Help! My Dog is Afraid of Cars!

[mousie]

My dog, Roscoe, is a miniature american eskimo, he's the sweetest little thing but he hates going for walks in the daytime, only at about 3 a.m. with my dad, I think he's afraid of cars, but the thing is, he will go for a car ride. Does anyone know how to get him to go for a walk?

[Karen]

You need to get him used to it!

Just go for short walks every day, and focus on being positive. You can lengthen the walk every day, until he is accustomed to it. Work on training while walking, you know, periodically say "Sit," and praise when he does, etc.

[deegayle]

You could also use something to stimulate him to make him want to walk. The first thing i think of is some sort of treat or even shaking a box of cereal at him. Don't give it to him, or not right away, but after he has walked a while. Then when he walks a certain distance, give him a treat and let him see another one. That way he associates something good with walking.

[mousie]

Thanks for the suggestions, we do live on a busy street so the only challenge is getting on the end of the block so we can go onto the side streets, and the good is that I live in the middle of the street so we can get right onto the side streets right away.

[mousie]

I also forgot to mention he's 6 years old and started this strange behavior of not wanting to leave the house 1 year ago, I thought it might be a health issue but his vet gave him a clean bill of health.

[deegayle]

Hi
That is a hard one to answer. Did a car come close to him on one of your walks? The one thing that I do is that I always move to the side of the road and put my dogs on 'still'. My lab is terrified of most things including cars and lawn mowers and she has gotten used to it as long as she is near me. I walk them beside me and don't let them go in front. The one thing I would suggest is to maintain a positive front for your dog and stay focused on your walk. Let her see that you are the dominant person and she has to follow you at all times. Or as Cesar Millan says, Stay calm and assertive.
I hope this helps you.
Dee Council

[mousie]

I let him walk in front of me so maybe having him walk beside me would make him feel better, I will try that! I think if he went on a walk or 2 a day he should get use to it pretty soon.

~Thanks

[IloveMyDogs900]

Talk to you dog tell him its fine maybe he willl be betttter try talking Good Luck

[deegayle]

let me know how it goes. you can e-mail me privately if you would like. take care and God Bless
Dee