Question:
Hi There:

Our dog Mikey has suddenly decided that he does not want to go for a walk. Previously he loved them. He starts out happy, but by the time we have gone less then a block he starts hanging his head, his tail goes down and he walks very slowly and then just stops. He just wants to go home. The big problem is that he will not do his business in the back yard. So we have no choice but to take him for a walk. We got Mikey from a shelter when he was around 9-12 months old. He was already trained to go outside, but he has never done anything on our property. In the three years that we have had him, this has never happended. We have to keep going out again in about an hour and then he will do something, sometimes. Can any one offer any solutions? Thank you

Answer:
I had the same problem with my dog last night, she LOVES going for walks but last night she didn't want to go. We walked a block and she kept pulling in the direction to go home.

With the heat and the humidty, maybe it's just to hot for them to go for a walk. Especially if your place is air conditioned, when you go outside the heat hits you like a ton of bricks.

Last year, I had a problem walking my dog near the waterfront, she was terrified of ducks! A duck came out of the water and started quacking at her and scared and I had a hard time walking her when we went to the direction of the water.

Perhaps something scared her?

What I did was, I brought treats with me and everytime we went towards the water, she automatically stopped, tail went down and she looked afraid.

I would get her to walk a step and I would praise her like crazy and give her a treat. It took awhile, but now she's fine. She loves to walk towards the water and she's no longer afraid of ducks!

Answer:
three possibilities
medical -- problem possibly pain or maybe thyroid

heat related -- too hot, wet him down before walking

fear -- something scared him on one of the walks- does he stop at about the same place each time? If so try walking him in a different aree for a bit

Answer: