Dog Anxious On Walks? 15 Tips On How To Make It Fun Again

Is your dog anxious on walks?

Barks and lunges at other dogs?

Growls at tall men wearing baseball caps?

Puts the brakes on and refuses to walk altogether?

It can be incredibly stressful to walk an anxious dog.

Every time you step outside, your pup is on high alert, scanning the environment for potential threats.

And if she sees another dog or person she has a bit of a freak-out, which just makes the whole situation even more tense – not to mention embarrassing!

All you want to do is give your dog a nice experience and get some exercise, but sometimes it feels like a battle just making it to the end of the block.

I hear you, I’ve been there!

But don’t despair, the good news is there are plenty of things you can do to help make walks less stressful for both you and your dog. 

How do I make my dog more confident on walks?

Walking your dog should be an enjoyable experience for both of you.

Unfortunately, when your dog gets anxious on walks, it can ruin the outing for everyone involved.

Let’s now dig deeper into some of the things you can do to help your pup overcome her anxiety and make her more confident when she’s out and about with you. 

#1. Use the right gear

Starting at the very beginning, it’s essential that your dog is comfortable putting on and wearing her harness.

A harness is safer than a flat collar, which can cause throat or neck injuries if the dog is a puller.

Please forget anything aversive such as a prong collar, a choke chain, or the dreaded shock collar.

These all work by causing fear and pain and are the worst thing you can do for any dog – much less one who’s having a hard time on her walks.

Which harness is best for my dog?

I use the Freedom No-Pull Harness and love it, so you may want to check those out.

Other good harnesses often recommended by professional trainers include the Blue-9 Balance Harness, the Perfect Fit Harness, and the Tellington TTouch® Harmony Harness.

What is the best leash for my dog?

I prefer leashes that are at least 6 ft. long because they allow the dog more space to explore and sniff around, without me having to stand so close.

For this reason, I’m not a fan of shorter leashes.

In my opinion, long retractable leashes give you little control over your dog, so I advise against them.

I prefer to have both hands free when walking my dogs. You just never know what might happen.

How do I condition my dog to her harness?

It’s essential that your dog likes wearing her harness and is comfortable putting it on and wearing it.

Otherwise, it’s just going to be an additional stressor that neither of you needs.

Here’s professional dog trainer extraordinaire, Chirag Patel, demonstrating how to get a dog used to – and be happy about – wearing a harness:

#2. Desensitization and counter-conditioning

Big words, I know. But in short, all they really mean is that you’re going to teach your dog to enjoy walks instead of dreading them.

“Desensitization is the process of exposing the dog to the fear-inducing trigger in short and achievable bursts from a great enough distance that the dog is able to perceive the trigger without going into a reactionary state,” explains Noble Woof Dog Training in Portland, Oregon.

“We then use counter conditioning to pair the sight of the trigger with something the dog really loves such as a high-value food reward.

“With desensitization and counterconditioning combined, we are able to diminish the dog’s negative emotional response to the trigger and over the process of many sessions change the negative response to a positive response.”

By doing this, you can help your dog overcome her fears and build a positive emotional association with something (walks) that previously caused her to be anxious.

I’m not going to lie, it’s not always easy and requires time and patience – and perhaps the assistance of a certified positive reinforcement dog trainer.

#3. Train at home before you move outdoors

Now we’ve talked about the concepts of desensitization and counter-conditioning, you can start working on leash walking at home.

We want to make sure your dog has a positive association with going for walks.

Home is a nice quiet environment with no distractions where your dog feels safe and relaxed, so that’s the best place to start.

Use high-value treats that your dog doesn’t get any other time. When I say high-value, I mean what the dog values highly and not what you think would be high-value. In other words, she decides.

Take some time to find what really motivates her – chunks of cheese, pieces of sausage or chicken, ribeye steak? Whatever it is, that’s what you need to use.

Once your dog is responding well in her home environment, you can start expanding your horizons and move the training outdoors.

This video from Ontario SPCA and Humane Society is a great place to get you started on how to train a dog to walk on-leash:

Once you do get outdoors and if your dog has a specific trigger for her anxiety, try to choose walking locations that are relatively quiet and have plenty of space and where there are few other people and dogs so your dog doesn’t feel overwhelmed.

Your ultimate goal is to help your pup feel more positive overall, which means keeping her below threshold (i.e. staying calm and relaxed, and not reacting).

