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Leash Training 101 The Golden Rule
The majority of dog owners address the issue of leash training only once it becomes a problem. In the beginning, when walking their dog, they initially think it's “cute” that a puppy pulls away the entire walk to the park because, they think, that the dog “just can't wait to play with its ball”. But once this pattern of pulling in ingrained, it take patience to retrain.
No matter what equipment and training method you choose, experts will tell you to abide by one golden rule when teaching leash manners: any pulling by the dog means all forward motion ceases.
As soon as your puppy or dog puts tension on the leash, you stop – every time! Ah, but rather than just stand there and make this a battle of wills, we humans outsmart our clever dogs and convince them that putting slack in the leash really works on their favor. Therefore, training will include treats, praise and other positive payoffs.
Add A Clicker To The Mix
Help your dog learn that it's a good idea to stay close to you, that good things happen when you're nearby. To achieve this goal, we suggest that you use a clicker, which is a small, handheld device that makes a “click” sound when pressed.
The click marks the desired behavior the second it occurs and is immediately followed by a treat. A clicker is a good way to cut through the environment clutter that is a part of most leash walks, and helps your dog to focus on you and what it's doing to get “paid”.
The clicker helps teach your dog to ignore tempting distractions because you become more interesting to your dog than anything else.
Not surprisingly, a young pup that has never had a chance to develop the habit of pulling is the easiest to teach. First, gather up your training tools and snap the leash on the buckle collar. Start walking and talking to the puppy in a happy, friendly voice. As he turns to look at you and the leash goes slack, CLICK!
This interaction teaches your dog that you are, indeed, an integral part of being walked.
Note: Frequent clicks and treats while walking will help teach your dog that the big payoff usually happens within a one-foot radius around you. Most pups will begin to stick around in hopes of another reward.
BONUS : Leash Training 101: Try Using Food Instead Of A Clicker
Though clicker training garners results with leash training, not everyone is comfortable with it. Personally, I do not use a clicker when training my dogs. I prefer to keep the rewards mixed. A rub, praise, toy or food can be intermixed as rewards when you get the response you want.
Food is great for luring a dog into behavior, but once the dog has the concept, humans have a hard time of getting rid of the treats. Be unpredictable in your rewards, make a game of it.
Always impress upon the dog that the fun stuff comes when the leash is slack. Learn how to use your voice and facial expressions so that your dog wants to be near you. These are training tools that you never leave at home. Practice different pitches and sounds to see which attract your dog's interest.
Many trainers have concerns about using treats, but they must remember the significance of raising the criteria. This means asking the dog to do more before giving it a reward. Your dog may learn to walk beautifully by your side as long as you keep clicking and treating, but what happens when your pocket is empty? Try to make him do a bit more during each walk – go a bit farther between treats or ignore bigger distractions.
Despite its age, your adult dog will need the same considerations as a puppy during leash training. When the leash goes taut, help the dog understand why you stopped by using your voice to get his attention. If he is too busy barking or pulling forward something it finds particularly enticing, use treats or a toy to distract it from its mission.
Have these special rewards ready before hitting the known problem area and work to keep your dog's attention. This will help your dog learn to ignore the bothersome barking dog or that tempting squirrel nest.
Understandably, we all would like instant results, but dog training seldom works that way. It may take weeks or even months to persuade the dog that pulling is no longer effective. Owners can become discouraged, concluding that they are doing something wrong or their dog is hopeless.
So in the end, even if the results are slow in coming, keep in mind that even 2 steps without pulling is progress, and you must praise, praise, and praise some more! Soon it will be 3 steps, then 4 steps, and so on.
The change won't happy overnight, in a week, or even a month – it's going to take time, fairness and consistency, which means practice almost every day, perhaps for months. Overall, it's a relatively small investment to achieve years of benefit.
Leash training is a deceptively difficult aspect of training. Dogs learn to pull much more readily than they learn not to. For those who do dedicate the time and effort needed to train leash manners, the results are worth it.
Though clicker training garners results with leash training, not everyone is comfortable with it. Personally, I do not use a clicker when training my dogs. I prefer to keep the rewards mixed. A rub, praise, toy or food can be intermixed as rewards when you get the response you want.
Food is great for luring a dog into behavior, but once the dog has the concept, humans have a hard time of getting rid of the treats. Be unpredictable in your rewards, make a game of it.
Always impress upon the dog that the fun stuff comes when the leash is slack. Learn how to use your voice and facial expressions so that your dog wants to be near you. These are training tools that you never leave at home. Practice different pitches and sounds to see which attract your dog's interest.
Many trainers have concerns about using treats, but they must remember the significance of raising the criteria. This means asking the dog to do more before giving it a reward. Your dog may learn to walk beautifully by your side as long as you keep clicking and treating, but what happens when your pocket is empty? Try to make him do a bit more during each walk – go a bit farther between treats or ignore bigger distractions.
Despite its age, your adult dog will need the same considerations as a puppy during leash training. When the leash goes taut, help the dog understand why you stopped by using your voice to get his attention. If he is too busy barking or pulling forward something it finds particularly enticing, use treats or a toy to distract it from its mission.
Have these special rewards ready before hitting the known problem area and work to keep your dog's attention. This will help your dog learn to ignore the bothersome barking dog or that tempting squirrel nest.
Understandably, we all would like instant results, but dog training seldom works that way. It may take weeks or even months to persuade the dog that pulling is no longer effective. Owners can become discouraged, concluding that they are doing something wrong or their dog is hopeless.
So in the end, even if the results are slow in coming, keep in mind that even 2 steps without pulling is progress, and you must praise, praise, and praise some more! Soon it will be 3 steps, then 4 steps, and so on.
The change won't happy overnight, in a week, or even a month – it's going to take time, fairness and consistency, which means practice almost every day, perhaps for months. Overall, it's a relatively small investment to achieve years of benefit.
Leash training is a deceptively difficult aspect of training. Dogs learn to pull much more readily than they learn not to. For those who do dedicate the time and effort needed to train leash manners, the results are worth it.
