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Hello, everyone! I have recently adopted a 4 month old puppy. He is very sweet, but also insecure and affraid of everything: loud noises, soft noises, people, my apartment's kitchen (he refuses to go inside it!)... When he first arrived home, he looked for the tinyest places to crawl into, and he would stay there no matter what. He is slowly becoming more comfortable around the house, whining less, hiding less, although he still does all of that. He already shows signs of affection, like licking, showing his belly, and, sometimes, we even play a little bit of tug-o-war. My main issue right now is leash training. He arrived home already potty trained (!): he would whine and pace around, and I'd take him out to potty. However, when we're out, he always pulls the leash, a lot! At home, when I take the leash, he cowers and refuses to get up. I always carry him out of the apartment. When we're finally out, he starts pulling. It seems like he knows where he wants to go, and he is leading me there. Sometimes I think he wants to go back to the vet clinic where he was adopted, since he lived there for months. Sometimes I think he is only scared of the surroundings and all the stimuli (I have also noticed that he pulls his ears back and put his tail between his legs). I have tried the heeling exercise proposed here, but he completely ignores the treats in my hand when we're out. If I offer him a treat after he pees or poops, he doesn't take it. And he keeps pulling. I don't know what to do. I'm afraid if I keep insisting on taking him out it will make matters worse, since I can tell our walks are not exactly pleasurable for him. But he still needs to go outside to potty. Any suggestions on how to act in this situation? I would highly appreciate your advice! Thanks and best wishes to all!

Hello, does it matter what side do you teach your dog to heel? should it always be the same side? could you interchange sides depending on the direction when you are walking on a sidewalk? Thank you!

I need help please... Sorry this may be a long post, I'm having a few issues that I'm getting quite frustrated with, maybe a stage he's going through, adolescence? Blue (Border Collie) is now 14months old. Treats and toys... 1. He steals treats and toys from his chihuahua sister and always has unless we watch/stop him. It's like he always wants what she's having and as soon as he's snatched one thing if she picks up something else he immediately drops what he just stole to take that as well. Not sure how to deal with this which leads to the next issue... 2. We have come home after being out for the day and she seems to cower away from him (rough play or treat snatching, I'm not sure?) I usually leave Blue with lots of treat puzzles to keep him busy for a while (stacked cups with treats in them, Kong, hidden treats to find, an ear. I usually give Kiki a smaller piece of ear so she has a chance to eat it before Blue can possibly steal it. She has it in her bedroom with the door open enough for her to get through. He's not allowed in but that probably doesn't stop him from pushing the door open, I'm not sure? Next two issues are recall and walking in distracting areas... 1. He knows his basic commands, sit, down, stay, wait, come, heel. What I have trouble with is his heeling/walking beside me when out walking in the forest or park ( he is always on lead). I practice stopping till he comes back to my side, gently pulling him as I walk backwards till he is beside me or I turn and walk in the other direction but he continually creeps on front of me or keeps pulling until I have to drag him away from a smell. He will pull in other directions if he smells something on the side of the track and walks with his nose to the ground all the time. This leads him to not being aware of my body cues like when I turn. I'm not sure where to go from here, should I be letting him sniff? Or when on walks should he be walking head up unless I stop and tell him it's ok to sniff? Also, treats don't stop him from creeping or pulling, he will just revert back to this after a treat for being good for a little bit. 2. Recall.... in the backyard he has started ignoring me won't come unless he knows he will get a treat. If we are playing fetch in the backyard or field his recall doesn't exist all that matters to him is the ball. I've tried playing fetch with him on the long lead, having the ball on the ground a little distance away and calling him to me and treating him when he does. It is very hard for him and as soon as I let him off lead he won't come. I hope I have included everything. Manida