Are you finding that taking your dog for a walk ends with you or your dog feeling more stressed than before? There are multiple problems that plague a large number of dog owners once the leash is on. It can be frustrating for you to have a dog that doesn’t seem to know how to behave on a walk, and it can put your dog into dangerous and stressful situations.
Let’s talk about some of the most common problems that dog owners face when taking their canine companions for a walk just below.
The 10 Dog-Walking Problems and Their Solutions
1. Overexcitement Over the Leash
We’ve all seen this, whether it was our dog or someone else’s: The leash comes out and your dog loses their mind, jumping, barking, spinning, and just generally being excessively excited to a point that can be annoying or frustrating for you.
For some people, this behavior can be risky since it can lead to trip and fall events. It’s ok for your dog to be excited when they realize they’re going for a walk, but it’s important for them to learn how to contain their excitement. Otherwise, you’ll be taking your dog on a walk after they’re already amped up and not paying attention.
Provide positive reinforcement when your dog reacts calmly to the leash or ignores it completely. Once your dog has gotten better at how they react to seeing the leash, start clipping it onto them without going for a walk. Again, provide positive reinforcement for appropriate reactions to this action. Encourage your dog to sit calmly or stand still when you’re putting their leash on. The goal is for your dog to remain calm when they see the leash and allow you to get the leash on and off of them with ease. Pulling on the leash during walks is probably the most common issue that dog owners face. Pulling can be frustrating for you, but it can also cause you to fall or have your arms or shoulders jerked in a way that can be painful and cause injuries. Depending on the collar or harness you use with your dog, pulling can also cause injuries to your dog. Pulling allows your dog to have all the control during your walk, which means that you aren’t able to be effective at keeping things safe and calm for your dog. Leash reactivity occurs when a dog feels the need to react inappropriately to people or other animals when they’re leashed. This behavior often includes displays of aggression, like growling, teeth-baring, barking, or lunging. However, this behavior occurs when your dog is feeling fearful or stressed and they don’t know how to respond appropriately to these feelings. In many cases, your dog will spot the thing they’re going to react to when it’s still a good distance away. This means that your dog is going to have an escalation of their negative feelings as you get closer and closer to the source of their stress. To counter-condition your dog’s leash reactivity, you want to provide them with something positive, like a favorite treat, when they first see the source of their stress. Every time your dog looks at you instead of to their trigger, you should provide them with a treat until the trigger is no longer in their line of sight. In many cases, professional help is needed to work through leash reactivity, so don’t hesitate to reach out to a trainer. As funny as it can be to see a dog plop down on its walk and refuse to move, it can be a major inconvenience for the owner. This is especially an issue if your dog is too large for you to easily carry. There are sometimes physiological reasons why dogs will refuse to walk, including injury and illness. For some dogs, this is strictly a behavioral issue that should not be encouraged. In some cases, this may also be a sign that you need to shorten the walks that you’re taking with your dog. If you have a low-energy breed, they may never be a good walking companion for you. Consider changing up your walking routes to keep things fresh and interesting, which will provide enrichment for your dog and make them more likely to keep moving. There are a few reasons that your dog may bark excessively during a walk. They may be overly excited, anxious, stressed, or fearful. Some dogs may bark at nothing in particular, while other dogs may only bark at other animals or people because of leash reactivity and stress. You might find yourself trying to shout over your dog’s barking in an effort to get them to stop, but this can actually make the situation worse by making your dog think that you’re joining in on the noisemaking. Does your dog love to pick up interesting things on their walk? Unfortunately, scavenging is a dangerous habit for your dog to be in. Pesticides, rodenticides, herbicides, rotten food, antifreeze, and other dangerous products impact objects that your dog picks up or consumes. Consuming items on walks can lead to intestinal obstructions, toxin exposure, and injuries for your dog. Positive reinforcement and encouraging your dog to focus on you throughout their walk are also good options for reducing or eliminating this behavior. Train your dog the commands “leave it” and “drop it” so you can quickly get them away from potentially dangerous items. Some dogs seem to stop every few feet to sniff, sometimes for extended periods. It can make walks feel like they’re taking forever to get through. You may find it highly annoying that your dog stops to sniff so frequently. This is a walk that is specifically for the purpose of allowing your dog to sniff and explore. By offering them this opportunity, you may find it easier to keep them moving on their regular walk because they will have already experienced the enrichment of sniffing. Positive reinforcement when your dog doesn’t sniff very long or avoids sniff spots can also help keep things moving. Like sniffing, it can be very annoying to have your dog stop every few feet to pee. Many dogs love to mark their territory on walks, which can result in frequent pit stops. You can discourage frequent potty stops by keeping your dog’s leash short enough to give you control to keep them moving, as well as practicing positive reinforcement when they opt not to stop to pee frequently. It can be really frustrating to deal with walking a dog that simply will not listen or pay attention to you. Not only is it frustrating, but it can be dangerous for your dog to ignore your commands. This is a very common problem for many dog owners because many dogs get overstimulated by the novel environment they experience on a walk. Have your dog walk around with you and every time they look at you, provide a click from the clicker and then give them a treat. A clicker is helpful because it allows you to “mark” the desirable behavior right when it happens, and then your dog will learn to associate the clicking sound with treats and praise. Some dogs don’t pull on their leash, but they instead choose to dart all over the place. Sometimes, this can even result in your dog darting into the road, into the path of a bicycle, or into other dangerous situations. Taking your dog for a walk should be a fun bonding time for both of you. Positive reinforcement training can be used to solve a variety of dog walking problems. If you’re ever unsure of how to proceed in dealing with an issue or you’re struggling to succeed in training your dog, then reach out to a professional trainer for help. They’re a wonderful resource and can help get you pointed in the right direction in your training journey. See Also: Featured Image Credit: Africa Studio, Shutterstock
2. Pulling on the Leash
3. Reactivity While Leashed
4. Refusing to Walk
5. Barking
6. Scavenging
7. Excessive Sniffing
8. Excessive Potty Stops
9. Not Listening to You
10. Darting
Conclusion
