One of the commonest reasons people ask us for help is because their dog pulls on lead.
Dogs pull. It’s natural – they can all walk faster than us, even the tiniest Chihuahua. And to a dog it seems sensible to try to get where they’re going as quickly as possible.
Going out on a walk:
“Getting to the park or beach means being let off lead to run around – so let’s get there as soon as possible.”
“That’s a fun-looking person (or dog) over there – Let’s get to them to say hello.”
Or coming back from a walk:
“I’m a puppy and the big wide world’s a bit scary, so I want to get home quickly.”
“When I get home, dad gives me my dinner, so let’s get back there as soon as possible.”
Habit can also play a large part – your dog has always pulled, so that’s what he does naturally. Perhaps you’ve unintentionally taught him to pull by using an extending lead, or constantly pulling him back with his normal lead.
Isaac Newton’s third law of motion is that “for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction” – so if your dog pulls on leash you must be pulling back – it’s a law of physics!
This is what makes it so very difficult to stop your dog pulling – if he pulls we have to pull back. Perhaps you’ve tried to stop your dog pulling by keeping a firm grip on the leash, wrapping the leash around your hand and wrist several times, and holding him tight by your side. The problem is that firstly, your dog isn’t learning anything useful and secondly, that he is actually learning to keep pulling (because of that problematic physics law).
The basis of your training is that you never allow your dog to pull in the first place.
Teaching dogs not to pull is simple but not necessarily easy. The first step is learning to hold the lead properly – in a way that negates that pesky physics law. That’s today’s lesson – it’s a two- step process.
Today’s training tip no. 6 is: Fix that lead
Hold the lead handle either hooked over your fingers, or round your wrist and held between your first finger and thumb with the hand OPPOSITE the side you want your dog to walk. How long a leash should you use? There should be a nice J shape of the leash between your hand and your dog’s collar, but not so long that he keeps tripping over the leash or getting it wrapped around his legs. (Though some dogs will put a leg over the leash deliberately if they don’t want to move. Ask us for help if that happens.)
Then FIX your lead hand at your side: either in your pocket, against your waistband, or by grabbing a handful of clothing.
Practice picking up the lead 5 times…
Then practice fixing the lead 5 times…
…in each 5 minute training session today.
Holding the lead properly needs to be natural for you and become your new habit.
We’ll talk about how you start to train your dog where you want them to walk next time.
Keep training
Carol