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Showing results for tags 'insecure dog'.
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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!
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- fearful dog
- heeling
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