Leash Training

Leash Training your dog can be pretty tricky. Your dog is presented with many new and exciting stimuli when they go outside, from other animals, people, fast moving objects and sounds, not to mention smells. To train your dog to stay at your side in this context is important. We want a well-behaved dog that doesn’t run up to every new person or dog without our control. And most importantly, we don’t want our dog to run into harms way on an impulse. To set your dog up for success, follow these steps.

Step One- Introduce The Leash

Begin acquainting your puppy with the leash or harness before ever putting it on him. To start, simply put it on the floor next to him. Let your puppy sniff it, and check it out. He may bite on it, and that is okay right now. We simply want him to get familiar with it, and see there’s nothing to be afraid of. Next, hold the object in your hand, show it to him. To continue strengthening his comfort with this new object, move the leash around, gently touch him with it, drop it on the floor, and continue to let him explore his interest as these things happen. Once he is comfortable, and his interest has decreased, you are ready to put it on him.

Begin by giving him a treat as you do, so his first experience with it is positive. If it’s a harness or looped leash, lure his head through the hole with a treat and reward him generously as you let it fall around his neck. And then continue the introduction by allowing him to move around and see what it’s like to have a leash on. Move the leash around, and let it fall to the floor. Let him pull it around. If he begins biting on it, that’s fine. We are only focused on getting him comfortable with the leash, so that he doesn’t develop any negative perceptions about wearing one. Finally, begin guiding him around the room with the leash on, using treats to keep him close to you, if he pulls away creating tension in the leash, don’t use the leash to pull him back, use the treats to get his attention and when he returns for it, reward him close to your body. This is setting the ground for the next step.

Step two- Walking Drills

Before you take your puppy outside, teach him how to walk on a leash. You want him to stay close to you, right at your side. After getting your puppy on the leash, grab some treats and start in a hallway, or room where you can walk straight. If you want your dog on your left side, have the treats in your left hand, down low where he can smell them, and begin walking, luring him along at your side, close to your body, and reward him as you walk. Don’t reward him if he walks too far from your side, release the reward only when he is where he should be as you walk. Walk a little, turn quickly around, walk back, and repeat a few times, rewarding him as you do for successfully walking where he should. These little training exercises should be quick. 5min, a few laps up and down the hall, and your done. As you do these exercises, begin increasing the time he must walk correctly at your side before the reward comes, until you can do one full lap down the hall and back with your dog right at your side. After he has mastered the walking drills, it’s time to go outside.

Step three- The First Walk

Your dog is going to be faced with a lot of new experiences. The first walk, is not going to be about so much about walking by your side, but exploring new and novel stimuli. So be patient, let your dog wander a bit from your side, sniff around, pause and stare and so on. The point of the first walk is really about seeing and exploring, your dog will not be able to focus on anything else on the first walk. After the first walk, continue with the indoor walking drills until the next walk.

Step Four- Outside Walking Training

You have successfully introduced your dog to the leash, the outside, and you have been teaching him how to walk at your side. It’s time to take the walking drills outside. Get the best treats, and take your dog for a short walk. But this time, try to keep your dogs attention on you using the rewards, and try to keep your dog at your side like during the drills. Having satisfied his curiosity outside already, your dog should be able to focus on you, and he will recognize the same expectation you developed with him with the indoor walking drills applies outside too. Again, you will need to be patient, and use the rewards to redirect him to right place. Keep doing this, and as your dog gets better at it, move the walk to new places. Over time, your dog will learn to always stay by your side, even when new people and experiences present themselves.