Super-sensitive puppy getting upset on walks

[Puppypuppypuppy]

Hello I need some help and advice on my nearly 4 month old puppy.

I've been taking him out on short walks and he's been gradually building up his confidence but he's super sensitive to noise and seems to get spooked so easily. The last four days things seem to have taken a step backwards.

We have managed around 5/10 minutes each day and then he gets really scared, won't engage with me at all when I try and calm him and starts pulling on the lead towards home. Things which have set him off include a person coughing, a dog barking, a motorbike, someone saying hello to him.

What can I do to improve things? He is a confident little thing at home.

My pup was really similar. What worked for us was keeping 'socialisation' and walks separate. So walks were in the middle of nowhere where he could just associate walking with sniffing and enjoying the chance to explore a really calm environment. Then socialisation trips out were just sitting and watching people, traffic etc. Carrying on with socialisation as we had been doing when he wasn't able to be put down on the ground.

You could also try taking out some really tasty treats-cooked chicken, tiny cubes of cheese. Every time he sees or hears something scary he gets a treat. He should then start to associate scary thing=treat/something good.

Hi I have treats but he goes v quickly to not being able to eat them which I know is a sign he’s over stressed. Peckyowl that’s interesting re socialisation and walks. It’s def a bit of both here as we’re in quite a busy area

Peckypup's loads better now, he just needed time to get confident in the urban bustle. He needed more time learning about that whilst sitting next to me with treats and strokes than I originally expected. I think he felt a bit vulnerable in the early days on the ground on the end of the lead so the two stresses combined were a bit much.

I would move walks to quiet areas so he can just walk, sniff and toilet without the stress of loads of new "things" to experience.

For socialisation, take him to, for example, a park bench or something, and just get him to sit with you while things go past - cars, motorbikes, cyclists etc. and treat him when he sees different things. If he's sat with you and not concentrating on walking/sniffing/toileting, he may be less over-stimulated. It also means you can comfort him with strokes, hugs etc. if necessary.

Good luck!

Thing is we have to walk to get to anywhere quiet!

And today the walk was mostly a v quiet residential road

@Puppypuppypuppy

Thing is we have to walk to get to anywhere quiet!

I assume you don't drive? I would pop puppy in the car or even carry him/her to somewhere quiet if that's at all possible.