Lead pulling

D

diesel

Longterm Registered User
Ladies and Gents. Looking for some real basic advice on the best way to rein in a dog that has a tendency to pull excessively on the lead. Some real experts on here and would like to hear some advice/guidance as I am none too confident with our local 'dog training' centres.

She's recently come to us from a Police background and the only negative side is her 'pulling' on the lead. Thanks in advance.
 
Diesel,

There will be some more great info coming for you but this is how I do it with my dogs. First thing is have patience and put the time into training them consistently for at least 3 weeks every day. Treats will have positive reinforcement when they do the right thing but when they are new to this a good choke chain will pay dividends. You will not hurt the dog using this, it is more shock value. When you first start keep the commands simple and clear. Don't use multiple words for the same thing. So pull the chain up and back gently and say "Sit" then reinforce with a treat only when they complete the movement. Then a little pull forward with the chain and say "Walk on". 2 Metres later go through sit and then walk on and do this for 100M then walk for 100M then go through the process again. The dog does not understand what we are saying and therefore having a conversation about what they should and should not do is not going to be fruitful. You need Physical with verbal. They will pick it up very quickly and then you can drop the physical. The other key is when you are walking give them some lead but when they start to stray away from your side give a short sharp tug on the chain at the same time as voicing your intention. This does not have to be a command like "Come or Heal". I personally use a sharp "sss" this works without drawing any attention to you and your dog. Just keep up the consistency and you will see quick results.

Regards

Preacher
 
No no no no! And that's from someone who was brought up on check chains. There's absolutely no need for them with the minor issue you're encountering.

Change of direction training in your garden, when the dogs starts to pull, you change direction to the point your dog starts to second guess where you're going and starts looking at you. If you're going to use treats, this is the perfect time to use them. I use a slight hiss when I change direction with a new dog, then as they exercises progress, the slight hiss reminds the dog to not to pull and to look back at me (again, this is the time you'd reward using treats or verbal/physical rewards).

I use this with Spingers and Labs and it works a treat. Just don't rush anything, even when you think things are great, throw in a bit of training on a lead walk with bags of positive reinforcement.
 
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