For this reason, I’d recommend avoiding the dog park. Not all dogs are social and not all dogs feel comfortable or safe being thrust into an enclosed area with lots of other dogs.

Here’s another dog trainer extraordinaire, Emily Larlham, demonstrating some handy training tips for handling an anxious or reactive dog on a walk. Again, you can work on these at home before you start heading outside into different environments:

#4. Build your dog’s confidence

If you have a generally shy, anxious, or fearful dog, a good way to help build her confidence is by providing mental stimulation and getting her to use her brain.

Food puzzle toys (e.g. Kongs, LickiMats, Snuffle Mats), environmental enrichment (e.g. scent games where you hide tasty dog treats around the house or yard for her to sniff out), and clicker training (where your dog learns new behaviors through positive reinforcement) can all help keep your pup mentally engaged.

The more she engages her rational brain, the more her emotional brain will be inhibited. This means she’ll be more relaxed overall and, therefore, less anxious.

The ASPCA has a handy guide on DIY enrichment to get you started (see Resources at the end of this article).

#5. Stick to a predictable routine

Not knowing what to expect or when to expect it is stressful. By creating a predictable routine you can help your dog feel more in control of her environment and consequently, less anxious.

As much as possible, keep your daily walks to the same time throughout the week and stick to regular mealtimes, play times, and other routine activities that your dog enjoys too.

This includes plenty of downtime so your dog can sleep, rest, and relax.

This pattern of habitual behavior will help build your dog’s confidence and reduce her stress levels – because she knows what’s coming next.

#6. Create a positive association with going for walks

Play a game or let your pup have a sniff or run around the yard before you head out for your walk.

This will get her into an upbeat mood so she’ll be better able to cope with any feelings of anxiety when you get started on her walk.

Once you’re out and about, you’re of course going to manage the environment (see #8) as best you can and keep working on the training you started at home.

#7. Positive reinforcement

Make sure you have a big treat bag full of that highly valued cheese or whatever is your dog’s preference.

Reward her for relaxed behavior while you’re on your walk, and really make it worth her while to be calm.

You want your dog to have a positive association with the activity of going for walks, so use rewards liberally and make them exciting and fun.

This will help her learn good things happen when she’s walking nicely on the leash and no longer reacting to her usual triggers.

#8. Manage the environment

This is where knowing your dog’s triggers are key. Sometimes, despite all your work and training, things happen that are beyond your control.

For example, on the rare occasions when I would walk our dog-in-a-million pitbull-Labrador cross Maggie in our little town (rather than on our usual forest trails), she would sometimes half-heartedly lunge at another dog if they were coming towards us on a narrow sidewalk where, say, there was a brick wall on one side and cars parked all along the road on the other side.

I’d be aware that this situation was a potential trigger for her and would always be looking ahead so I could be prepared.

I’d see her see the dog and notice her starting to tense up. Eek! What were my options? I would have to engage my rational brain to make a fast decision and not get stressed out so I couldn’t think straight.

I didn’t always carry tasty treats with me (although I should have, and I recommend you take treats with you on every walk!) so I couldn’t distract her that way. But walking past another dog in an enclosed space was not a good idea.

What to do?

I’d use the parked cars as a visual barrier and we’d walk out into the road so we could avoid the dog.

By the time we got around the car and back on the sidewalk, the dog had gone past, and Maggie was busy too sniffing where he had walked to worry about his whereabouts.

Now obviously, I don’t recommend walking out into a busy road but this was a tiny town with hardly any traffic – so do use common sense and please stay safe!

Look at that!

Another handy way to distract your dog is to carry a tube of squeezy cheese or peanut butter (make sure it’s xylitol-free) that she can lick as you walk along.

Scattering treats on the ground away from the trigger can also be helpful as it buys you a bit of time.

However, try not to put the dog in a position where she feels conflicted, i.e. she wants the food but she’s also anxious about the scary thing.

Your goal is to keep her in a positive emotional state of mind as much as possible. The Slow Dog Movement suggests a 90% calm, 10% aroused ratio.

A great trick is to teach your dog to look at you or something else in the environment and stay focused on that until the dog or other scary thing has moved away.

By doing this, you can keep the dog under her emotional threshold and avoid her level of anxiety escalating.

This is actually a game devised by renowned dog trainer Leslie McDevitt, known as “Look at That.”

This video demonstrates how to train a “Look at That” behavior:

#9. Give your dog choices

Here’s the thing. Humans tend to walk in straight lines. Dogs, not so much.

