Struggling with your pup pulling on the lead? You are not alone.
Loose lead training is the number 1 reason why people reach out to me for help.
This blog post is for you!
We’ll share the 7 loose lead training mistakes paw’rents make so you can shine a light on your own and take steps to fix them.
It’s time to say ‘yes’ to adventures and live life to the fullest with your pup.
7 loose lead training mistakes and how to fix them
1. Starting loose lead training in a distracting environment
To avoid frustration for you and your pup, the best place to start training is at home and in your garden. You want lots of success before taking what you’ve learned ‘on the road’.
2. Diving straight into loose lead training exercises
You want to build focus and attention on you and lay the foundations before moving onto the loose lead training exercises. You’ll find everything fits together more seamlessly this way.
Two other factors to consider are;
- Does my dog feel happy and confident in their walking gear?
If you answered ‘no’ to this question, building a positive association with the harness and lead is going to be an additional part of your training plan.
- Does my dog get over excited when I pick up the harness and lead?
If you answered ‘yes’ to this question, creating calmness around the harness and lead should be added to your training plan.
With either of these scenarios your pup isn’t in a good place mentally to learn. We want them to enjoy their walks and step out of the door feeling amazing, not worried or high as a kite.
3. Using a lure
Ok, I could forgive a couple of lures, but it’s not something you should rely on.
If you don’t know what it is, a lure is putting something on the end of the dog’s nose, such as a tasty piece of chicken, and moving along so your dog is following the piece of food. Think of a carrot on a stick.
In this scenario, your pup is learning to follow food, not hanging out next to you is a great place to be.
Try this game instead.
It’s called The Magic Circle Game or drunk walking and should be practised off lead at home or in your garden.
Imagine you are standing inside a hula hoop. When your pup is inside your hoop, drop a piece of tasty food on the floor. Then move into another space, wait for your pup to catch up and as soon as they’re inside your hoop drop a piece of food.
You can move in any direction. Rinse and repeat.
You’ll soon start to see snippets of a lovely loose lead walk. Click on the video below to watch a tutorial of The Magic Circle game. Taken directly from NEW Loose Lead Walking Course.
4. Using crap rewards
If you want your pup to learn that hanging out next to you is an awesome place to be, you need to find out what motivates your pup.
If your pup is massively motivated by food choose small, soft and smelly foods. Of course, you can use praise, touch, sniffing and play too if that’s what’s most reinforcing to your dog.
You might find my blog – easy puppy training treats – less than 5 minutes prep time helpful and this video by Kikopup entitled, “Dog not motivated by food”.
5. Not watching your dog
Don’t take your eyes off them!
Getting your mechanics and body movement right can be really tricky. It’s a skill for you to learn too! But when you do get it right, it’s much easier for your dog. And practise, practise, practise.
Obviously when you’re training at home this can be done rather safely. I’m not suggesting by any means to not be aware of your environment.
6. Not meeting your dog’s needs
If a pup is bored all day and the most exciting thing is walking around the block, they’re going to pull.
As well as appropriate physical exercise, add mental stimulation and enrichment into your dog’s day. Research what you pup was bred to do and provide natural outlets for their innate needs.
Sniffing games are one of my favourite ways to get my dogs’ brains working. You can find some examples here. Suitable for puppies and older dogs.
You’ll notice a more relaxed and chilled dog instead of a frantic lunatic!
7. Lacking in consistency
Once your pup has learned that a ‘smiley lead’ is highly reinforcing, they also need to learn that pulling doesn’t work. It doesn’t get them to where they want to be.
Stop walking if your dog pulls and wait for a loose lead before moving forwards. If sometimes pulling works and sometimes it doesn’t how can they learn effectively?
I hope you’ll consider these tips the next time you’re teaching your pup to walk nicely on a loose lead.
And if you’re ready to nail loose lead training, you totally can with my NEW Loose Lead Walking Course!
If this blog has helped you, please let me know in the comments section and if you enjoyed this blog, please share it!
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Happy training!
Lindsay xx
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