This least sexy of all tools addresses the three most common frustrations we trainers hear about from dog owners: leash-pulling, reactivity, and a refusal to come when called. The trick, of course, is learning how to use that extra length to teach the good stuff.

Learning Not to Pull

The ever-changing outdoor environment is wildly exciting for our dogs. Alas, when they enthusiastically zigzag after every scent, bike, or friend, they yank us along with them.  Caught without a plan, we end up pulling right back. Very quickly, a pattern becomes ingrained: walks consist of a constantly taut leash, and conflict.

To break free, start fresh! Head to a new spot, with a different approach. Ditch the 6-footer and grab a long line, which is essentially a longer, thinner, lighter leash. This beautifully simple device can allow you and your dog the graceful distance to begin learning how to move through the world together in sync, without constant two-way tugging. (I don’t use retractables for many reasons, including the fact that it teaches a dog that constant leash pressure is normal.)

Give it a try. Take a 20-foot lead, grab a pouch full of terrific treats, and head to a big park at a time that’s not too busy so that you’ve got some room. As soon as you get out of the car, reward your dog for some things that are easy for her to do even amid distraction. (It’s okay if that’s just “find it” as you keep tossing a treat right in front of her!)  Now she knows you have the stuff she loves best— dried liver? tiny bits of cheddar?—on board.

Next, let your dog follow her nose, perhaps encouraging her to the edges of the wilder-looking areas where animal smells will naturally slow her down. The beautiful thing here is that she can enjoy her sniffari—scenting back and forth, leaping forward, then lingering—without pulling that very long leash taut. If you tried to do this with a six-footer you might already be in conflict, and annoyed.

Now, here’s the big moment that will be the cornerstone of your future loose-leash walks around the block: After at first being too absorbed in her surroundings to check in with you, your dog is finally going to look in your direction. The very second she does, reward her! Give a happy “yes!” and a taste of the very best you have, maybe the salmon-flavored Bark Pouch.

It is so very easy to miss this incredible moment! Don’t. Train yourself to watch for and reward every single voluntary check-in: the head swivel in your direction, the quick moment of eye contact, the move closer to you, the circle back to hang next to you. Remember, you’re not asking for or cueing this engagement, you’re waiting for her to offer it. That’s the dynamic we want to set up for the future! We don’t want you to have to constantly ask for her to move with you through the world—we want her to choose it.  This simple, beautiful activity teaches just that.

Once you’ve been rewarding simple check-ins for a while, and she’s choosing to hang out near you, the next stage is to offer an easy “find it” as you walk along.  Is she sticking with you even though she’s got 20 feet of freedom? Now you know she’s in a perfect state to learn that it feels great to engage with you on leash. You can start asking for whatever she does easily at home—maybe that’s just sits and touches, or maybe it’s downs and stays. Maybe you’re going fast, slow, fast, slow, encouraging her as she matches your pace. At this early stage, there are treats galore as you work to instill a deep sense that hanging close to you is the most rewarding choice no matter the environment. That understanding is the prize, and it’s what will eventually allow you and your dog ready to walk in sync on a 6-foot leash around your own block.

Build a Great Recall

A long line is also an incredible tool for teaching a terrific recall. Perhaps your dog is happy enough to come when you call him at home, but the second you’re anyplace more interesting—forget it! That’s a typical stage in recall training, and many people stall out there.

Enter the long line. Start with exactly the scenario outlined in the previous section: 20-footer, great treats, big park, and a sniffari. Wait for those voluntary check-ins, and reward a few. Now we’re ready to teach a great recall.

Here’s the crazy-sounding key to training your dog to respond to the cue “Come!”: Don’t call him until he is already coming to you! If, in the beginning stages of training, you call him when he’s completely engaged in a scent, or staring at a bird, the odds are low that he’ll respond. If you do that over and over, the word “come” will become background noise that is, if anything, just annoying. Instead, wait for an obvious win for you both. When he finishes sniffing a particular plant, turns to you and begins to meander over, cheerily start calling him, and then reward with something terrific.

Here’s the important next step: then encourage him to go off and have more fun. So often, dogs don’t hear “come” until the end of the adventure, right before they have to get in the car and go home. An enormous part of successful recall training is making sure that negative link does not get established. Right after you reward that “come,” follow up with “Let’s go sniff some more!”

Then . . . repeat, and repeat. Spend a lovely hour at the park, marking and rewarding engagement, calling your dog as she is already coming. Now it’s going to be really sinking in that engaging with you is like winning the jackpot.

