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Originally Posted by kjc  Been thinking about the whys, lol. I never carry her... 12 pounds gets heavy fast! But I do hold her on my lap in the house all the time. As painful to my back as this is, it was well worth it! I thought coddling would make her worse though, or require more coddling... 
Yorkies and many other small dogs should only be walked in a harness, as weak tracheas are common to this breed and others, and tracheal damage can occur using a choke collar of any kind, even with gentle use.
Yorkies are very smart dogs, and can be trained using a harness... granted it takes a bit longer and can be more difficult, but with persistence and patience, it can be done.
Thanks for posting though, as I'm sure many people think collars and choke collars are a solution, when they really aren't. |
I don't think of this is coddling but temporarily showing her she has immediate access to safety and that you are there to remove her from the threat as she learns to deal with the scary dogs. If you then put her down and allow her to walk on and experience that she can go on with her walk, despite the barking dogs and her worries, she should begin to accept that this barking can be a part of her walk. But she'll remember your arms keeping her safe but then allowing her to
stand on her on 4 feet and go on with her walk. Sometimes we have to meet our dogs where they are and don't accept that as the way it is, but how we can get them past it. You found a way to do that and fairly early in the process, which makes it all the better. I love to see stories of early success like that because that just means that as you keep going, she should get more and more confident within herself that she can get by those dogs. In time, you should be able to walk her over to them and let them fence-greet and sniff each other as you treat her. If the owner of the other dogs allows it and says they have no problems preventing it, you can even drop treats across the fence for the other dogs during this time to sweeten the pot.
I hope she settles into her walk a little better each day. Don't worry when you see a one-time panic attack at sometime - nervous dogs can regress and take a while to get back to where they were but that's ok, keep working with her as you are and you all will bring it about together. She's lucky to have you!
You've got the touch.