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We have a male golden retriever who is about 5.5 years old. We adopted him from a shelter when he was 1 year old. We have a fenced yard, and also take him for walks occasionally. Recently, we think he needs more exercise so my 14 year old son has been taking him for a walk. The first time, he was fine. The last three times he gets a certain distance from the house and refuses to go any further. He pulls really hard back toward the house or sits down and refuses to move (he's about 95 lbs so you can't really MAKE him go.) He has tried with with just a leash and collar and with a leash and gentle leader, but he reacted the same way to both. (He's worn a gentle leader since we got him whenever I take him out because he is stronger than me and never had an issue with it.)
I am not sure what may be causing this. One direction from the house is just deeper into the neighborhood and there are minimal cars. One house does have small dogs in the back that bark a lot, but it has never bothered him in the past. The other direction has a large school and we like to walk him around that direction on the grass. Again, he has been this direction multiple times with no issues.
He is a very happy, laid back dog and does not get stressed too much. He does get a bit upset when we take him somewhere new the first time, but none of this is new (we've lived there the entire time he's been part of our family.)
He went for his annual checkup in October and was fine. He still seems healthy and acts totally normal except for this. He has been on a diet because he needs to lost a bit of weight (which is also why we want him to go on walks.) He runs and plays in the backyard so I don't think he has anything physically wrong with him.
Any suggestions or is he just being stubborn and doesn't want to go for a walk? My husband is going to try walking him this weekend to see if he behaves differently for him.
First, get him back to the vet and talk with your vet. Checkup or no - things can change in a very short time. I had a young dog this spring (7 years old), healthy as can be. Running every day for a couple miles or more. Started having issues, but it seemed minor at first. Diagnosed "Nothing wrong", and again "nothing wrong" - two months later we found cancer and 4 days later - well - he's gone.
But that said, the way you describe it, sounds to me like a behavior issue. Like he just doesn't WANT to go out. But maybe he has a torn ligament paining him - and that is why he doesn't want to go farther. Or some other strain or stress.
I'll make a very rough guess his ideal weight is more like 75 lbs than 95, and that is a lot of extra weight for a critter that size. So, just like a very fat man trying to jog, stresses are plentiful, and injury is close by at all times. Even if his ideal weight is 85, 10 + % is a significant amount of weight to carry and injuries to knees, ankles, hips and shoulders can result.
So rule all those possibilities out, with the vet would be good.
If you still have an issue, figure out how to make the walks fun, for you AND the dog. Dance backwards, act silly, entertain the dog - see if he responds. Take treats. Act like he is saving YOUR life with every bit of progress - so long as you can stand it! Take him for shorter walks - but twice a day. Or more. Dogs have incredible endurance, so you will certainly tire before him. But a straight out, no-sniffs-allowed, just walk to get there and back, may be boring as heck to him. And just a creep-along, sniff-everything-in-his-path walk will be boring to you. Or, at least, it would bore me to tears. With my super-sniffy hound, we would go a mile, and then she would get sniff-time as a reward. Then we would go again.
But a walk, for the dog, is usually a reward in itself, since it means they get to sniff the world as they go - the doggy version of the Sunday comics or a good novel.
A lot of words. Just to say: Check for physical issues. If it is attitude, play to the dog's nature. And keep working on that weight! [I had to get my hound's weight down 20 lbs at one point. I felt like I was starving her before she actually lost weight! Good luck!]
Put them in a Training class Basic Obedience... Teach the child How to Handle him.
He has been to obedience school, normally obeys, and my son has been walking him for four years. It is not that he doesn't not KNOW how to behave.
hiero2 -- Thank you for the good suggestions. I do not think it is physical illness or injury based on how active he is other times, but we will take him for a check up. Thankfully, he HAS lost weight. He was 101 lbs at his check up and is down to 95. When we first got him, he had pneumonia and got down to 55 lbs. He should be in the 75-80lb range. Also, my husband is going to try taking him for a walk and see if he will listen to "Dad" better than his "brother."
I hate to say it, but it's one of the 1st signs of hip dysplasia. of course doesn't mean for sure. Vet should catch other clues, but need x-rays for severity. My Newfy would walk everyday no problem, then started doing it @1/2 mile every time.
So this is Recent him Not wanting to walk with your son? I suggested the class for Both cause Dogs don't respect kids. Esp if the kid wasn't allowed to go but so far with the dog & now parent says to the kid its ok to cross the street with dog... dog doesn't understand. Not my fault You didn't give ALL information!
You might check his feet, too. Do his nails need to be trimmed? Are his dew claws (if he has them) pressing into his leg? Or does he have any chafing, little cuts/scratches on his pads? Is it super cold where you are - given your screen name and location, I'm assuming the Midwest - so maybe he's uncomfortable with the ground temperatures/terrain/ice, whatever.
I'd get him checked out by the vet, as others have suggested. I went through something similar with my dog last year. Turned out she had bursitis in her elbow from some of her wild cavorting and racing in and out through the dog door. She also had a sore spot, which was hard to see with the naked eye, on one pad from moving unevenly trying to compensate for the elbow. So you just never know. The vet put her on house arrest and anti-inflammatories and now all is well. But for awhile, she couldn't tolerate walking on asphalt or other rough surfaces - it took the pad a long time to heal properly.
Good luck. I hope it's a simple solution and life returns to normal soon.
I don't want you to take this the wrong way, and I might be way off base, but could there be a chance that your son isn't happy about having to walk THE DOG? Could he have been pulling and yanking your dog around because he wasn't happy?
Sometimes, sadly, kids AND adults take things out on their animals.
I'm interested to know how your husband made out walking him? Was he happy walking forward or doing the same thing?
If I am understanding correctly, your dog isn't refusing to go for a walk, but rather he sits down and refuses to go past a certain point and wants to go home, and that this behavior started when your 14 year old son began walking him. What did your son say when you asked him about what was going on when your dog first started to balk at that spot? What had just happened, was there another dog around, was your dog growling or reacting to something, did something startle him? Maybe your son was impatient or in a hurry?
I have learned to listen to my dogs and trust them when they tell me something is amiss or when they don't feel comfortable with something. Dogs aren't "stubborn"; something happened that your dog wasn't comfortable with.
I think that it is a lot of responsibility to let your 14 year old walk the dog; there are just too many things that could go wrong that your son wouldn't have the experience or ability to deal with productively. My suggestion is that either you or your husband walk the dog.
Try walking him in another direction, down another street, or pack him into the car and take him for a walk in a neighborhood park. Give him a break- whatever it was, something happened that caused your dog to be uncomfortable at that particular spot. After a month or two of walking him on another route, then try again to walk him down to the spot where he balks and see if he still does it. Maybe it was just a situational thing and he will get over it, but maybe not. I wouldn't push the issue- there are other routes and other walking options.
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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I have a golden retriever who is the same way. I've had him since he was a puppy. He's 6 now and will stop on walks. He's been to the vet, he's fine, etc.
I was so concerned I started talking to my local dog walkers. Apparently, this is common in goldens. No kidding, 3 different dog walkers told me this. I have raised many dogs in my life and I've only had this issue with goldens.
Anyway, he's happy going on walks to destinations (the park, the pet store, etc). But just to walk in a circle around the neighborhood and then back home? He just won't do it.
I just accept it as one of his quirks.
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