If you’re like the rest of us, you’ll now be tempted to push it. You see your dog at the end of the long line, staring at another dog across the park, and you want to call her, just to see if it worked and you now have a great recall. I know it’s tough to resist, but I promise that the tortoise really does win the race. Don’t call a dog who is having a great time doing something else until way, way down the line in your training. Great dog training is like watching paint dry, folks. It’s really boring—but then at some point the result is actually beautiful.

You can definitely build on your recall training by doing all of this off leash in your own yard, but the benefit of the long line is that it mimics the situations where you’re really going to want that recall. If your dog is used to being pretty far from you in an interesting new place and still coming when called, that’s a big win.

Decreasing Reactivity through Observation

One of the things I most like “prescribing” to a client who’s upset about her dog’s reactivity is to go hang out in a park with a long line. It’s easy, it’s relaxing, and it helps—sometimes dramatically.

It’s jarring when your dog who’s so sweet at home turns into Cujo on a walk, barking and lunging at dogs, people, cars, bikes, or whatever else. It’s easy to interpret that response as angry aggression. But very often it’s fear, based on lack of familiarity: “I don’t know what the heck that is but it’s probably a threat and I’d better make sure it doesn’t get closer!”

It’s time for—I know you know the answer by now, so say it with me—a long line and a big park! Why? Because our dogs can’t read books or browse the internet. The only parts of the world they can learn about are the teeny tiny slivers we show them. So of course many dogs are anxious and bark out their big feelings when they head outside of their home cocoons and see new things that are fast, loud, looming and unpredictable.

Dogs need to gather data to feel better about their world, and a long line in a park is a terrific, safe-feeling way to do that. Distance is the worried dog’s best friend, and he needs you to arrange it for him. Ponder the best spot and the best time. Get out of the car only after making sure the coast is clear. Maybe that sounds like a lot of work, but surprises are the enemy of feeling safe. Just because you know that little barking leashed chihuahua isn’t a threat doesn’t mean your dog knows that!

Here’s how we teach him. Let him first catch sight of that chihuahua from a long distance. Let him watch. Let him process what he sees, hears, smells. If he’s barking or lunging, he needs more distance. Back up until he can observe calmly. Then just sit together and gather data. (You don’t need a long line to do this part, but it can help establish a sense of his having agency during this experience.)

After a while, your dog will realize that the Chihuahua is not a threat and turn to you. That’s a huge moment. He’s just come to a conclusion: “Hey, that thing over there is no big deal. It won’t affect us.” Offer a treat. Offer some easy cues (sit, touch). If he’s stealing glances at the chihuahua and then back to you, he might need a bit more time to observe. If not, he’s ready to move on until there’s something else he needs to learn about. Kids playing basketball? A group of folks on a picnic? Another dog playing frisbee? Get yourself to a distance that feels safe to your dog and let him watch until he doesn’t need to anymore.

A lot of the very best dog training looks like doing nothing! If I made a video of one of these sessions, it would seem like not much is happening.

Untrue. An enormous shift is occurring. A dog is beginning to feel safe in his world. Let’s give him the distance and time he needs to fully absorb that lesson.

Long live the long line.

The post A Long Line: The Surprising Problem-Solver appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

The goal with a recall is for the dog to respond to the “come” cue automatically, enthusiastically, and without hesitation. This is safety-critical behavior. especially for off-leash walking. If your dog gets out through an open door and heads toward a busy road, for example, coming to you when you call her could save her life. So how do we teach a dog to reliably come when called?

