Hello all,

We have just acquired a nice well mannered (except in a few ways I will
mention below) Shetland Sheepdog that is 8 years old. It is great with
our kids, has no problem with house training and is generally a really
nice dog. We have had the dog for a week only so things may certainly
change. But, we have two main issues with the dog. One is that the dog
will only walk the direction that it wants to. If we are going where it
doesn't want to go it just stops and resists. I have gotten it to go
again through some distraction but it isn't always a reliable way to
get the dog "unstuck". The second issue is that we can't seem to brush
the dog. It doesn't even let us get started.

What I am wondering is what are some ways to get the dog to not do this
unwanted behavior. As far as the walking goes if he doesn't want to
stop, he walks just fine. So how do I reward that behavior? And with
the brushing we can't even get started to reward him for tolerating it.

Thanks for all your help!

Steve

i will start with brushing first as unbrushed you will have matts soon.

put your self in his shoes? hes only known you a week ~ would you let
someone youve only known a week brush your butt?
you need to show him he can trust you. you have a wire bristle brush yes?
with little rubber ends so as not to scratch his skin.
try to get him nice and relaxed and start where he can see whats going on
all the while you tell him hes a good boy ~ plus it wouldnt hurt to have
some tiny chucks or cheese or ham near by.
dont do too much to start but try every day and build it up, unfortunatly
time is not on your side as the matts creep in very fast behind his ears,
in his under arms ~ all the places he will trust you least im afraid.
so long as he learns he can trust your hands. i would try to do him in the
morning and maybe just have him sit near you in the evening when hes
relaxed and see if you can run it over him then, he might even roll on to
his back for his belly to be done if hes slightly dozy?

for walking with you. this will make me sound treat mad i know.
when i first have a dog here i stick to super smelly things like
pepperami. on a walk my pockets are full up with small chunks of
pepperami, when you get to a spot where he might 'get stuck' give the heel
command and even if he doesnt come right to heel and he just comes near
you then dont stop walking and treat him.

you could have him trot by you if you break into a slow jog,or start
turning round on the spot. the idea is to make you unpredictable so the
dog will look to you to see whats coming next.

have you ever worked on a running back recall?

start you dog next to you and give him a wait (as if your at the kerb to
cross the road) stand in front of him at the end of his lead and give him
a here or come and as he gets up trot backwards. stop after a few trots
back and give him a sit and reward.
when he gets the hang of that you could try that while out on walks, but
somewhere safe like a park. just say his name and here but run backwards,
give him a sit and good boy.

i know the running back recall wont help on yuor getting stuck situation
but it will help to work towards a bond between you and so hopefully will
strengthen his trust in you.

it appears the type of brush i asked if you used has come under critisism.
i asked this as the last ppl who had my shih tzu felt they could groom her
using a soft bristle baby brush, she was then carried every where and then
placed on her own leather sofa!

as for the rubber tips on the end of a wire brush, its so as not to
scratch his skin.