Behind every dog that pulls on the leash there is an owner who lets himself be pulled. If you have a dog that pulls, he thinks how often you have allowed him to lean on the leash and drag you in one direction or another while pulling just as hard or holding him tight.
Dogs and owners alike must learn that the leash is ALWAYS loose.
The leash is your connection to each other and allows you to go out together in public. Whether you’re out for a walk or just standing still, neither you nor your dog should pull on the leash. Your dog’s leash is both a training aid and a piece of safety equipment. To be an effective training aid, it should never be tight and used as little as possible.
TIPS FOR WALKING ON A LOOSE LEASH
Get ready for success! Make sure your dog has a vigorous exercise session (retrieval games are great for this) before you begin your training session. Remember, young dogs require a great deal of exercise.
- Get your dog ready to go for a walk. Put the leash on him. If you want him to walk on your left side, hold the leash with your right hand. Leave your left hand free to reinforce your dog with some tasty treats when he is giving you the behavior you want.
- If your dog goes wild and starts pulling, stop at this point and turn into a statue. Wait as long as it takes for him to settle. (Patience is very important at this stage of the game.) When he turns around to see why you’re not doing anything, reinforce him with a treat for looking at you and doing some moving mindfulness exercises.
- When you have your dog’s attention again, start walking. If he starts to run away without you, ask him to pay attention to you by backing up briskly. When your dog carefully follows you, reinforce him with a treat and start moving forward again.
- Reinforce attention with treats and praise and every attempt to keep the leash loose.
- If you charge to the end of the leash, stop and turn into a statue and repeat step 2 above.
- When your dog is alert again, repeat step 3. Continue this procedure for the rest of your walk. You don’t go forward when the leash is tight. When the leash is slack, reward your dog by continuing to walk by giving treats, pats, and praise.
- Patience, patience, patience! Until you and your dog can successfully keep off the leash as you go, think of your walks as training sessions. Don’t expect to circle the neighborhood on your first try.
Dogs do what works! As soon as you know the two of you aren’t going anywhere until you calm down, you’ll stop shooting.
Good luck and happy training!