicely. If he doesn’t start walking when you do, use the spoon (or a treat in your hand if bending over isn’t an issue) to lure him to your side while you walk. Let him “catch” the spoon or your hand every couple of steps so he gets reinforced for keeping up with you.
Lessen the amount of treats gradually until Jordie walks with you on just the vebal command.