LEAD TRAINING - WALKING ON A LOOSE LEAD

Next accustom him to you holding on to his collar because you will have to do this to attach the lead. Take his collar gently with one hand and give him a treat with the other. Increase the length of time that you hold on to him, again making sure that it is a pleasant experience for him.

Before attempting to get your puppy to walk on a lead teach him the benefits of walking beside you around the house and the garden without a lead on by giving him his dinner one piece at a time as he walks with you. Once he is happy to walk along with you in this way attach the lead to his collar and loop the other end over your wrist or tuck it into your belt and do exactly the same. Hey presto! Dog walking on loose lead.

Providing that you are praising and rewarding your puppy when he is walking beside you and that you are not pulling on the lead, then the chances are that he will always walk beside you. Most dogs pull only because we give them something to pull against.

All of this should be done well in advance of puppy's first walk in the big wide world.

If your dog becomes over excited at the sight or sound of the lead because it means 'walkies' insist that he sits whilst you put it on. If he refuses then put the lead away and try again in 5 minutes. It is better to spend 1 hour putting on and taking off the lead whilst your dog remains calm than to spend 12 years being dragged to the park and back!

If you leave the house calmly, continue praising and rewarding whilst he walks beside you and stop the praise (say nothing) and stand still if he pulls ahead, then he will never learn to pull on the lead. He must still be allowed to stop and sniff occasionally providing that the lead doesn't go tight.

This method will work equally well with the dog that has already learnt to pull. It will just take more time and patience.

Look at things from the dog's point of view. He's pulling on the lead because he is in a rush to get to the park. He's also happy in the knowledge that you're still there behind him because he can feel you pulling on the other end and hear you shouting "heel" at him! In other words pulling is rewarding!

So let's change this concept. If he pulls on the lead it's because he wants you to take another step forward. REFUSE! Stand still and stop talking to him. Even walk backwards away from what he is pulling towards if necessary. Reward only the desired behaviour. A loose lead.

It is important that your lead is of sufficient length to allow it to stay loose. If it is very short, you wind it around your hand or you pull it up or back then your dog will have little opportunity to keep it loose.

The more accustomed your dog becomes to pressure around his neck, the more he will pull.

Do not rely on your lead to control your dog. It is the least reliable form of control. If you accidentally drop it or it breaks then you will probably lose your dog. If he rarely feels pressure around his neck then apart from the fact that you're unlikely to drop the lead or have it break, if it did he would not be aware and would continue to walk beside you anyway!

If your dog was at the front of the queue when persistence was handed out and you were at the back of the patience queue then you may wish to consider using a head collar such as a Gentle Leader, Halti or figure of eight design. There are also harnesses on the market that are designed to stop a dog wanting to pull. Never resort to a choke chain. The theory that a dog will stop pulling if you choke him or give him a sharp jerk around the neck is a very outdated one. You could cause untold damage to his neck, vertebrae, voice box and coat.

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