If a pooch is afraid of something in their surroundings, they may refuse to walk or keep moving. Young puppies who are going through their fear period and adult dogs walking in an unfamiliar environment commonly experience this (especially true if they tend to be fearful or anxious, or have a history of trauma).
A general rule of thumb is that a puppy can walk five minutes for every month of their age, starting from 8 weeks old. So, if your puppy is 2 months old, they can walk for roughly 10 minutes at a time.
Medical restraints. Typically, it's not recommended to take your dog for walks until they are fully vaccinated. Puppy vaccinations help protect your dog against diseases, making them essential when puppies go outside. Pups in particular are vulnerable to serious diseases, such as parvovirus and canine distemper.
Negative experiences: Some dogs become reluctant to walk after having a scary experience outside. Whether getting startled by a noisy garbage truck or a having a run-in with a barking dog behind a fence, these dogs make a connection between going for a walk and confronting stressful situations.
If your puppy doesn't want to go for a walk, there can be several reasons. Either he is lazy, afraid or the weather is too hot or too cold for him. He could also be sick or ailing.
At the first sign of anxiety, distract your dog with a treat (or toy) before the anxiety level gets high. Continue to move past the anxiety-causing stimulus while continuing to offer your dog treats. Don't stop or slow down to treat the dog – you want to move past the scary object quickly and without incident.
If your puppy is reluctant to walk out into the great big world, Ellis recommends using lots of verbal praise and treats. The key is to keep it super fun so that your pet starts to associate going on a walk with an exciting, pleasurable time.
If your puppy plops down on the sidewalk and refuses to walk with you, try to avoid the turn and face, don't drag him, and never, ever pick him up!
The first fear period from 8-11 weeks coincides with the second socialization period when puppies are going to a new home and facing a whole new environment and set of situations. During this time much care should be taken to not frighten your puppy.
If a pooch is afraid of something in their surroundings, they may refuse to walk or keep moving. Young puppies who are going through their fear period and adult dogs walking in an unfamiliar environment commonly experience this (especially true if they tend to be fearful or anxious, or have a history of trauma).
If she is tired and doesn't want to walk, carry her home. As your puppy gets older, she can gradually take longer walks. A 12-week-old puppy can walk about 15 to 20 minutes.
A general guide for exercising puppies is to allow them one to two sessions of five minutes walking for each month of age, so for example, a four month old pup could enjoy walks of 20 minutes at a time, once or twice a day.
Dogs refuse to walk because of pain, discomfort, fear, previous negative experiences, incomplete leash training, unfamiliar equipment, separation anxiety from their owners, lack of socialization, protest, or exhaustion.
If you live in a particularly noisy area with traffic and lots of activity, your dog might feel overwhelmed when they go outside. Likewise, if your dog isn't properly socialized or trained, they might feel nervous and scared of other dogs and people.
Start with short, slow walks.
Encourage your pup to go a short distance (even a few houses down the block), then return. Don't push the pace — let your pup amble as slowly as they like. Many puppies' walking skills improve with short, positive experiences; walks that are too long or too fast can overwhelm them.
Your dog may be a stubborn walker because they fear some part of the experience, be it the leash, passing cars, or simply walking around outside their home. Desensitization is a lengthy process in which you introduce your dog to graduating levels of the stimuli that they fear.
Leave them be
If your pooch occasionally turns a walk down, don't force it. They may just rather a home day, especially if you have an older dog whose joints and muscles aren't what they used to be. There's nothing wrong with missing a walk or two during the week.
Reward the behaviours you like. If your dog walks calmly past something that would normally give him pause, reward him! They need to know how awesome that accomplishment was. Remember that if you reward the things that you like they are likely to be repeated more often!
Fear stages in dogs typically occur at two different times: between 8–11 weeks, and 6–14 months. There's nothing you can do to prevent these fear periods, but you can give your puppy a helping hand so they come out the other side as a more confident dog.
Your puppy's age
A rule of thumb is a puppy can walk five minutes for every month of age starting at eight weeks. So a two-month-old puppy can walk about 10 minutes. And a three-month-old can walk for 15 minutes; and a four-month-old for 20 minutes. And so forth.
As a rule, where physical exercise is concerned, other than free play with toys or with other pets, the average puppy who is still growing could do about five minutes for every month of their age, once or twice a day.
4 months: At this point, how long a puppy can stay alone can start matching their age – so 4 hours. After 4 hours, your puppy will definitely need the toilet, so you might want to keep it at 3 just to make sure. They'll likely want some cuddles too.
You are not a bad pet owner if you miss walking your dog a day or two, says Smiling Leash. So long as your pup is getting some kind of activity, they are doing just fine, says Vet Street. While walking may be the preferred method of exercise for some pet owners, others do not have the time.