They like to wander back and forth, round in circles, zigzag a bit and then go back for another check.

So if the environment allows, let your dog meander and sniff to her heart’s content. Let her take the lead so to speak. It doesn’t matter if you don’t get very far or have a structured walk.

She’ll be having a great time and will be more confident and relaxed because she’s more in control. Plus sniffing lowers the heart rate and blood pressure, so it’s an easy way to help your dog feel calmer (Budzinski & Budzinski, 2019).

Giving your dog choices like this will also help her stay engaged and focused on what she’s doing, rather than on potentially threatening stimuli in the environment.

“Many dogs do not know that going outside can be slow,” says the Slow Dog Movement. “They do not know that they can go for a walk without pulling on the leash. Without barking.”

So don’t be afraid to let her do her thing if it’s safe to do so.

Something else you can do is let your dog choose the route. Maggie and I had great fun with this. We’d get to the end of the driveway and I’d say, “Which way Maggie, left or right?” She’d look left, she’d look right. She’d sniff the air a bit. Maybe take another look. Then she’d make her decision and off we’d go.

I’d let her choose the entire route. Every single time she got us back home after about an hour of walking. It was fantastic!

I used to just switch off and empower her to make all the decisions (within reason of course – I always made sure she stayed safe) which meant it was more relaxing for me too.

If you live in an environment where you could do something similar, I recommend you give it a try. It’ll be so much fun for you and your dog – and she can’t be anxious when she’s having fun!

Walking Consent Test In Action

Want to see this in action?

Here’s another of our lovely rescue dogs, Roman, deciding which direction he wants to go in on one of our walks:

#10. Keep walks short

When you’re doing all this, start with short walks so your dog doesn’t have time to let her anxiety levels build up.

As you continue to work with her and she gets more confident and less reactive to any triggers, you can slowly increase the duration of your walks.

If your pup starts getting overwhelmed or anxious at any time, just reassure her and stay calm and positive. Head back home if you need to but try to end things on a positive note.

Remember that it’s important to go at your dog’s pace and keep things positive and fun. A good short walk is far better than a stressful long walk.

#11. Stay calm

Although it can be stressful when your dog’s freaking out at the dog across the road or at the group of kids on skateboards, try to stay calm when you’re on your walks.

Dogs can feel it if you’re tense on the other end of the leash. They are also masters at reading our body language.

If you’re stressed and anxious, your pup will pick up on that and feel even more on edge and, possibly, react accordingly.

#12. “Jolly” routine

Which brings me onto the “Jolly Routine.”

Renowned dog training and behavior expert William Campbell came up with this concept and, unsurprisingly, it means that you act all jolly, happy, and chilled = specifically when something stressful is going on.

Dogs often look to their owners for cues as to whether something is wrong or not, so if you’re all happy and relaxed, she’s more likely to follow suit.

If you’re super stressed and freaking out, then you’re letting her know there’s something to be worried about. Which is NOT what we want when walking our anxious dog.

#13. Calming products

There are several so-called dog calming products on the market that may or may not be effective, depending on the dog and the situation.

One option is a ThunderShirt, which is a vest-like garment designed to apply consistent pressure to your dog’s body to make her feel less anxious.

Another option is Rescue® Remedy, a natural formula based that is used to help in the calming of animals.

There’s also Adaptil, an artificial pheromone that comes in a calming collar or a diffuser option to help calm your dog, although it doesn’t work for all dogs.

Regardless of what products you try, it’s important to be consistent with training and make sure that any calming aids are just a small part of a long-term plan for tackling your dog’s anxiety.

#14. Safety in numbers

If you have another dog, or a friend with a dog that your dog gets along with, having a walking buddy can do wonders for boosting your dog’s confidence.

Just like with the Jolly Routine, if your anxious dog sees her walking partner ignoring a loud truck going past or those two giant dogs on the other side of the road, she’s more likely to get the message there’s nothing to worry about.

I did this to great effect when we first adopted our Romanian rescue dog Florence. Florence was terrified of everything and was completely shut down when we first got her home.

When we first started going out for walks, Florence was so anxious about me and the environment in general that she’d just lie down and not move. Sometimes for as long as half an hour.

I didn’t mind that so much, but it took a lot of time and it got pretty cold just standing there waiting till she felt safe enough to move again!

So I enlisted the help of the aforementioned Roman, our first Romanian rescue dog, to come on our walks.

