Our little guy Toski just came home three days ago.  He's nine weeks old.  So far, he's doing great!  Very laid back, learned "sit" in record time, keeps his corgi butt planted on the ground while we feed him, doing well with potty training, is sleeping quietly in his crate at night, etc.  Oh, and he started frapping this morning, too!  He is wickedly smart, though, so we have to be careful not to let him outsmart us! :-D

When he's an adult, I want him to enjoy taking walks so that he has another source of exercise.  At his puppy exam, his vet said we could work on short, mini-walks (a couple houses down the street and back) if we're ready.  (We won't be doing anything longer until he's older!)  So we started practicing walking a bit in the house and a couple times, we walked past a couple houses and right back.  

I've looked through the archives for walking advice and saw a lot of great advice about handling difficult behaviors when walking, but at this point, I just want some great, proactive advice from all of you about the best ways to do this once we get started so that it's fun for him, not too much for him, and as successful as possible.  

We've only just started, but here's what I've observed so far:  

Sometimes outside, he's happy to be out and about.  Sometimes, he stops and plants his butt (usually right after we start), and I have to really use encouragement and praise (and sometimes treats) to get him walking again.  

I think it's his herding instinct, but he wants to walk *right at my side* (and switches from left to right sides sometimes).  No chasing or nipping, just walking very close underfoot.  With age, will he start walking at a safer distance from my feet, or is there something I should start doing now to help with this? 

As I said, we've barely started with walks, and we're taking it *very* slowly, but I'd love to hear any first-hand advice you all have about the best way and best timeline for us to get Toski off to a good start with this.  Thank you!