I have a 6 month old collie that is very well behaved apart from one thing... When we are out for walks and he is allowed off his lead, he cries a lot and will not go off and explore. He will also sometimes stay so close to me that he gets under my feet while walking. I know I should be happy that he stays near me but I don't think it is the right behaviour. It seems like walks are no fun for him.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what to do about this nervous behaviour?

Get one of those long training leads as this may encourage him to move further away from you. As he is a collie they do like to be at your side a lot of the time. Mine are not happy if I go out of sight.

I had the same problem with one of my rescue's. HE has been off the lead for about 2 weeks, at first he cried and dribbled through nerves and never really leaves my side. Now the crying has stopped and the dribbling has reduced! he still wont go far. He is a very anxious dog, and nervous of other dogs. Is yours good with other dogs? I do know that eventually this will be resolved and he will get more confident. How long has yours been off lead? x

I think this is a common thing with this breed...i believe they suffer a lot from seperation anxiety...
I think this is something that improves over time, with patience and encoragement...
Defo try an exstension lead...
Keep us informed and good luck
xxx

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Thanks for reading my post - Have a good day!
Mummy to Cody-Lee - 2 Year Old Patterdale X JRT

Thankyou for everybody's advice. I do do appreciate it. I realise he is still a puppy and will hopefully grow more confident. He is very nervous around other dogs and will always sit behind me if one tries to approach and sniff him.

I'm starting to wonder if we are giving him too much attention all the time, and whether this is causing him to cry even if we are only a few feet away. If anyone agrees/disagrees then please let me know.

We have got to the stage now, where we are able to leave his crate door open when we go to bed and go out of the house. He is very well behaved in that respect. I'm just looking for reassurance that he will get better. It's not nice to see him upset when he is supposed to be out, enjoying his walks.

Are there other dogs around all the time when you are out?
If it is mainly nervousness of other dogs I would suggest trying to get him a best friend that he walks with regularly, if you have some nice person with a nice young dog that you bump into, see if they would mind meeting up to walk the dogs together occasionally
Has your dog been attacked by another dog to make him like this?

When he gets a few feet away and starts to cry call him back to you make him sit hold a tit bit in your hand just above his head height so he looks at you then count 10 seconds and give him the reward. This will help in recall and also if he is nervous of other dogs he will come to you and not bolt.

Have you also tried walking with other dog owners? He sounds as though he really needs socialising. I have 2 rescue's who are both nervous of other dogs and they have to be walked seperately when off lead as one of them becomes aggressive, in a protective way. I got my 2 as adults so it has been more difficult to socialise them and break bad habits. I do strongly advise you to work on socialising so you can nip this in the bud. Best of luck x