Leash Training an Adult March 16, 2008

  Shabah’s Obedience Class Graduation pic

If you have rescued, inheirited, or own an adult that never learned to walk on a leash without pulling and dragging you, YOU CAN STILL TEACH THEM TO WALK NICELY. It will take more effort and time on your part, but it can be done. The benefits of bringing your friend under control are worth it. Few things are more pleasant than a walk with your dog trucking along beside you, stopping when you stop, going when you go, and not having to correct or keep an eye on him.

The most important tool you have is not the leash–it is your emotions. If you are expecting a struggle, you will get one every time. If you are frustrated or tense, your dog will be too. The key to working with dogs of any kind is being calm/patient, and being confident. Dogs don’t follow uncertainity. They respect a leader with rules along with love. They trust a calm and patient person.

I’ve never used a pinch collar, and only with one really wild rescue did I use a halti head lead. My rescue Shabah walked on a kitty cat leash after obedience class. You can do this too! I walked into class knowing nothing at all about obedience training, and a timid dog hiding behind me. Well, at least as much as a Dane can be hidden. I learned, I succeeded, and so can you. Confidence is everything.  

This page is for the average adult. If you have a continually wild or aggressive dog, read about Merlin on the “My dane jumps, and excitable behaviors” page. He was Shabah’s littermate, and I worked both ends of the extreme behavioral spectrum at the same time, with no rescue experience at all. It can be done by anyone, if I managed.

STEP ONE: Choose a time when your dog is tired from exercise to begin his lessons. Put the leash on in the house, and place it directly behind the ears, which is the sensitive part of the neck. Use a treat in front of his nose to get him walking beside you. Confidently walk all over the house, using the treats to redirect his attention if he gets distracted. You don’t have to give him the treat right away, keeping it in your hand as he licks at it while walking is just as effective. Do this several times a day for as long as the dog will maintain attention. Stop just before he loses interest. Leave him wanting more!

If the dog pulls, give the leash a firm pop towards you, and if you like use a correction sound like “tsst”. If you pull back, they only pull forward harder. Often they will swing around to stand in front of you; just give a correction sound and immediately walk on, either turning to the right or left, or just walking right past them until they move. Let them lick and nibble at the treat as you walk. If they are dropping their head to sniff, be sure the lead is up behind the ears, and don’t give them leash enough to sniff. You want them to pay attention to you. Use treats only when you need to.

There are some dogs who just will not pay attention or do what you want. They aren’t “bad” dogs, just need some firm guidance and extra reward for obedience. If you’ve got yourself an unruly dog, then use a ‘gentle leader’–it is a  head halti that uses a small strap around the muzzle to control the dog’s head. It is not a muzzle, nor is it painful.

The more uncooperative the dog, the more they will fight a gentle leader, and the more they need it! It requires very little strength on your part, and will definitely make controlling a dog a far easier task.

Praise your dog with touch, and enjoy the moment when the dog walks with you regardless of treats, no matter how short it is. Touch is a powerful thing, to us and dogs both. Through it, they feel love, security, and a bond. So touch your dog lovingly when they are doing what you want. Don’t be anticipating the moment when he gets distracted. They want to please, and letting them know when you are pleased encourages them to do it more. Danes are generally sensitive dogs, and very human oriented, so make use of that trait.

STEP TWO: When your dog walks nicely indoors, move the lessons outdoors. If the backyard has dogs on either side or it’s just too noisey, find a quiet place to practice. Grassy areas behind buildings, unused places in the park, whatever you find that has few distractions. You want to give the dog as much success as possible, with as few failures as possible.

We all know what it’s like to “never do anything right”, and it is an unpleasant feeling. Dogs get anxious and scatterbrained when they don’t know what to do. But you can actually see a dog’s body language change when their handler is proud of them: the tail comes up, the head comes up, and the chest is out. It feels good to them! Success builds your confidence, and gives the dog a feeling of happiness.

STEP THREE: When your dog walks nicely indoors or out, slowly increase the distractions. Reward with touch and maybe a treat when he looks but ignores a noise, a person, a car, a dog. Plan each outing for adding only one or at most 2 new distractions at a time. Take your time, and enjoy each successful outing. And don’t try to rush things: dogs never give us less than they are able, and will progress as quickly as they are able. Little by little or lots by lots, you and your dog will become a team, and will reach the goal together.