Pulling on the leash!

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The problem which you are having is that your dog pulls in all directions all of the time he is on the lead, trying to lead you. In order to solve this problem you must follow the steps set out below:

Stage One
For about three days, several times each day:

· Begin by having your dog on a lead and collar and simply fasten the end of the lead to a firm post. Allow your dog a radius of about three feet (four feet for large dogs) and simply stand next to what the post.

· Totally ignore any pulling behavior. This is easy, as the dog will not be pulling against you.

· When your dog has stopped pulling for at least ten seconds, tell him how good he is and bend down and stroke him for at least ten seconds. This procedure ensures that your dog gets no reward at all when he is exerting any pressure on the lead but is rewarded for a fixed period when he is standing correctly.

· Now stand up straight and repeat the process rewarding him for ten seconds for every successful ten seconds period that he has not leaned or fought against the lead. Keep repeating this until you see a dramatic decrease in the amount of pulling against the lead while fastened up at this first session. Remember that your dog will get tired of pulling before you do.

Stage Two

For about three days, several times each day:

· Attach your dog’s lead to his collar and have some small pieces of his daily food allowance either in your pocket or in a small bag. The walk begins when you attach the lead.

· Begin by standing still, insisting that your dog stands without exerting any pressure on the lead.

· When he has been stationary for ten seconds with no pulling, walk forward keeping the lead slack. Be sure to walk at a pace that you want to set.

· If your dog puts any pressure at all on the lead then STAND STILL! Use your lead to insist that your dog returns to a position alongside you and stands on a slack lead.

· Try to avoid using any commands. Talking to your dog can in fact reinforce the pulling behavior. What you are trying to do is draw attention to the fact that only a slack lead will result in rewards.

· When your dog has remained next to you for around ten seconds, praise him well with your voice for at least ten seconds before moving forward.

· For every ten paces that you walk and your dog does not exert any pressure on the lead, stop, praise and give a piece of food.

The first day that you try this you may not get very far but after 2 or 3 days you should see a dramatic decrease in pulling behavior over a period of two or three days.

Stage Three

From now on when you walk your dog

· Before taking your dog out for a walk, put some food treats and one or two favorite toys in your pocket. These must be concealed and not shown to your dog before the walk starts.

· If your dog exerts any pressure on the lead, STAND STILL. Use the lead to insist that your dog returns to a position alongside you. After a period of at least ten seconds, praise well with your voice before walking forward once again.

· If your dog is trying to pull you towards something or someone then repeat the above procedure but this time returning to the point where the dog started pulling before standing still. As you get closer to the attraction, your dog's desire to pull will get stronger; so you must insist that each time he pulls he returns to the original starting position before being allowed to try the approach once more. You can at your discretion allow your dog to meet up with the attraction only when he has walked correctly.

· When you are walking along and your dog is not pulling suddenly stop and produce one of the rewards that you are carrying with you. Try to vary the type of reward given, the frequency it is given and the amount that is given for the correct walking behavior.

Remember that once your dog has learned the correct walking behavior, you then must teach him to generalize the behavior. The more unpredictable you are in where you walk him, the type, frequency and amount of rewards that he gets the more consistent that behavior will become.

Pulling on the lead - outbound journey.

The problem you are having is that your dog pulls on the journey out of the house or car and does not pull at all on the return journey. To solve this problem, you must follow the steps set out below:

Stage One
For three days, several times each day:

· Attach your dog’s lead to his collar and have some small pieces of his daily food allowance either in your pocket or in a small bag. The walk begins when you attach the lead.

· Begin by standing still, insisting that your dog stands without exerting any pressure on the lead.

· If your dog puts any pressure at all on the lead then STAND STILL! Use your lead to insist that your dog returns to a position alongside you and stands on a slack lead.

· Avoid using any commands (talking to your dog can in fact be reinforcing the pulling behavior) What you are trying to do is draw attention to the fact that only maintaining a slack lead will result in any rewards.

· When your dog has remained next to you for around ten seconds, praise well with your voice for at least ten seconds before moving forward.

· For every ten paces that you walk and your dog does not exert any pressure on the lead, stop, praise and give a piece of food.

The first day that you try this you may not get very far but you should see a dramatic decrease in pulling behavior over a period of two or three days.

Stage Two
From now on when you walk your dog:

· Before taking your dog out for a walk, put some food treats and one or two favorite toys in your pocket. These must be concealed and not shown to your dog before the walk starts.

· If your dog exerts any pressure on the lead, STAND STLL. Use the lead to insist that your dog returns to a position alongside you. After a period of at least ten seconds, praise with your voice before walking forward once again.

· If your dog is trying to pull you towards something or someone then repeat the above procedure. This time return to the point where the dog started pulling before standing still. As you get closer to the attraction, your dogs desire to pull will get stronger so you must insist he is returns to the original starting position before he is allowed to try the approach once more. You can, at your discretion allow your dog to meet up with the attraction only when he has walked correctly.

· When you are walking along and your dog is not pulling suddenly stop and produce one of the rewards that you are carrying with you. Try to vary the type of reward given, the frequency it is given and the amount that is given for the correct walking behavior.

Remember that once your dog had learned the correct walking behavior, you must teach him to generalize. The more unpredictable you are in where you walk him, and the type, frequency and amount of rewards that he gets, the more consistent that behavior will become.

Pulling on the lead when distractions are present.

The problem you are having is that your dog pulls only when he sees something that he wants to get to such as smells, other dogs, people, etc. To solve this problem you must follow the following steps when you walk your dog.

· Before taking your dog out for a walk, put some food treats and one or two favorite toys in your pocket. These must be concealed and not shown to your dog before the walk starts.

· If your dog exerts any pressure on the lead, STAND STILL. Use the lead to insist that your dog returns to a position alongside you. After a period of at least ten seconds, praise well with your voice before walking forward once again.

· If your dog is trying to pull you towards something or someone then repeat the above procedure but this time return to the point where the dog started pulling and stand still. As you get closer to the attraction your dog's desire to pull will get stronger. You must insist that each time he pulls, he returns to the original position before you try the approach once more. You can, at your discretion allow your dog to meet up with the attraction only when he has walked correctly.

· When you are walking along and your dog is not pulling, suddenly stop and produce one of the rewards that you are carrying with you. Vary the type of reward, the frequency and the amount given for the correct walking behavior.

Remember that once your dog had learned the correct walking behavior, you must teach him to generalize. The more unpredictable you are in where you walk him, and the type, frequency and amount of rewards that he gets, the more consistent that behavior will become.

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