My dog paces heavily during car rides. He’s getting better over time, with less whining and pacing. I’ve ruled out car sickness; it’s just excitement and anticipation.
I’ve been rewarding him with treats whenever he lies down in the back to mark good behavior. Now he consistently offers to lie down between pacing, so I’m varying the rewards and timings. Sometimes I wait before giving a treat, sometimes I reward instantly, sometimes with verbal praise, and sometimes not at all. However, the rewards only come when he’s lying down.
The problem is, after getting a treat, he pops back up and starts pacing again instead of staying down. How can I fix this?