Unless you plan on competing with your dog in obedience training, you do NOT need a formal HEEL.
HEEL -A position in obedience training where the dog holds his/her position at the left leg on the handler with the dogs nose roughly at the same plane as the handlers outside pant seam. This position is maintained by the dog regardless of if or how the handler moves (forward, backward, turning, stopping).
I am amazed by the number of clients who seem to feel that they MUST forcefully hold their dog on a tight, short leash while walking. This is NOT needed.
If fact, it tends to cause problems for the handler and the dog. A tight leash can actually cause a dog to behave aggressively.
It is always better to walk a dog on a loose leash. Training the dog to keep the leash loose is the first and most important step towards enjoying a walk with your dog.
TEACHING LOOSE-LEASH WALKING -kindergarden level
1. Choose a collar or harness that does not pull on a dog's neck or back.
Most flat-collars are good for keeping tags on your dog, but they are not good for walking dogs on leash.
Pinch and Prong-collars are designed to hurt the dog for making mistakes (pulling), but hurting the dog can have serious side-effects such as increased aggression. There are many reasons that these collars should never be used, but the best reason is that you can accomplish the same goal faster and more effectively without them.
Back-clipping harnesses are a great way to reduce pressure on a dogs neck and throat, but they help a dog pull and are useless for teaching a dog to walk nicely on leash.
****There are two great options for helping your dog walk nicely (no pulling on leash). Front-clipping harnesses are becoming very popular and dogs tend to adjust to them quickly. These are fantastic walking harnesses and they do not hurt the dog. Another option is to use a head-collar.
For more on these devices, CLICK HERE.
2. Set time aside for training.
Hold your dog's leash in your right hand. If your dog is on your left this will mean that the leash crosses in front of your body -this is OK.
Hold some tasty treats in your left hand near your dogs nose.
Keep your dog interested in the treats, but do not let your dog eat them.
If your dog jumps for the treats or tries to nibble your hand. Pull your hand away and put it behind your back.
If your dog has all 4 paws on the ground and is walking nicely next to you, PRAISE your dog THEN give them one of the treats from your hand.
Is leash aggression the owners fault?
When dogs fight with other dogs on leash is the owners lack of confidence the problem?
Hardly! Owners can and should NOT be blamed for being nervous when handling their leash-reactive dogs.
It goes without saying that if you have seen your dog bark, lunge, or snap at another dog when on leash that you will anticipate more bad behavior. The anticipated unpleasantness makes most people nervous.
Still, my clients are often astonished that the dogs behave better when I am handling the leash.
When I am called to consult with a client whose dog routinely behaves badly on leash towards other dogs, a common question is: Have they (the owners) been transmitting their fears down the leash to their dogs? From this my clients often surmise that it must be my calm, confident demeanor that gives me the edge when handling feisty dogs. I would argue otherwise for several reasons.
Reason #1 When meeting new clients and handling a new dog for the first time I am absolutely NOT CALM.
I am always nervous when meeting new clients and handling new dogs. I might hide my fears and doubts well from my clients, but I am sure that if you were to put me to the test you would find that my heart rate is elevated, my mouth is dry and I my hands are sweaty.
Reason #2 It is more scientific to rule out other, simpler explanations first.
The answer to how well a dog can detect and to what degree they react to fear has not been sufficiently studied. however, the mechanism responsible for self-preservation called Fight or Flight is very well understood and is the key to helping many of my clients navigate on-leash encounters between their dogs and other dogs.
Reason #3 I have a very good success rate with teaching my clients new skills that improve the situation despite their nervousness at trying something new and their fears that they won't do well and/or that their dog is beyond help.
Imagine if you were taking tennis lessons and your instructor simply coached you by saying, "You need to swing with more power and accuracy." While this may be true, it won't help you KNOW HOW TO DO THESE THINGS!
A good instructor/coach/teacher is always able to break things down into specific tasks that a student can practice in order to obtain better results in overall performance. Telling someone that they are doing poorly or that they need to be, or do things better is NOT an educational technique.
My personal results with the aforementioned bad-coaching technique was a frustration-induced, "more powerful" but drastically, LESS accurate swing.
So what is the CONNECTION between the LEASH & AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR?
All animals have an innate protective response. When you are afraid (really, really afraid) your The is commonly referred to as the Fight or Flight Response.
Reactions include:
FREEZE -victims that we would describe as shocked, stunned, catatonic (this may precede other actions).
FLIGHT -a way of creating distance between you and a real or perceived threat.
FIGHT -another way of creating distance (turn the tables and get the scary thing to back off or run away).
The trick is to KEEP THE LEASH REALLY LOOSE & to KEEP MOVING FORWARD at a quickened pace so that your dog does not feel stuck or trapped. This is hard to do when you own body is anticipating a bad encounter, so my clients with badly behaved dogs all tend to slow down and hold their dogs back. This is a recipe for disaster. The slow pace and tension causes the dog to lunge forward aggressively.