It worked like a charm. Florence followed his lead and saw that he trusted me and felt comfortable around me. So she relaxed and did the same.

Roman quickly taught her something that would have taken me much longer to achieve. Florence and I were enjoying relaxing walks together in a matter of days.

#15. Time and patience

It’s important to bear in mind that you’re not going to see a miraculous improvement overnight when working with an anxious dog.

It takes time, consistency, and a lot of patience. So hang in there, keep up the training exercises, and know that the little rewards you get along the way are worth it!

Stick with the strategies outlined above, like experimenting with calming aids, walking in areas with less stimulation, and practicing positive training techniques.

What are the signs my dog is anxious on walks?

Start by paying close attention to your dog’s body language and behavior. It will tell you everything you need to know.

All you have to do is learn to understand what she’s trying to tell you and recognize any signs of stress.

Here are some common signs of fear or anxiety:

• Rapid breathing or panting
• Dilated pupils
• Pacing, circling, or zigzagging “all over the place”
• Freezing in place refusing to move, maybe even lying down
• Pulling on the leash trying to escape or head back home
• Trying to back out of their harness
• Leash reactivity
• Barking, lunging, growling, snarling, or even snapping at other dogs or people
• Constantly vigilant and scanning the environment for potential “threats”
• Tense body language (stiff musculature, tail down, ears back, back legs braced for hasty retreat)
• Tense facial expression (furrowed brow, tense mouth, tongue flick, lip licking, yawning)
• Refusing treats
• Can’t get her attention

What does anxiety feel like for my dog?

When an animal (or person) is faced with a predator or some other perceived danger, they tend to go into “flight or fight” mode.

Fight or flight is designed to provide a burst of energy and strength so the animal can escape the danger or face it head-on.

Physiologically, heart rate and breathing increase so more oxygen can get to the muscles. Blood pressure increases too.

Blood sugar levels also go up to provide a boost of energy.

Blood gets redirected from the intestines to the muscles, which are primed for action if needed, and the animal will feel tense throughout their entire body.

Finally, the pupils dilate and the animal may experience difficulty thinking rationally.

All these changes help animals to survive in threatening situations and to take action – fast, without even thinking.

While the fight or flight response is intended to help them stay alive, it can also lead to some negative consequences, such as increased stress levels and an exaggerated response to something that’s not really that threatening at all.

The “4 F’s”

In addition to flight or flight, dogs may also freeze when they are anxious, stressed, or scared, or “fidget” in an effort to reduce tension.

This may mean using a displacement behavior like sniffing the ground or even trying to hide behind the owner’s legs as a coping strategy.

Collectively, these are known as the 4F’s:

• Fight
• Flight
• Freeze
• Fidget

Dogs who are out on walks may want to run away from whatever is making them anxious or fearful, but their leash restricts them from doing so.

This can cause the dog to feel like she has no other option than to fight and make the scary thing go away.

That’s where the barking, lunging, snarling, growling, and snapping behavior comes in.

When you’re out for your walks, bear all this in mind when you see your dog exhibiting any of these behaviors.

It’s important for pet parents to remain calm and relaxed. In doing so, you can help your furry friend feel more secure – especially if she’s feeling anxious or scared.

Why is my dog so stressed on walks?

There could be many reasons why your dog is feeling stressed or anxious on walks.

It could be something as simple as an off-leash dog who is approaching too quickly, or any number of other things your pup perceives to be a threat.

You’ll need to be able to identify her triggers (i.e. what makes her anxious) so you can work on helping her cope better with them.

How do I identify the source of my dog’s anxiety?

As I mentioned earlier, one of the best ways to identify your dog’s specific anxiety triggers is to pay close attention to her body language and behavior and see what she is reacting to.

Depending on her background, early learning experiences, and genetics, there could be a number of reasons she is anxious on walks.

Some common triggers include:

• Unfamiliar dogs
• Being approached by people she doesn’t know
• Scared of strangers or new people
• Scared of something specific in a person (e.g. carrying an umbrella, using crutches, men with beards, someone wearing a large hat)
• Loud noises (e.g. the garbage truck, fireworks, thunder, loud machinery, construction)
• Sudden movements that might be perceived as threatening
• Unfamiliar objects or items (e.g. traffic cones, robot lawnmowers, animal statues, flapping garbage bags – yes really, I’ve experienced all of these!)

No life experience

Another possible reason your dog is anxious on walks is that she was poorly socialized as a pup, or is short on life experience.

