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"Let's Go!" - Walking politely on a leash
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Are you walking your dog, or is your dog walking you?
One of the most common problems faced by dog owners is being dragged down the street by an enthusiastic dog. This is not only unpleasant and potentially dangerous for the person, it is also unpleasant and potentially dangerous for the dog! Because many dogs decide that pulling makes you go faster in the direction they want, dogs will put up with a great deal of pain to try to accomplish this. Trachea and cervical injuries are common in dogs who pull hard.
“Walking Politely” means exactly what it says – no pulling, jumping or tangling around your legs. When walking with my dog, I don't need her to "Heel." I don't care whether she walks in front, behind or beside me, or changes around a bit, so long as she doesn't interfere with my own ability to walk easily. Walking with your dog should be a relaxed, enjoyable experience for both of you. “Heel” is more like ballroom dancing – formal, super-attentive, and (hopefully!) elegant.
It is quite possible to raise a dog who never learns to pull on the leash because you taught and enforced one simple rule: you only walk forward when the leash is loose, and when the leash gets tight you stop walking. Simple, right? The dog learns that he needs to be very careful not to tighten the leash, and everybody walks happily. The reality is, most people are not careful enough to stop instantly every time the leash gets tight – in fact, most people do not even notice the initial “contact” on the leash, and do not respond until the dog is pulling their arm out of the socket! What the dog notices is the initial “contact” - the moment the leash goes from slack to tight – so that is the moment you need to respond by stopping.
While the leash is slack, you walk forward and praise the dog, maybe using treats to reward the dog for staying close. The instant the leash tightens, you stop dead. When the dog turns towards you, thereby causing the leash to go slack again, you praise him “Good! Let's go!” and start walking.
(I do not recommend rewarding this good behavior with a treat, however, because the treat is so powerful a reward that this may cause a “jump-start” behavior, where the dog learns the pattern of Pull-Loosen-Treat, Pull-Loosen-Treat, etc, thereby jump-starting you into giving her a treat! The reward of moving forward again, since that is what the dog wanted anyway, is strong enough to train in a loose leash.)
If you have a dog who does not pull excessively, or a pup who has not yet really begun to pull, using this technique with a regular collar or harness is all you need to do. However, if your dog already thinks she is in training for the Iditarod, there are some tools that will make your training much quicker and easier.
Useful Tools
Head Halter
There are several brands of head halters, some better than others. The basic principle of a head halter is always the same – control the dog's head and you easily control the body, like a halter on a horse. Head halters work on the principle of leverage. The brand I usually prefer is called Halti. Head halters are completely safe, gentle, effective and useful for solving a wide variety of behavioral problems, not just pulling. However, you cannot simply put it on the dog's head and start walking – the dog needs a bit of training to accept the halter without fear. When your dog is wearing a halter, the technique described above works very well, because the unusual pressure of the halter on the dog's nose causes him to turn or back up almost immediately when the leash gets tight. I call him back to me and then say, “Good! Let's go!”
Note: There is a rumor being circulated that head halters can be dangerous to your dog - “if the dog runs fast and hits the end of the leash his head could snap around and break his neck”. This is actually true of any collar or device on your dog's head or neck, but it is very unlikely to happen. When in a head halter it is actually less likely to happen than in any neck collar, for two reasons. First, when training a dog to accept a halter, you are right next to him, and the leash is short. You are using treats to keep him calm, and would not be allowing a wild run to the end of a long leash. Second, the unusual feeling of the halter on the dog's head causes the dog to pay attention to it, and the dog soon learns not to pull or dash forward. Also, the design of a halter puts no pressure on the dog's trachea, making it safer than even a traditional collar.
Front-Clasp Harness
There are several brands of front-clasp harness, some better than others. Attaching the leash to the back of the dog (traditional harness) actually makes it easier for him to pull you (think sled dogs!) whereas by attaching the leash to the front (chest) of the dog, pulling causes his body to turn back towards you. Front-clasp harnesses work on the principle of leverage. Although you have less precise control of the dog with a harness than with a halter, dogs adjust to wearing it immediately. With a dog in a front-clasp harness, when the leash gets tight I take a couple of rapid steps backwards, thus ensuring that the dog turns around, and then start walking forward again, “Good! Let's go!”
Pinch/Prong Collar
Although this looks like a medieval torture device, it is actually far safer, more humane and much more effective than the traditional choke chain. It works on the principle of discomfort, rather than leverage, and is very effective in teaching a dog not to pull. It needs no training time for the dog to accept wearing it, and usually stops pulling completely (while on the dog) within minutes. For some dogs, this is a good choice. Prong collars need little or no training from the owner to teach the dog not to pull – because pulling causes instant discomfort, and slack in the leash causes instant relief, the dog figures out very quickly not to pull. If you use a prong collar, always use the small size and add extra links as needed. (The medium and large sizes use larger prongs, and are therefore less effective and harder to use.) Also, attach a coupler from the O-ring of the prong collar to the dog's regular collar in case the collar comes undone. Lastly, these collars must never be used on dogs who have fear or aggression issues – the prong collar would make the problem much worse! Prong collars should also not be used on puppies who are under about 5 months old, as the association of discomfort with pulling to explore their new world may cause phobias, rather than teaching them not to pull.
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