Learning to walk your canine friend without pulling on the leash is good for you and your dog. A dog that pulls on the leash can be a handful to handle, especially if he is large and strong. When you have a pulling dog, it makes walking him difficult.
You may have heard that dogs pull on leashes because they try to dominate you. It is a myth. Dogs pull on leashes because they are excited and want to explore new things.
The problem is that most people don’t know how to stop their dog from pulling on a leash.
This article will explain how to stop your dog from pulling on a leash.
Why do dogs pull on the leash?
- Dogs pull on leashes because they’re excited and want to greet people or other animals,
- They want to explore or try to get to something that has caught their attention.
- It can also be because they don’t understand where you’re going.
- Some dogs pull because they want to get to where they’re going as quickly as possible.
- Some dogs may pull because they’re trying to assert dominance or fearful or anxious.
How To Stop Dog From Pulling On A Leash!
1) Training Your Dog!
- A well-trained dog is a joy to have. A dog that pulls on the leash is not only annoying to walk with; it can also be dangerous for both you and your dog.
- The first thing to do is make sure your dog is adequately trained and socialized. It will help prevent pulling, barking, jumping and lunging. If your dog is not trained and socialized, it will take longer to stop him from pulling on a leash.
- Training rewards good behavior with treats or praise and ignores terrible behavior. When the dog pulls, gently tug back on the leash and say “no” in a low tone of voice.
- If the dog stop pulling, give them praise or a treat as soon as possible after they stop pulling.
- If your canine friends continue pulling after this correction, repeat it until they stop pulling again and then give them praise or a treat immediately after stopping pulling.
- It is an essential step because it teaches the dog that stopping pulling gets them what they want (a treat or praise) while continuing to pull does not get them anything except perhaps getting corrected by you.
2) Be Persistent and Consistent!
Teaching is the best way to stop your dog from pulling on a leash. It’s not something that will happen overnight, but with patience and consistency, you will be able to teach your dog to walk next to you when you are out walking. If you give up too soon or become frustrated with him, it will only worsen.
Make sure that you take the time needed when training your pet. You may ponder that spending ten minutes with your canine buddy every day is sufficient, but it isn’t. It would be best if you planned on spending at least an hour each day with your pet so that they learn everything they need to know effectively.
3) Use one walking method!
Choose one walking method that you like and stick with it. Don’t practice the collar or harness one day, and then use the head halter another day. It will confuse your dog because he won’t know which technique works best in different situations.
Choose one method (the collar or head halter) and practice using it every time you take him outside for his potty break. If your dog is used to having multiple walking methods, then it will be harder for him to settle down and walk calmly.
4) Choose Less Distraction Area!
When you take your dog out for a walk or workout, avoid busy streets and other places where there might be many distractions like kids playing ball or dogs barking at each other across the street from each other etc. Instead, choose a quiet and less exciting area for walks, such as empty parking lots or grassy areas indoors like parks. If this doesn’t work, try using a leash with something that makes noise, such as bells or jingle bells.
5) Evade Negative Behavior!
When teaching your dog basic commands like sit, stay and down, use only positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement means giving your dog a treat or rewarding him somehow for doing what you want him to do. It works much better than yelling at the dog when he does something wrong or punishing him.
6) Be Unpredictable!
When you walk your dog in the same direction every day, your dog will get used to it and anticipate where you’re going. However, if you keep changing directions, your dog won’t know what to expect. It prevents them from pulling as much because they don’t know when you’re going to stop walking.
7) Prefer Blooming and Interesting areas!
Suppose something is distracting nearby (like another animal or food); your dog will want to check it out instead of following along with you. Use this knowledge to your advantage by making sure there are plenty of exciting things like beautiful flowers and blossoms near where you walk your dog so he’ll not be distracted by other things instead of trying to pull ahead of you.
8) Never Praise Bad Behavior
If your dog pulls on the leash or jumps up on people, don’t reward him with attention or treats. His behavior will only worsen if he knows it gets him what he wants. Instead, give him some time alone without the leash and try again later when things have calmed down.
9) Use Right Equipment!