I once worked with a dog who had grown up in the shelter and had never been taken outside of his pen. The first time I took him outdoors, he was terrified of all the wide open space. The poor boy kept looking up at the sky, cowering in fear.

It took several training sessions before I could get him to comfortably walk to the end of the driveway (about 25 yards).

New environment

Sometimes a dog may be comfortable walking in one environment but not in another.

For example, he may be fine walking on a quiet country trail but terrified of walking on hard sidewalks in a noisy city with loads of people.

Our very nervous dog Louis had grown up in the Dubai desert and was perfectly fine with that kind of landscape. But when we moved to Finland with our five dogs in tow, he found walking in the forests to be scary. He didn’t like the tall fir trees or the shadows they created.

General anxiety

Like Louis, sometimes a dog is generally anxious. Anxious dogs worry about life, people, the world, everything.

These dogs are often in a state of high alert and experiencing chronic stress.

It’s no different when they are out on walks – they may constantly be scanning their environment for potential or perceived threats, which can cause them to act out in fear.

Some dogs have a genetic predisposition to be fearful and anxious. Other may have had a bad start in life experiencing cruelty or abuse.

Regardless, life is full of stressful situations for the scared dog.

Do I really have to take my dog for a walk?

Actually, no.

There are other ways to make sure your dog gets plenty of physical exercise if you’re struggling with her anxiety on walks, or just fancy a break sometimes.

You can get really creative with this too!

Here are some ideas from the good folks at Dogkind:

Training the emergency U-turn

Despite all your best efforts, hard work and planning, life happens and things can still go wrong.

When faced with an unexpected situation, first of all, it’s important to stay calm.

You may need to use some management techniques to try to keep your dog below threshold (i.e. where she doesn’t react), such as redirecting her attention or blocking her from seeing the other dogs – as I did with Maggie (see #8).

When faced with such scenarios, a good option is the emergency U-turn.

Here are two videos from Dogkind demonstrating how to train this:

It’s definitely worth taking the time to train this.

It could be a lifesaver one day.

Final thoughts

When your dog is struggling with anxiety – whatever the reason – it can be really tough for both of you.

If you feel overwhelmed, don’t hesitate to consult with a certified positive reinforcement trainer. They’ll be able to create a tailor-made behavior modification plan to address your pup’s anxiety and guide you through the process.

And stick with it – your anxious dog will thank you for it in the long run!

Looking for more tips on how to help with your dog’s anxiety?

Check out my article, Steps To Success: How To Leash Train A Dog That Won’t Walk, in which I outline some common reasons dogs may be reluctant to walk on-leash and offer tips on how to address them.

Recommended Products

• Adaptil Calming Pheromone Collar
• Adaptil Diffuser
• Freedom No-Pull Harness
• Kong
• LickiMat
• Rescue® Remedy
• Snuffle Mats
• Thundershirt Anxiety Jacket

Resources

• At the Heart of the Walk – Christina and Aurélien Budzinski
• Canine DIY Enrichment – ASPCA
• Alternatives to Walking your Fearful or Reactive Dog [Video] – Dogkind
• Chirag Live: Teaching Dogs to be Comfortable with Putting their Harness On [Video] – Chirag Patel
• Giving into leash pressure- for shy reactive dogs [Video] – Dog Training by KikoPup
• Learn to Go Slow – Slow Dog Movement
• “Let’s go!” (U-turn) on Cue for Reactive Dogs: Part 1 [Video] – Dogkind
• “Let’s go!” (U-turn) on Cue for Reactive Dogs: Part 2, Backyard Distractions [Video] – Dogkind
• ‘Look at That’ LAT Game -teaching dogs to focus and eye contact [Video] – Positive Dog Training 
• Loose Leash Walking: Train your dog with these easy tips! – Ontario SPCA and Humane Society
• Reactivity In Dogs: Keeping Fido “under threshold” – Noble Woof Dog Training
• Training Tips for Fear and Reactivity on a Walk [Video] – Dog Training by KikoPup

NEED A DOG TRAINER OR BEHAVIOR EXPERT?

If you need more help dealing with a training or behavior issue, please find professional help from a force-free dog trainer who can consult with you either in person or remotely.

GOOD PLACES TO START ARE:
- COAPE Association of Pet Behaviourists and Trainers
- Pet Dog Trainers of Europe
- International Companion Animal Network
- Institute of Modern Dog Trainers
- Pet Professional Guild 

All dog owners deserve to have successful relationships with their canine companions!