Desperately Need Help Training My Bullie to Walk on Leash

[Adrienne]

I have an almost year-old bulldog who is as expected with the breed VERY stubborn. If she is being walked in a direction she doesn't want to go she will lay completely flat to the ground and refuse to move. She weighs about 50 pounds and I am not strong enough to normally pick her up or budge her and she knows this! I have tried food, treats, pulling, picking her up, and even taking off the leash and just walking away. All of these have worked only briefly and she eventually wises up and remains glued to the ground shortly after. Does ANYONE have any suggestions, tips, ideas to get this bullie to get a move on and follow my lead?? I am at my wits end!!!!

[mtc]

I got nothing for you... and I'm sorry.... I realize it's frustrating.... but picturing it is kinda funny !!

Hopefully someone has some good ideas for you.

[ksdstny]

I would recommend u take a training class with her.  It helps alot. When harlow was little she didnt want to walk either, i would put peanut butter on the end of a wooden spoon and coerice her with that. Training helped and also throwing pieces of a high value treat i.e., chicken, hot dogs etc in front of her and asking her to find it

Good luck

[I Luv Chloe]

I agree with Kim.. take her to a class. Maybe it was my fault but I carried Chloe around everywhere because she was so cute and she loved it, as well as her legs started getting weak but around 5 months old, I tried to put a collar on her, and a leash and we went for a walk.. What a disaster! She will NOT tolerate a leash.. I am thinking about taking her to a training class. Actually come to think of it, I am making the same mistake with my new puppy too.. They are just so good about staying in the yard and walking beside me, I know there is a leash law, maybe I should follow that law..lol

Seriously, best of luck with that.. I need it myself..

[egreen]

I agree with the treats!!! A class would probably be great also. My first bully didn't want to walk either. I had to throw treats in front of him to get him to walk toward them. The stairs were the worst,  but treats also did the trick there. After about a week of throwing treats in front of him he got a lot better and would walk a bit on his own. He was never a great walker though. Thankfully my bully now, Axel loves to walk. We take nice long walks everyday.

I also wonder if it has something to do with being painful?? Dexter my first bully had really bowed legs. He loved to play and run in the house on the carpet but once outside he would sit on his little tush. Even getting him to go potty was hard at times cause he didn't want to walk.

[Superhero Mom]

Honestly, i found with dozer that if he sets his mind to go a particular direction (ie going left on the side walk rather than right), for the sake of exercise and well being we'll go left.  I know as a "leader" thats not really what we want, but he'll usually go with me for a while and come to a cross road that he'll want to explore.  As long as we're walking at a good pace thats getting us exercise i dont mind a change of scenery.  What i dont take is him trying to slip his collar when i wont go where he wants... we stand at opposite ends of the leash tugging before one of us gives in... the second he tries to slip i reel him in and swap his nylon collar to his choke or harness depending what we're doing... (another dog coming towards us, kids, etc)

[ksdstny]

We use a collar and harness also depending on what we re doing.  N i agree, harlow walks well for the most part but we dont train that with her...she likes to meander nosein around like n ole italian mama...ha...steeler is a bull, strong n i needed to train the walk...hes almost two n we re still training... He does well with the easy walk.

Kenny walks them on the collar n he does fine with him ! Go figure!

[hoegaandit]

I see you may have already tried this, but, as Patricia McConnell points out nicely in her excellent book "The Other End of the Leash" the best way to get your dog to come is to mimic a leader dog and walk in the direction you want to go. Our boy who really loves his walks was sometimes stubborn. Things that helped us were to take our boy to places he liked to walk (the park, other dogs and other dog smells); then you can behave excitedly and eg run in the direction you want. It will be a rare dog that does not follow, at least after a bit. Though I've never done this, McConnell also suggests giving a treat to reinforce the good behaviour of coming to you. As we walk off leash at least 95% of the time, others can comment on the specific leash issues, but I think you'd follow the same general idea (from recollection in the early days we'd just drop the leash when he sat down and walked on). Best of luck!

[Susan & the bullies]

After years of epic frustrations, I personally have given up.  I ask my two if they want to go for a walk. If they want to go--great, if not and they hide when I bust out the leashes, then we don't go.  It was making us all miserable to go out when they really didn't want to. The walk was so slow and so little ground was actually covered that I don't feel like I am depriving them of exercise. I just want us ALL to be happy and to do what feels right. I got so sick of the daily struggles to get 1/4 mile around our neighborhood! I'm sorry I have no advise for you. I've been defeated!

[hoegaandit]

For what it is worth in our family, I don't think most times our boy is that keen on walking with the family members other than dad. This reflects the types of walks the family do with him. Mom and the two teenagers for one reason or another put the collar on and tighten it and walk him around the block. (Teenage sister gives him nicer and longer walks, letting him largely choose where he wants to go, but still on lead). Dad's walks are quite different - usually in the car to a park or the beach, and nearly all the time off lead. The difference if dad goes to put the collar or lead on to go for a walk, or the rest of the family do, is dramatic. The Big Boy is extremely keen to go for walks with dad, but will tend to run away and hide under the table, and growl and even nip some if the other family members try to put a leash on him.

So I think the main difference is that dad tries hard to make the Big Boy's walks fun - and that is obviously very important. However sometimes dad might need to give a morning quick walk around the block (eg if mom is sick, as that is her shift) and if so sometimes the Big Boy, used to more freedom, does not like just doing the walk around the small neighbourhood block. If that happens, Dad (who will usually be using a leash on these occasions) simply drops the lead and heads off in the direction needed; after a few seconds the Big Boy just follows.

[ksdstny]

Susan u made me laugh!

[Susan & the bullies]

Kim-- I am so much happier now that I have given up the struggle!!!!

[hoegaandit]

I guess what I am trying to say though, is if you looked at our boy growling when our son tried to put the lead on him, or our son trying to pull our boy out the door on lead - or even our boy standing like a mini-elephant when I decide to walk him round the neighbourhood block (which he doesn't like to much compared to eg the park or bush walk) instead of getting in the car for a walk, you'd think the big boy hates walks.

But nothing could be further from the truth. He will happily go for a walk with me on the coldest, wettest, thunderiest day of the year. If I say walk or get the lead and collar he is full of energy and really happy. When we drive close to one of his favourite walks, he is almost beside himself to get out of the car.

So I think if you make the walk fun and do the walk for the dog more than for yourself (eg taking time and letting him sniff etc), unless perhaps there is some physical affliction, I'm sure your bully would love to go on most walks.

[I Luv Chloe]

Susan- You not only made me laugh but I can't tell you how relieved I am.. I feel the exact same way and it sucks because there is nothing more I would love then to walk around my neighborhood with my two beautiful bullies and show them off. Well both HATE leashes (and collars) and walking a couple of steps in an hour is embarrassing and frustrating. I give up as well. They hang out in the yard and wont run away so that's that. No walks, just freedom in the yard.

[Superhero Mom]

Well we have no yard to speak of... just enuf to poop in and clean up every 2 days... was fun in winter!  And Dozer gets "cabin fever" of sorts where he is cra-zee and wants to nip and hump the kids to no end! Also the adults feet are his other obcession.  He is also gotten pretty good at when we go to the field next to our housing development, i  can take him off the leash and he just roams around 20 ft away, but always comes back to me.  That just happened the last 2 weeks or so.  but when we go next to the road i put the leash back on for safety.  I would love to have the bully who could care less about walks and be chill as a cucumber.