# Westie who won't walk!



## SimbaUK2015 (Sep 9, 2015)

Hello everyone, 
This is my first post on these forums and I am hoping to get some advice for my family in regard to our adopted Westie. We got Jack earlier this year in February after his elderly owner passed away, we think that he is around 5 years old although the original owner may have been a year out. 

The first few weeks he was really easy to take for a walk with very little problems apart from stopping to wee quit a lot which we took as marking his territory. However, after several months now of living with us his behaviour on walks has deteriorated significantly. He often will be slow, reluctant to walk and will stop and sit at certain points. It has gotten to the point when we have to almost drag him along which of course is not good for him. We have tried rewarding him with treats for walking but the behaviour is getting very repetitive.

I have tired to put it down to style of walking, we as a family are quite inconsistent in that I have always tried to keep him on the lead whilst walking yet my younger brother will take him on long walks and have him off the lead doing his own thing. At home Jack is allowed upstairs, on furniture and on my brothers bed. Is this all down to him thinking he's king of the castle?


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## SimbaUK2015 (Sep 9, 2015)

I am hopeless at collecting my thoughts together! He also has a thing for going nuts whenever someone sprays themselves with anything, he will bark to high heaven and jump up scratching your leg etc. he will also go nuts if a door is closed to him. He has recently been spotted jumping up at a the door handles as he knows that we use them to open doors. He will scratch at doors etc.


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## LoopyL (Jun 16, 2015)

No it is nothing to do with him thinking he is king of anything. I don't suppose his elderly previous owner took him for many walks
& would no doubt have walked more slowly than you do so praps he is stopping because you are walking too fast for him or he has been spooked
by something happening at a particular place on a previous walk & doesn't want to go past it. 
Stopping to wee frequently is quite normal for dogs as they are saying I've been here & here & here...
Is there any reason why you prefer to walk him only on lead? I always walk mine offlead (obviously not near traffic) so they can do their thing at their own pace.
I'd give him a bit more freedom & hopefully that should sort his reluctance.
As for the spray, lots of animals are scared of aerosols & all sorts of things so try & avoid spraying it near him.
Dogs like being with their humans so scratching at door just means he wants to be with you.


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## Burrowzig (Feb 18, 2009)

I'd have him to the vet and get his joints and feet checked. If he moves better off lead when out with your brother, that would be away from roads? Softer ground? Just because he's only 5 or 6-ish doesn't mean he can't have physical problems. Recently, a friend was worried about her dog (just a year old) that wasn't walking properly; turned out to be a corn on one of her pads.

And do ditch that 'king of the castle' stuff. Dogs don't think like that despite what some celebrity dog 'rehabilitators' say. He knows you provide the food, let him in or out, dictate when everything in his life happens. What furniture he sits on is immaterial.


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## Guest (Sep 10, 2015)

I agree with Burrowzig, having his joints checked would be a good idea. If his last owner didn't take him on a lot of walks, he may also simply be out of shape. My friend owns a Papillon and he never goes on walks. When he does, it's just around their apartment complex and he's not naturally an active dog. However, once I invited the two of them on a hike with me and Cosmo and the poor thing literally stopped mid hike and refused to walk because he was just too tired. She had to carry him the rest of the way and he was perfectly content be packed.

I would suggest keeping walks to a minimum length, and when he starts slowing down and stopping, you know that's about his limit.

Take him to be checked out first, but working on building up his stamina may be the next step.

As for the barking if a door is closed on him he may have separation anxiety. If his owner was elderly I imagine he was home with him an awful lot, so he's probably not used to being alone. The spray thing is a bit weird and I'm not really sure what you might do about that.

Good luck!


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## Lurcherlad (Jan 5, 2013)

Agree with everyone.

With the spray, it is likely he's scared of it, so either avoid using them around him or try to desensitise him to them, by doing a quick squirt (at a good distance from him) and throw him a treat before he reacts. He may then learn to associate sprays with good things.

One of my mum's rescue cats was petrified of the hairdryer. My lurcher hates loud bangs and being shut in anywhere. There could be any number of reasons why, but if you can either avoid the triggers, or teach them there is no danger, etc. it will make for a quieter life all round. 

A friends JR used to "savage" the hoover, rotary clothes line, fire poker, etc. but her way of dealing with it was to just shout at the dog IN YOUR BED! for years


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## SimbaUK2015 (Sep 9, 2015)

Thanks to all of your for the advice, I will suggest to my parents to take him for a check up at the vets to make sure he is OK. And yes the king of the castle was a poor analogy. Thanks again.


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## TracyDippy (Jul 2, 2015)

Also do u use a collar and lead, or a harness. He might prefer one or other? Xx


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