- Make sure that you are using the accurate tackle for your canine buddy. If your dog is a puppy or young adult, you should be using a harness rather than a collar.
- Harnesses distribute pressure across the chest, making them safer than collars for preventing tracheal injuries in case of an unexpected jerk or sudden stop.
- Use a collar if your dog is an adult and has never had any history of pulling on the leash. However, if your dog continues to pull even when wearing a collar, try switching back to a harness.
10) Use Halti Collar or Front Clip Harness!
You can use a front clip harness or a Halti collar, which are good at stopping your dog from pulling on the leash. For instance, using a Halti head collar to stop your dog from pulling on the leash will not work if you do not use it correctly; otherwise, it can cause more harm than good. But a front clip harness will help keep your dog from pulling because it distributes the pressure across their chest instead of just pulling on their neck.
11) Use Proper Size Dog Collar!
Ensure to get a collar that fits properly around your dog’s neck when standing squarely on all four feet. If the collar is too tight or too loose, it won’t work as well as it should. Next, attach a leash to the collar and then attach the other end of the leash around something solid like a post or tree so that both ends are taut when your dog pulls against them. It prevents your canine buddy from pulling behavior.
12) Prong Collar & Halter!
Use a prong collar, which uses spikes that poke into your dog’s skin when pulling on a leash. It makes the doggo uncomfortable and teaches him not to pull on the leash anymore. A head halter works similarly but uses pressure points around his muzzle instead of poking into his skin like a prong collar does.
13) Cease Walk!
When your furry friend pulls, stop walking and wait for him to sit or turn back toward you before continuing on your walk. You can also use treats to lure him toward you when he begins pulling on the leash.
In contrast with other methods such as using a harness or training treats or clicker training, or even some kind of shock collars, walking methods are effective regardless of whether or not you use any other tools!
14) Positive Reinforcement!
If you have a puppy or a young dog just learning how to walk on a leash, then it’s essential to use positive reinforcement training methods to help him stop pulling. Treats and praise are great motivators for teaching your dog to walk nicely on a leash. He’ll learn that walking calmly next to you is much more fun than running around and dragging you along behind him.
15) Put Off-leash!
Suppose your dog is already well-trained in basic obedience commands like sitting and down but continues to pull on his leash even when there are no distractions present in the environment. In that case, he may suffer from anxiety or fear. In this case, it’s crucial to take him off his leash at least once per day so that he can relieve this stress by running around and playing freely with other dogs or people.
16) Loose Leash walk!
To stop your dog from pulling on the leash, you’ll need to teach him how to walk correctly. Start with a loose leash at first. This way, your dog will have some freedom of movement and won’t feel as restricted when you start training him.
17) Teach Command “Heal”!
Teach your best buddy to “heel,” which means walking on your left side with a loose leash and maintaining eye contact with you. It may take some time for your dog to get the hang of it, but once he does, he’ll be much happier when walking on a leash because other dogs will be less likely to approach him if he’s by your side instead of pulling ahead or running away from them into traffic or other dangers.
18) Use Vocal Cues!
Use verbal cues and body language so that your dog knows when it’s time to go forward or stop moving forward (and vice versa). If you’re using treats/praise as part of training, these commands can come in handy: “Go” for forwarding movement and “Heel” for backward movement.
19) Don’t Pull Back the Leash!
Don’t pull back on the leash. Your dog will think this is a game and will continue to pull. You’ll end up with an even bigger problem if your canine buddy thinks he’s won over and over again! Walk ahead of your dog, so he doesn’t have anything in front of him to follow. Then wait for him to catch up with you before you start walking again.
20) Permit Investigations!
Slow down when you walk past distractions and give him time to sniff them out. If it’s something exciting, like another dog or a squirrel, let him investigate for a minute, then keep moving forward slowly and calmly until he gets bored and follows along behind you again (if he does).
Final Thoughts!
This article has looked at stopping your dog from pulling on the leash. Several tips and techniques can help you achieve this goal. By following the advice in this article, you can have a much more relaxed walk with your dog.
The post How To Stop Dog From Pulling On A Leash! first appeared on Caring For Your Dog.