I have been trying to leash train my puppy since he was 9 weeks old and he is now 6 month old. He is 70% by my side on a walk with treats but as soon as those treats are gone he completely ignores all commands to heel. He walks on ahead of me then slowly begins to pull. No amount of walking in the other direction or stopping will help this either. Doesnt matter what type of leash i have. Short, long, short, chain or material or a slip lead. Im getting so stressed now! If i dont have him heel at my side at all times with treats he ends up walkiung ahead of me and starts to pull. So loosh leash walking was never an option! Advice?
Re: Leash training help! Hi there, Loose leash walking is a learned skill, and yours is a very common problem. There are a number of articles on the main site dealing with this, you can find them here. The key is to get your dog walking nicely on a loose lead over very short distances, and then to add to this gradually. Most people struggle because they try to walk the dog quite long distances on the lead, before he can manage a few steps. Get the first few steps perfect and practice them, and the rest will follow. Have a look at the articles and come back with any questions Pippa
Re: Leash training help! I've not read all of Pippa's articles, so sorry if I'm duplicating, but the thing I find most useful is to vary the pace. Going from normal walking pace to fast or slow speeds works well with the changing direction exercises. It makes the dog slightly confused as to where you're going and so he has to watch you to see what's happening next, he can't anticipate and jump ahead or pull away. To start I talk to my dog all the time, complete and utter drivel often, but she can hear me and thus know where I am, as she gets used to the rapid direction/pace changes I shut up and carry on the exercises in silence. Ultimately both in silence and off lead but unlike the obedience dogs at crufts she can be several feet away from me just watching and keeping time and pace. It takes lots of time, practice and a huge amount of patience but it's worth it. Kerryn
