Maybe I Should See About Walking The Dog

My stepdad has a 4-year-old lab mix named Layla. More often than not, she's either in the house or in the yard. The only times she's outside of these is when she needs to go to the vet or if we're taking her over to my sister's to be babysat. (My sister and her boyfriend have dogs of their own, both of whom have been at our house.) If you try to get Layla to step beyond the areas she's accustomed to, it confuses her.

Right now, my mom and stepdad are in the process of selling their house. We had some viewers yesterday. As a rule when the viewers come, nobody who lives in the house is to be present if it can be helped. So, Mom, Layla, and I went to the park. Mom had tried to get Layla to play fetch, but Layla wouldn't get the ball. She didn't really know what to make of the park setting. I heard Mom tell Stepdad on the phone that we needed to take Layla out more often so that she could get used to it.

I think Mom had said that they had tried walking Layla when she was a puppy, but it didn't work out or something, and she and Stepdad don't really have the time. I've contemplated offering to walk the dog myself if that's what it takes.  However, I'd hate to start doing it now and then having to stop when/if I go out of town this summer. But maybe it'll help build up Layla's tolerance for the world outside her territory.