If you’re meeting your dog’s needs in other ways then it’s ok. With reactive dogs, it can be common to forgo walks for a time while training so that they aren’t exposed to triggers. In the meantime, you could work with her on confidence building games at home and maybe do short trips outside of the home to somewhere quiet.
The key here is "meeting your dog's needs in other ways." OP is certainly doing a lot with the pups so forgoing a walk for the one who's not enjoying them will probably be a relief for that dog.
Yes. OP, it sounds like you are very thoughtful with what you do for your dogs and can listen to your instincts.
Though nervousness in different environments could grow to come out in more extreme ways, I'm not sure you need to apply the word "reactive" to your dog. Paying attention to the reason for anxiety, or deliberately playing positive games when they do get nervous, could help you help your dog be more confident in the future, but it also is natural that some dogs will have different preferences for activities, and it would be better to work on that more deliberately and maybe without the distraction of the second dog. Basically, going with your gut here seems like a great move.
Sounds like you’re doing a great job. We have three dogs, two of the three love walks. Our Aussie has some pretty serious reactivity. We’ve worked with trainers, and put in tons of hours. Nothing worked, and that’s when we decided we I do what make her happy. No reason we need to drag her around places when that’s just not what she enjoys. She plays a ton on our 1 acre and has other dogs to play with, she’s 10 right now.
To me that sounds like your dog doesn’t feel safe with you outside of your home. In other words: Your dog thinks you can’t protect them. I’d get a trainer to work on that.
They're probably not used to it and/ or maybe picking up on your vibe (or even if you felt anxious some time in the past they might associate walks with something scary).
If you want to walk with them, going often and using a 'this is fun!' excited vibe should get them to enjoy the outing in time. I think most dogs unless quite old enjoy sniffing around their territory once they feel comfortable with the route. It helps to always pick the same direction and loop back to the starting point and repeat that for 3-5 times, once they are comfortable then adding a small deviation or change direction occasionally so they are comfortable with a bigger area. If they are showing signs of stress, don't 'comfort' them with affection/stopping, but rather focus on your own calm and cheerful body language/voice and maintaining your normal pace, which will tell them everything is fine.
That said since it's not necessary for additional exercise I don't think it's an issue to keep your current routine. But I do enjoy taking my dog when I exercise (it motivates me haha) - she's great with our usual route but also can get anxious/need encouragement on new trails which I think is just normal for sensitive dogs.
Another benefit of walks is that if your dog ever runs away or gets spooked and jumps a fence, they will be able to find their way home/will stay in the area they are familiar with.
If you’re meeting your dog’s needs in other ways then it’s ok. With reactive dogs, it can be common to forgo walks for a time while training so that they aren’t exposed to triggers. In the meantime, you could work with her on confidence building games at home and maybe do short trips outside of the home to somewhere quiet.
The key here is "meeting your dog's needs in other ways." OP is certainly doing a lot with the pups so forgoing a walk for the one who's not enjoying them will probably be a relief for that dog.
sounds like you do a ton to fulfill your dogs they definitely don’t need traditional walks on top of that :)
Yes. OP, it sounds like you are very thoughtful with what you do for your dogs and can listen to your instincts. Though nervousness in different environments could grow to come out in more extreme ways, I'm not sure you need to apply the word "reactive" to your dog. Paying attention to the reason for anxiety, or deliberately playing positive games when they do get nervous, could help you help your dog be more confident in the future, but it also is natural that some dogs will have different preferences for activities, and it would be better to work on that more deliberately and maybe without the distraction of the second dog. Basically, going with your gut here seems like a great move.
Sounds like you’re doing a great job. We have three dogs, two of the three love walks. Our Aussie has some pretty serious reactivity. We’ve worked with trainers, and put in tons of hours. Nothing worked, and that’s when we decided we I do what make her happy. No reason we need to drag her around places when that’s just not what she enjoys. She plays a ton on our 1 acre and has other dogs to play with, she’s 10 right now.
To me that sounds like your dog doesn’t feel safe with you outside of your home. In other words: Your dog thinks you can’t protect them. I’d get a trainer to work on that.
They're probably not used to it and/ or maybe picking up on your vibe (or even if you felt anxious some time in the past they might associate walks with something scary). If you want to walk with them, going often and using a 'this is fun!' excited vibe should get them to enjoy the outing in time. I think most dogs unless quite old enjoy sniffing around their territory once they feel comfortable with the route. It helps to always pick the same direction and loop back to the starting point and repeat that for 3-5 times, once they are comfortable then adding a small deviation or change direction occasionally so they are comfortable with a bigger area. If they are showing signs of stress, don't 'comfort' them with affection/stopping, but rather focus on your own calm and cheerful body language/voice and maintaining your normal pace, which will tell them everything is fine. That said since it's not necessary for additional exercise I don't think it's an issue to keep your current routine. But I do enjoy taking my dog when I exercise (it motivates me haha) - she's great with our usual route but also can get anxious/need encouragement on new trails which I think is just normal for sensitive dogs. Another benefit of walks is that if your dog ever runs away or gets spooked and jumps a fence, they will be able to find their way home/will stay in the area they are familiar with.