should i make sick puppy walk on lead?

ahaaha

i got my basset as a xmas pressie and adore him! he is now 12 weeks old. but in the past 3 weeks he has had diarrhea.

first the vet thought he had swallowed something, now a poo sample is being sent away for testing. i am feeding him burns for puppies-so it shouldnt be due to food.

he is on his second round of antibiotics and restricted amount of food. the poor thing is all skin and bone but majority of the time is in great form.

as i am away for 8 hours during the day (my partner works across the road so comes home twice during the day to bring him outside to relieve himself and play) i like to bring him for 3 small walks-morning, evening and night time before bed so that he can get rid of his extra energy and sleep well at night.

up to 4 days ago it was no problem he even used to run with me for the last two minutes home (we literally walk no more than 400 metres!). but now he does not want to leave the front door. ive tried everything, from treats to small pats across the nose , to draggin him for one or two metres. nothing is working.

should i be forcing him to walk when he possibly is sick? he is full of energy and plays around inside so should be more than able for it. i dont think its the cold either as last week we were walking in howling wind and rain and he didnt mind at all.

any tips would be greatly appreciated. Heres a little pic of my Hugo

kazza90210

Did by anychance anything happen to your puppy while he was walking, like did he get frighten by a big dog or loud noise? this can can have an negative effect and bring your dog to associate walking with "scary" things?

Or maybe its the lead your puppy has the issue with?

peasant

just give him a break for a few days ...forcing the issue won't make him want to go.

The Sweeper

I wouldn't push it until it's back on top form again. You might not think it's cold, but if he's lost a lot of weight he could be absolutely freezing outside.

merryhappy

Poor little fella, I'd defo keep him in until you find out the root of the problem.

His reluctance to go walking more then likely stems from whatever is causing the diarrhea.

I'm presuming he has had a his vaccs and that parvo has been ruled out?

In the meantime make sure he's getting plenty of fluids.

Good Luck!

ahaaha

thanks guys. i didnt push him for a few days and he seems to be back on track again - by that i mean walking sometimes rather than not at all! he never had a bad experience cos we live in a quiet area right practically on a P&P club so he likes walking there. il keep him on that till he gets to like it.

he is still sick - vaccs all up to date, stool sample clear and blood tests being done now. still v happy but skinny still. hopefully its nothing serious.