Moose: Leash Training Case Study 

Here in Richmond, I see a lot of dog owners walking their best friend around our beautiful city. Many times, these dogs are well-behaved and don’t cause a fuss during the walk. There are some dogs that are quiet, but like to lead their owners rather than the other way around. There are dogs that are not only leading their owners, but it’s like the dog is walking the owner, with lots of excitable pulling and dragging. And everyone has at least seen a few dogs misbehave on walks, be it pulling, jumping on the owner, or poorly reacting to a certain stimuli (another dog, a jogger, a car, a large group of children, etc).

ALL dogs can be taught to walk nicely on leash!!

Even if your dog only lightly pulls on the leash on walks or tries to lead you, it is still important to introduce some proper leash manners to your dog. While your dog leading may not seem like a big deal, your dog may see it as an opportunity to take things a step further. What may start as gentle pulling might lead to serious pulling and reactivity from your dog. It could also escalate to lunging and incessant barking.

You as the owner should lead your dog on walks in public, not the other way around. The dog follows and focuses on your command. I had a client sign up with me because their dog, Moose, needed serious leash work done. When he was first adopted, Moose was quiet on walks, but normally led them as his owner would give him a lot of slack on his retractable leash. As Moose settled in and became more comfortable, his leading became extreme pulling. Luckily, Moose’s owner switched from a retractable to a six foot nylon leash, but he still kept Moose tight and close by, as the pulling was severe and Moose began barking at other dogs walking around the neighborhood. Walks for Moose and his owner were soon becoming difficult and not very enjoyable.

As a dog owner, there is no need to be “alpha” or dominate your dog. Reward-based dog training techniques instills trust and respect, versus fear. The owner should simply be a leader for their dog, showing them the right behaviors to follow that ultimately bring reward and success for the dog. With Moose, he felt the need to take the reins from his owner and become the leader of the pack. In reality, this should always be the owner’s role.

With my training programs, there’s a lot of leash training involved where owners learn how to properly and effectively handle their dogs. Off leash training is part of it, also, but if the owner cannot control the dog on leash, don’t bet on the dog listening when he’s off. With Moose, we had to first empower his owner as a consistent leader, and then show Moose how to focus and follow through. Within his first training session, Moose learned how to heel with his owner and how to listen carefully to his owner’s commands! Once we built the basic structure of obedience and recall for Moose, we then began introducing major distractions for him, including other dogs. With all the prior training and knowledge under his belt, Moose was able to walk beautifully on the leash, even with several other dogs around!

While leash manners may not seem like a big deal for many owners, it is still important that they know how to handle their dogs on leash, be it in an environment with little distractions, or those swarming with stimuli. Leadership is learned and instilled through this type of training as well, and both dog and owner must never forget who is the decision-maker and leader of the home.

To sign up for some leash training, call 800-649-7297 or e-mail me at training@jamesriverdogtraining.com!