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He is an 8 month old Cavalier King charles - smartest and best dog I have ever owned. We have had him for 4 months. Only negative thing is I have been trying for 3 months to get him used to the leash and go for walks with me. When he see's the leash he runs to his kennel - if I get the leash on him he cowers down, tail between his legs and will not budge. I have tried TONS of praise, I have tried leaving the leash on him all day, he wears a collar fine , I have tried making a trail with hot dogs on the floor, holding hot dogs in my hand down by my side to get him to come up to it, if he moves a centimeter I praise him , I have tried having other dogs infront of him to see if he will follow them..he will not budge...EVER. We have a fenced yard, Ive let him run around the backyard with the leash at his side but usually if he has the leash on he will lay down and not even move for hours.
My vet suggested puppy classes --- ??? of course she had a referral so not sure if its a money scheme or if he really could benefit from them or if he just needs some anxiety meds - ha !
if you're not sure about the class suggested by the vet.... a good basic place to start might be the puppy classes at petsmart or petco..... the trainer there might have some other suggestions for you......
good luck with him..... they are such cute little dogs.......
We would just follow ours around in the back yard or front when they wore a leash, just to get them used to it. Maybe would try a harness, it's easier on the trachea for small dogs. Also, would think twice about classes at PetCo or PetsMart - sometimes high school kids w/ no experience are in charge, would try a positive method dog school where you go w/ him. You could also go to meetup.com and see if there's any toy dog groups you could join w/ him, those are very casual and lots of fun (put in 'toy dog' or 'small dog' (or puppies) and your zip code), I doubt there'd be any geared specifically to his breed but he might have fun and gain confidence w/ some other toy dogs (pugs, chi's, poodles, bichons etc), about the same size as him. It would be a lot of fun for you too, most groups meet monthly in someone's backyard or in a doggie daycare place in the winter if it's cold where you live. If you can't find anything, would try the school route, maybe they'd let you observe a class first so you can get a feel for it, sounds like he needs confidence which he should get going to the classes. You could also ask for ref's and talk to the previous owners of dogs who went. You could also google the breed club in your area and see if you can get some info from them.
try treating him with just the leash in the room over and over. then just treat when you snap the leash on over and over. then treat with HIM just wearing the leash without you hold the leash. then when you pick it up treat him over and over, etc. baby steps!
let him run around the house / yard with the leash attached to his collar,
use food......hold a treat a in front of him let his nose find it ,he should step towards the treat he should become so focused on the treats he forgets about the leash.......dont use a harness unless he is pulling a wagon..........
I agree on the puppy classes. For whatever reason, it sounds as tho he is linking the leash and some bad expierence together. Something that scared him? I would not attach the leash and let him run around the yard. That will only freak him out more, plus, it is dangerous, should he get the leash caught on something.
Giving him treats with the leash in your hand and letting him become accustomed to it and learning it is a "good" thing is the way to go!
when you put the leash on the dog and start walking have some very small but really good treats in your fist that is not holding the leash. Keep your fist closed and let the dog smell your hand he should start walking with his nose all over your hand, if he does open your hand a bit and let him get a bite of the goodness but don't stop- just keep walking. After he walks a bit and continues following your hand give him another bite of a treat. Your dog should then walk willingly and no, you do not have to keep treats in your hand for the rest of his life but it's always a good idea to give him one once in a while while walking just to keep his interest.
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