Leash training

Hello! We are the brand new owners of a cavalier king charles! And he is a very sweet boy. We've had him about a week and he is already 6 months old.
Our only issue really is that he seems to be scared of the leash. Outside he romps and plays and runs, but the moment we put a leash on him he just collapses, he wont move, he seems overwhelmed.
I was just wondering if anyone had any advice on how to get him used to walking while leashed? Any tips would be helpful!~

The classic way of teaching a puppy to get used to the lead is to put one on in the house and garden and leave it trailing - don't try to pick it up and exert pressure on the dog's collar. Then do fun things with him - play, feed him, etc so that he forgets the lead is there. It will catch on furniture and exert a little pressure on the collar, so that he gets used to tugs. Do it for a short while to begin with, then lengthen the time. When he's used to it trailing, pick it up when he's busy playing or about to eat and persuade him to come with you to fetch a toy or go to his food.

Don't, of course, leave the lead trailing if you can't keep an eye on him - puppies can be very good at getting themselves tangled up!

Hope that helps,

Kate and Oliver

Kate has good advice, and you can also clip on the leash and just hold it and follow HIM around (which is how I do it) at first. Use treats to make it a positive thing to have on, and once he is comfortable with it, start encouraging him to follow you some (by calling him). Eventually, he will walk along fairly well. Once he is totally comfortable, you can get more serious about teaching heal, etc.

Congrats on your new Cav.!

Thank you both! I will give your ideas a try