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Stubborn boy, lays down and refuses to move.

60K views 38 replies 29 participants last post by  GOAussies 
#1 ·
I have a 14 month old very cheeky boy. He is good natured but very stubborn. He knows all the commands but invariably will only do them if there is something in it for him. You can ask him to give you his paw, till you are blue in the face and he'll sit there as if he hasn't heard you. Get a treat out of your pocket and his paw will be be there in a millisecond :)

Anyway I know we have inadvertantly taught him to be naughty, he has worked out if he doesn't do something first time of asking he may get offered a treat next time and therefore holds out. Most of the time I can live with his stubborness but there is one thing I really need to master.

When we go on walks, if he does not want to go home, go in a certain direction etc he just hits the deck and refuses to move. He is a big boy and I am six months pregnant so I can't physically make him. It is pretty embarrassing when he is laying flat on the pavement and I have to explain to passers by that he's fine it's just a sit down protest! Anyway without the physical presence to make him move the only way I can get him up is to offer him a treat - Doh I know reinforcing this negative behaviour, I don't know what else to do however as I really cannot move him. Soon I will have a buggy as well and really need to sort this - any ideas that don't involve brute force!!! :) I don't think I help matters as invariably I end up laughing as it is so comical.
 
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#35 ·
I have a 13 1/2 year old gal who I now have to assist with a Help-em-up Harness (which, btw, is a fantastic help to me - and her.) She's had bilateral TPLOs over the years and has slowed down a great deal, but still full of playfulness and attitude. Every morning we take a walk to the park, with me literally holding up the rear and all things considered she moves with determination and energy - wobbly, yes but she gets there. In the park, she loves nothing more than immediately rolling on her back in the grass - and she'll do it repeatedly with great satisfaction. After we've rested for 20-30 minutes and it's time to head back, she magically turns into a block of granite. She has less than no interest in heading home and refuses to budge. However, if I decide to take her another 10 yards into the park, she moves with feet of air. It's hysterical. I've relented to coaxing her back to the house with treats - if I toss one in the direction of home about 3-5 yards in front of her, she takes off chasing it dragging me behind her holding up the rear and we eventually get home. Stubborn doesn't even begin to describe her, but I think she's earned it at this point. And she's adorable. The things we do for our retrievers!
 
#36 ·
I just want to add my 71/2 month old has just started doing this with Go Crate at bed time. Wants to play dead instead. She has not thought of this on walks yet, but I am guessing she will at some point. I do know the grab tail thing really gets her attention, I use it for when she wants to climb the cat tree to bug the cat.
 
#37 ·
We just got a golden pup and Delilah is a stubborn one too. She will sit and not come inside when told, my mom laughs as well when has to physically move her in. I’m glad to see this is regular behavior with goldens as I thought we were doing something wrong. I too lore her in with treats and she will come. She knows sit and we try down until we’re blue in the face and she just sits there as well staring at us like we’re bonkers 🤣. We love her but she is becoming extremely hard to control and she is rambonctios and will get anything and everything bad in her mouth.
 
#38 ·
My golden is 9.5 years old and, among many other things, he has taught me that goldens (1) are masters in the art of passive resistance, (2) know how to tell us what they want, and (3) will get offended easily if they don't get their way. Luckily they're so food-motivated, that we still have the upper hand 😅 . Give your pup time and more training, and you both will learn to communicate better with each other...even if that means she wins the argument from time to time ;)
 
#39 ·
I have a 14 month old very cheeky boy. He is good natured but very stubborn. He knows all the commands but invariably will only do them if there is something in it for him. You can ask him to give you his paw, till you are blue in the face and he'll sit there as if he hasn't heard you. Get a treat out of your pocket and his paw will be be there in a millisecond :)

Anyway I know we have inadvertantly taught him to be naughty, he has worked out if he doesn't do something first time of asking he may get offered a treat next time and therefore holds out. Most of the time I can live with his stubborness but there is one thing I really need to master.

When we go on walks, if he does not want to go home, go in a certain direction etc he just hits the deck and refuses to move. He is a big boy and I am six months pregnant so I can't physically make him. It is pretty embarrassing when he is laying flat on the pavement and I have to explain to passers by that he's fine it's just a sit down protest! Anyway without the physical presence to make him move the only way I can get him up is to offer him a treat - Doh I know reinforcing this negative behaviour, I don't know what else to do however as I really cannot move him. Soon I will have a buggy as well and really need to sort this - any ideas that don't involve brute force!!! :) I don't think I help matters as invariably I end up laughing as it is so comical.
Hahaha, I'm sorry you're dealing with this, although it is, on the one hand, adorable at the same time. Still, you're right, you do need to enforce discipline with him especially since you'll soon be pushing a baby buggy, too. I'm not talking "brute force", I'm talking being a firm, fair, consistent LEADER. All dogs need such a leader. With dogs, you're either the leader, or the follower. Right now, he sees himself as a leader.

I'm not a fan of using treats for obedience training for exactly the problem you described; many dogs will only obey reliably when there's a treat involved. The reality is, we won't always have treats, but they still need to mind us. Treats aren't the only way to reward a dog for a job well-done. In my opinion, treats in obedience training put up a barrier in us developing a close relationship with our dogs. They're developing a relationship with the food; not you.

There's a lot more I could explain than is appropriate to try to fit all into one reply. If you'd like to hear more about how I train dogs, private message me. I'd be glad to offer you free coaching long-distance.
 
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