How to Teach a Dog to Come

1. Pick a cue: Before you start working on teaching your dog to come, you’ll need to pick the word you want to use as a cue. Until the behavior you want is established—meaning your dog comes when called—do your best to avoid using the cue word to call her outside of training sessions. Don’t use it sitting around the living room or outside in the backyard as a “test” to see if she understands it yet. If the dog gets used to hearing the word and not responding, you’ll need to start again with a different cue. The same is true if you’ve tried teaching a recall before but it hasn’t really stuck. Pick a new word and try again. “Come” and “here” are common choices for recall cues.
2. Charge the cue: “Charging” a cue essentially means adding value to it. We do this by teaching the dog that something good is coming when she hears the cue. To begin:
   1. Get some treats your dog really likes.
   2. With your dog standing or sitting close to you, say the cue word in an excited voice.
   3. When your dog looks at you, give her the treat.
   4. Repeat 10-15 times.
   5. Do this several times a day for roughly 2-3 days.
3. Ask the dog to follow: Once the cue is charged, you will begin asking your dog to follow along with you while you are moving. For this step, the goal is to have your dog chase excitedly after you for 5-10 feet. To teach it:
   1. In a quiet, low-distraction environment, put your dog on a leash. I use a 6-foot nylon lead clipped to a flat collar or martingale—do NOT use a choke chain or slip lead that could tighten around her neck if she runs past you or stops suddenly.
   2. With her standing near you, give her the cue (“Come!”) in the same excited voice you used to charge it.
   3. At the same time, quickly move several steps away from her. The leash should remain loose the whole time. Avoid dragging her or tugging on the leash—it’s only there to keep her from wandering off.
   4. When she follows, run—or walk quickly for a smaller dog—a few more steps with her.
   5. Reward her. If your dog likes toys, a game of tug can add some fun and excitement to the lesson. Treats are also a good option.
   6. Practice for 5-10 minutes several times a day—I try to aim for three short training sessions six days a week.
   7. Repeat for 3-4 days.
4. Add distance: This step increases the distance between you and your dog before asking her to come:
   1. Put your dog on a leash.
   2. Get some distance between you and your dog. If she starts anticipating the game and won’t let you move away from her, you can toss a treat on the ground a few feet away and tell her to “Get it” (or whichever cue you use to let her know it’s okay for her to eat it). If you use this method, let her eat the treat before asking her to come so she’s not torn between two attractive options.
   3. With the dog somewhere around 5 feet from you, use your cue to call her.
   4. When she comes toward you, move quickly away just as you did on the previous step.
   5. When you and your dog have run together for about 10 feet, reward her.
   6. Practice for 5-10 minutes several times a day.
   7. Repeat daily until she is running toward you consistently.
5. Move to a long line: The goal here is to increase the distance between you and your dog even further:
   1. Put your dog on a long line instead of a leash—once again, the long line is only there to prevent the dog from wandering off and getting distracted. It shouldn’t be used to pull the dog toward you. As a note for those who haven’t encountered them before, a long line is a flat, super-long leash, usually at least 10 feet in length—I use a 30-foot horse lunge line, but a smaller dog might need something lighter-weight. A long line is NOT the same thing as a retractable leash and they are not interchangeable.
   2. Repeat the same process as the previous step (call your dog, move away quickly, run 10-15 feet together, reward), but start with 10 feet between you.
   3. Practice for 5-10 minutes several times a day until your dog is coming enthusiastically from 10 feet away and then increase the distance to 15 feet, then 20 feet, and so on.
6. Remove the leash: It’s time to go off-lead:
   1. Pick a quiet, low-distraction location in the house or other location where the dog is contained. Do not assume that because your dog did great on the long line that she’ll be just as good without a leash.
   2. Start with your dog close to you just as you did during the “ask your dog to follow” step.
   3. Cue her in an excited voice and quickly move several steps away.
   4. When she follows, take a few more steps and reward her.
   5. Practice this for several days.
   6. Repeat the “add distance” step minus the leash.
   7. Practice for 5-10 minutes several times a day until you’re sure she’ll come quickly and easily with 5 feet between you.
   8. Increase the distance between you to 10 feet, 15 feet, etc.

Adding Distractions

Once your dog has mastered coming when called on and off the leash in a quiet, contained environment, you can begin to add distractions. Start with small things, like another person standing quietly in the room or a less-valued toy sitting off to one side on the floor. If your dog successfully ignores these distractions, you can slowly make it more difficult by having your helper move around, make some noise, or talk to the dog. If you are training alone, you can do things like throw toys or place small obstacles—I use more toys or cones—along the dog’s path.

This is also a good time to start training in locations—such as your backyard or a park—that offer more natural distractions. As with the human-made distractions discussed above, start slowly with locations that are just a little bit more interesting than where you started and build up. Keep your dog on a leash or long line when practicing outside of the house or fenced yard.

If your dog gets distracted and fails to come back to you at any point, put her back on the leash and practice distraction-free recalls for a day or two and work your way back up. It can be tempting to rush it, especially if your dog seems to be doing well and progressing quickly. However, one of the biggest tricks when it comes to teaching a reliable recall is to not try to do too much too soon.

A Note on Rewards

Rewards for recall training should be things the dog values a lot such as a favorite toy or a treat she gets rarely and finds particularly tasty. It also helps to vary the rewards. If the reward for the first round of recall practice was boiled chicken, the next may be a super-fun tug toy, and so on. Given that having your dog come when you call is one of the best tools for keeping her safe, success in recall training should yield high-value rewards.

