Loose Leash Dog Walking and You

For those of you who often walk their dogs on leash, you may have experienced the following scenario: You put your dog on her leash, you walk out the door, and then she almost rips your arm out of its socket as she tugs and pulls you on her "walk"! Fortunately, there is an easy way to train your dog to stop pulling. The key is to train your dog to stay within a short distance from you at all times and to have a loose or slack leash which relax the dog and prevents her from tensing up and pulling.

Start by putting the leash on your dog and have a firm two-handed grip on the leash. Do not start walking yet. If your dog starts walking or pulling while you are standing still, simply pull firmly and sharply on the leash to bring the dog near you, then quickly let the leash go slack (but keep your two-handed grip on it). You need to repeat this until your dog stays near you, with a slack leash and no longer tries to pull or "walk itself".

Next, start walking and observer your dog's behaviour.

If your dog starts pulling, firmly and quickly pull on the leash until the dog is at the proper distance and again let the leash go slack. For larger dogs, you should pull "up" rather than towards you, otherwise you will be exhausted by the end of the walk.

Keep performing this exercise and your dog will learn to stay closer to you and will stop pulling.