Keeping the leash loose is easier said then done when there is a history of things going badly, so here are some hints. Carry your dogs favorite toy or better yet, walk your dog when she is hungry and hold some cheese or some yummy meat in front of her nose as you pass by dogs. Using your best goofy voice and moving quickly helps too. Also, be sure not to punish or correct (jerk the leash) your dog for relapses.
Remember you can't punish away fear!
So fix the fear, and the barking and lunging will disappear.
Bumble-Bees Taste... OUCHY!!!!!
Sometimes your dog's drive to get something... will over-rule an unpleasant consequence.
Today this little Setter (Bird-Dog Extraordinaire) discovered that Bumble-Bees are low-flying, slow-moving birds. She caught one and it bit back, but she kept hunting them, and catching them for the rest of the walk. It would be like if asking you not to reach into hot water for $100 bills. Your hand could be bright red, but you'd probably keep going.
Just another reason why training with motivation is important for you and your dog. Giving consequences (even unpleasant ones) won't always work. Sometimes you need to give your dog access to what they need/want. When safe this is always best, but food and toys can be used as surrogate prey to satisfy a hunting instinct. The BEST way to build a relationship AND train your dog to listen is with rewards.
Lately there seems to be an excessive number of people "totally freaked out" that they have/will lose all control of their dog's behavior because they can't seem to get the dog to walk behind them and/or the dog is "not allowing them" through doors first.
1) Dogs do not have a covert agenda! The are just faster than us, and unless they have a good reason to slow down (training) they are going to pull and push.
2) First is not always best! If you were testing a new type of parachute --would you really want to be the first one out the plane???
3) Like all things you want your dog to do, you must take time to teach them, you can't simply expect a new behavior.
What I care about when walking my dogs.
1) No one pulls my arm out. As long as the leash is loose, with some slack and my hands and arms are comfortable, I don't care if the dog is in front, next to, or behind me. >>>READ HERE FOR MORE ON PULLING<<<
2) If I call a dog's name, they stop and look at me. This is hugely helpful in a variety of situations, but takes practice to get in distracting environments (another dog barking).
3) If I say, "Leave-it" my dog lifts his or her head off what they are sniffing or turns their face away from what they are staring at and we move on down the path.
That said, if you want to teach your dog to walk in a certain position, next to you; or, if you would prefer, for the safety of your dog, to go through doors first, you can TEACH THESE BEHAVIORS. This means you will need to consider:
1) How will you show your dog what you want?
2) What you will give your dog if they are getting it right, or close to right (especially in the beginning). Think: What does my dog want?
3) What will you take away, or not give your dog if they make a mistake. Think: How can you make your dog's brain say, "That didn't work."
Remember!!!!!!!!!!!!!
TEACHING is about letting the dog TRY STUFF and then gently giving feedback:
YAY! That works (give dog something: treat, toy, access).
OOOPS! That won't work (take something away: deny access, remove from fun, restrict freedom, ignore).
Teaching is NOT about getting it right! Teaching is about letting the dog TRY and letting the dog WIN and FAIL, so that they can learn the consequences and make their own decisions.
Dogs are generally not on their best behavior when the leash is tight. I frequently see tense situations turn into nasty situations by owners whose intensions are clearly good, but misguided. While it is completely understandable and natural for a handler to pull a dog back from a potentially stressful situation, the unfortunate reality is that pulling a dog back encourages them to lunge forward aggressively.
If your dog is a puller and you can't keep the leash loose, try a humane, no-pull harness or head-halter.
If your dog is almost always lunging forward at people or dogs while barking, growling or snapping, by all means, PLEASE contact a Certified Dog Trainer who understands and uses Reward Based Training Techniques and Classical Conditioning to treat fear & aggression. Truely fear-aggressive dogs may need several to many sessions to improve.
Some dogs are naughty, but NOT FEARFUL. These dogs are usually lunging because they feel stuck or are anticipating an uncomfortable amount of tension on a leash, or worse yet, a snap or jerk of the leash. Trainers sometimes look like miracle workers when they take control of the leash and a previously barking, lunging dog turns into a polite, playful dog. This is usually the case with NON-FEARFUL dogs who respond well to what is often called the JOLLY-ROUTINE.
If your dog is generally playful--especially when off-leash, but lunges or growls sometimes at dogs when ON-LEASH, try the following (we call it the Jolly Routine):
To keep the leash loose, try calling your dog when they see a dog. Then walk backwards. Don't wait for your dog, just start taking steps backwards. You will still be facing the dog your dog sees, but you are moving backwards.
When your dog's body finally turns to face you, praise with a cheery, goofy voice.
Keep praising your dog -BE JOLLY and start moving forward.
Go quickly and walk PAST the dog, still being JOLLY. Stop only once you are about a foot past the dog's tail. Pause and then KEEP GOING! Praise and reward your dog--food is BEST.
It may take your dog a few tries before they learn the new system. If they have a slip-up, don't yell anything naughty at the dog, IGNORE IT. If things are not better in 1-week, contact a trainer
This is a common problem. Check out my class entirely dedicated to helping people with LEASH MONSTERS!