Recall Games

There are a number of great games to play that can make teaching a dog to come when called much more fun and engaging for both dog and handler. You can mix these in with the training steps covered above. I like to do two short sessions a day for “regular” recall practice and one for a game session.

• Keep Away: In most ways, keep away is a high-energy version of the same thing we’ve been doing in recall training. To begin, have your dog sit in front of you. Take one step back and call her to come. When she does, ask her to sit in front of you again and reward her. Practice that for a few days until she’s regularly sitting in front of you when you call her. Then, immediately after you have rewarded her for sitting, turn 90 degrees and run a few steps, calling her again. Let her catch up and reward her. Immediately turn in the other direction and repeat the process, encouraging her to run back and forth with you, stopping and rewarding her when she “catches” you at each direction change.
• Hide-and-Seek: Start by finding a hiding spot—pick an easy one to begin with such as just stepping out of the room beyond the dog’s line of sight. Once you are “hidden,” call your dog enthusiastically. When she comes to find you, praise her and reward her with a treat or toy. As she becomes familiar with the game, move to more difficult-to-find hiding spots.
• Search-and-Return: Also called the “whiplash head turn” exercise, the goal with this one is to have your dog turn toward you quickly no matter what else is happening. You’ll need two types of treats for this game—something that the dog likes okay (like regular kibble) and something she LOVES (like hot dog). To play, start with your dog near you and toss one of the ‘okay’ treats a short distance away. Say something like “Get it” or “Search” as you prefer (pick one word to avoid confusion) to let her know it’s okay to eat it. Allow the dog eat the treat and, right as she is finishing, say “Yes!” and offer her the treat she loves. Repeat several times, picking up the pace to add excitement.
• Round-Robin: This game requires at least two humans. To begin, stand about 10 feet away from your training helper. If you have multiple people helping, stand in a loose circle with the dog in the middle. Take turns calling the dog to come, rewarding her when she gets to you. Once she gets comfortable with the game and is regularly coming to the person who calls her, you can begin to increase the distance between people and have them move to new spots.

For a more detailed description of how to play these games, along with several other great recall exercises, see “Games for Building Reliable Recall Behavior for Your Dog.”

Practice, Practice, Practice

There are no shortcuts to a reliable recall. When you are teaching your dog to come when called, it’s going to take a lot of repetition. Daily practice will make all the difference. Even when your dog knows the cue, you’ll want to do regular refreshers to make sure the behavior stays sharp.

The post How to Teach a Dog to Come When Called appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

Add Distractions Gradually

Ideally, you already use high-value reinforcers in your training. (If not, do!) Yummy food treats are a great choice. You can also use you dog’s favorite toys and play opportunities. The squeak of a squeaky toy is a great attention-getter!

Start your training sessions in a low-distraction environment (indoors) with high-value reinforcement. Reinforce lots of “Look at me” and also other behaviors your dog knows well, including his recall. If you want him to come to you past distractions outdoors, he needs to be able to rock it with distractions indoors, first.

Now introduce pre-arranged distractions that are of a medium-amount of interest to your dog, such as having your child skip by the area where you are working, or your partner dropping a box. The more variety of distractions you an employ, the better. Use high-value treats or favorite toys to reinforce looking at you if he gives you his attention when asked, or to get his attention if he doesn’t volunteer it. Try squeaking a squeaky toy for his attention, and when he looks at you, start playing with the toy; then play with the toy with him.

Work at this level until he quickly and reliably looks at you when you ask for attention. Then gradually increase working with him in the face of all sorts of distractions until he can focus on you indoors, even with children running, balls bouncing, and more.

Focus Outside

When your dog is successfully orienting to you and able to listen to your cues in the face of distractions indoors, take the work outside. Again, start with fewer, low-level distractions until he shows that he can be attentive in the face of those things. Then gradually increase the distraction level as he succeeds with various new stimuli. Reinforce him for any attention he gives you! As you add distractions, practice other known behaviors (especially his favorites!) including coming when called, so he’ll be reliable with all of them.

With time and your commitment to working with your dog, you’ll have a canine pal who is super-focused even with a circus of activities happening around you.

More Distraction Training Tips

Here are some more quick tips to help with focus and attention:

1. “Walk Away” is a fun game and dogs love it, so it works beautifully to get your dog’s attention away from something he’s really focused on. See this article on how to teach this game.
2. Use the “Premack Principle,” where a less likely behavior is reinforced by a more likely behavior. “If you looks at me and sit when asked, you (sometimes) get to go chase the bunny!” (For more information, see the Premack Principle section in “Beyond Basic Dog Training.”)
3. Use a “naked squeaker.” