Hi all. My Maggie will be 16 weeks old on Saturday. We have worked very hard on all socialization from 8 weeks on. She has done great. only been timid of somethings. Getting in and out of the car. Wasn't crazy about riding in an elevator the first time but we mastered it. Loves other animals, people and stores. Lately her neighborhood walks have been a bit of a challenge. We have been walking on a loose lead since she was 8 weeks old and I have always tried to make the walks fun. We didn't go very far in the beginning but worked our way up to about a mile through the neighborhood. The last few days I have had to "treat" her to get her to even leave our property on our walks. She goes great and then stops. I have just stood with her when she stops because it seems she is "taking it all in" Watching blowing flags, listening to all noises etc. find that she sometimes goes to the point when listening to things. Im not sure if she is doing this because shes so smart and wanting me to "treat" her to keep going or if she is starting to feel a little scared??!! Not sure what to do and would love some thoughts. I am missing our nice walks (usually three a day) We also go in our field for long lead training and lots of play at lease twice a day.
It sounds like she might be tired. That is a lot of exercise for a sixteen week old pup. Another possiblity is that she is uncomfortable. Is their anything she has been licking at more than normal? also, did you get a new harness or anything? When she stops does she look nervous or anxious?
Can you please let us know how you resolved her misgivings. Over what period of time? You don't have to walk and indeed should not walk long distances until the dog is fully grown. Please describe her body language: mouth, ears, position of tail, body relaxed or stiff, eyes. Three miles a day is too much. For now stick to having fun over relatively short distances. Although the rule is contentious, try exercising your dog for only 5 minutes for each month of age. And even then, restrict the exercise to ambling. Her bones will not be fully grown until she is about a year old.
Willow use to do this she would go to the grass at end of the road and just stop not go any further. She was scared of the cars we started by just taking her to the top of the road and watched the cars passing then gradually took her to quiet places where she was more comfortable to get to the quiet places is along the busy road. The grass verge is set back from the road so she was comfortable with that distance. She had a harness but every time we went to put it on she would run away from us she would stop walking with that on. It wasn't tight but she did not like it. She is only on her collar now she walks good on the lead most of the time. I take her to a bridleway she loves walking there away from all noise and lots of smells.
Both are good points. She is a field dog and has a ton of energy. The more we do the more relaxed she is at home, but maybe I am pushing too much Also, YES I did just have to go up a size in her harness and it is just a tiny bit too big. The last one was a tiny bit to small, but maybe i'll put the old one back on her. Thanks for the ideas!
On her misgivings, we just kept at it. Riding in the car, she began to understand the words I would use to where we were going so she gets excited because she loves "going to the dog store" Or "going to cabellas" Or "going home" I used a bigger win treat getting in and out of the car. Tried to keep the car ride fun. Talking and singing to her Our longer walks as they got longer would take us about a full hour. I would walk her like that after a nap and a meal. When we would get home it would be time for another nap. Thanks for the heads up about not walking her too much. With all of our other labs we always just kept them on our property and it caused us problems in the past I have been working so hard to have this baby girl very well socialized and obviously have gone overboard. When she stops, she does not look afraid. More curious. Her mouth is closed ears are forward and relaxed. Often her tail is in point along with her back and front legs. Again, thank you for your input
Thank you for your input. I am thinking it is more like the other posters said about being tired and maybe the thing with switching her harness size. She LOVES putting her harness on hahah we call it her "jacket" and she knows we are going somewhere when she puts it on. When I say the word, she sits and just lets me easily put it on her. I love the harness as well as when sized right is a very good fit.
I would just take things at her own pace. If she wants to stop and take things in, let her do that. The concept of a 'walk' is some weird human thing we have created whereby a dog is put on a leash and made to continuously move - not too fast, not too slow - around a predetermined route, which is usually the same every day. It's a bit bonkers really. This is a totally weird and foreign and arguably not very useful thing to a dog. Everything in the world is new to her at this point, so if she needs more time to take something in, she should be able to have that so she gets accustomed to it and learns about it and can hopefully feel more comfortable in the future around it.
Thank you for your input. Funny, I have actually thought about what you said about what WE think a walk should look like and try to "take my time" and just enjoy her enjoying the world around her while we walk.
It's hard for me to read her body language from a still photo--I can't see her face at all. All I can say from it is that she is alert.
The walking has been overdone, but I have no reason to think she has been socialised too much. Socialisation period ends around week 16. You can now devote your time to training. Recall, down, sit. loose lead walking, go to mat. Retrieve. Don't expect any of these skills to be perfect. Make training fun. Positively reinforce desirable behaviour.
Hi JBG, I would add one other item to look at. She is young, and as others have said, the walks sound a little long for her, but I would also check her pads carefully. At 9 months, playing ball with my Golden Retriever, on a harder rather than softer surface, I ignorantly allowed him to hurt his pads. I was 64 at the time, a mile from home and carried my boy (about 70 lbs), slowly, with lots of rest stops for me, home to the car, and over to the vets. They treated his paws with medicated creams and antibiotics, wrapped them for a period to protect from further damage, and restricted all activity for nearly a month. He could walk in and out on the lawn to do do his business, then back to the house. No running on the grass, the deck, or in the house on the carpet.....or the street, or anywhere else. No walks except on grass, and wery short ones even then. Though he can now walk all day if needed, his pads are more sensitive, and that occasionally shows in slower walking as though he is walking on sharp objects. It doesn’t stop him, but it still isn’t comfortable for him.
