I watched two small girls walk their dogs one morning, admiring the bond between best friends. The older girl was walking a dog roughly her own size, and the smaller girl walking a little pug. It was the most interesting walk. They would run for short bursts, then stop off suddenly to explore a ditch or yard or to sit on the guard rail. They would backtrack to check out something they had missed, and then take off again at top speed. And I noticed all the while the dogs never pulled on the leash once. And these little girls never realized the whole time they were doing everything right.
Have you ever observed a stray dog running loose? He travels for a distance, stops to sniff a bush, then sprints off after a butterfly. Just as suddenly he stops and smells the air, then returns to his travel. Just like those small children, the stray dog rarely, if ever, walks in a straight line. And that’s where we as adults run into problems. We have been programmed to walk at the same speed in one direction all the time. Life is busy, and walking the dog is just another one of those chores we have to do. Even when hiking, we stick to a predetermined path and never stray from it. And our dogs are just so bored with that.
There are dozens of prescribed methods to encourage your dog to walk nicely on a leash. I’m all about simple solutions, and here I will describe a method you can use for a young pup on his first walk, or a four-year-old adult who’s pulled his human down the road all his life.
What you need
- Collar or harness
- Leash
- Lots (and I do mean LOTS) of patience
Using a harness to walk a dog goes against every dog training book I’ve ever read and every trainer I’ve ever talked to. “A harness encourages a dog to pull.” “You can’t control a dog with a harness.” “A harness gives the dog all the power.” I’ve heard all these, and using many of the loose leash walking methods out there, that certainly is true. However, we’re not going to try to hold the dog back or allow him to pull, so he’s not going to have the power.
And you might notice that treats are not part of the equation either. Lots of people use treats to teach loose leash walking with great success. I have no idea how they do it. I’m just simply not coordinated enough to hold the leash, feed the dog, and watch where I’m going all at the same time. Besides that, a walk is self rewarding. To my way of thinking, I shouldn’t have to provide further reward. If you want to add treats to this method, go for it. Just make sure that you quickly wean your dog off them or you’ll be using treats forever.
What you do
Snap the leash on your dog’s collar or harness, and start walking. The moment, and I mean the very instant, that leash goes tight, Stop. Stop dead in your tracks and wait, even if you haven’t left your porch yet. Your dog is going to try all different things to get you to continue moving forward. He might lunge, whine, bark, run this way and that, or just stand there. All the while, you do nothing. Do not apply any further tension to the leash, but also do not give any slack. Do not say anything to him or touch him in any way. Simply wait. Remember to bend your knees and stand with your feet apart just a bit to maintain your balance.
You are waiting for the very instant that your dog puts the slack on the leash. He might turn to look at you or back up. This will naturally put slack in the leash. He might move to the side to smell something and accidentally put slack on the leash. It does not matter how he did it, just that the leash loosened a bit. Then you move forward. The dog will immediate rush forward again, and again you stop and wait. Say nothing, do nothing. Wait until he causes the leash to go slack, and then move forward again.
You’re going to continue doing this, only moving on when the lease is slack. While it might happen accidently at first, your dog will soon learn that you only move forward when the leash is loose. At first you will move one step at a time. Slowly but surely you will find you’re taking two steps, then five, then ten and so on.
One thing I should note is that this is NOT teaching your dog to heel. With this method, he might walk in front of you, or behind, or on either side. This is not Rally and you’re never going to win an obedience competition like this. This is all about enjoying a pleasant walk with your dog.
Tips
Keep it short
It is important not to do too much at first. I always tell people to abandon any plans of walking the dog for exercise until you have this down. Either you or your dog will run out of patience pretty quickly the first few times you do this, so keep it short. Start with five or ten minutes, and then gradually increase in five minute intervals as your dog gets good at this. Just understand that you probably will not leave your block the first time out, and there’s nothing wrong with that. You’ll get there.
Change directions
Remember the children and stray dog mentioned earlier in this post and how interesting their walks were. Emulate that by frequently changing directions and varying your pace. Sometimes walk at a nice comfortable pace, sometimes jog or sprint for short spells. Turn around and go back the way you just came, or walk down a dead end street. Stop and smell the roses, literally. If you keep the walk interesting, your dog will stay interested in you.
Minimize Distractions
Begin practicing in an area or at a time that is quiet and with not many people around. Start off in your backyard, or walk down the street later in the evening when fewer people are out. It will help if your dog isn’t running to greet his favorite neighbor or chasing the kids’ ball. Bushes and fence posts are distracting enough without adding to it. I also recommend sticking to the same route for the first few times. The sights and smells will become familiar to your dog, allowing him to better focus on what you want him to learn.
Simple enough for everyone
Fortunately, this technique is simple enough that anyone can do it anytime, anywhere. I once used this technique to teach an adult basset hound to walk nicely in the middle of the greenbelt with two labs running off leash around him. It is great for foster families teaching a dog to walk nicely because it is simple to explain to a new adoptive family so they can continue the training. You don’t need any special skills or equipment, and if you just have a few minutes, that’s a perfect amount of time to give it a try. In future articles, I’ll cover some fun games you can play with your dog that will reinforce your dog’s desire to be with you.
Further reading
Many trainers subscribe to this technique. One that springs to mind Turid Rugaas, an internationally renowned trainer of dogs and handlers. Her method is very similar to this, though she adds a few easy steps that might be useful for dogs who have been pulling all their lives, or for humans who lack the boundless patience this method requires. Her book is:
Rugass, Turid. My Dog Pulls. What Do I Do?. 2005. Dogwise Publishing
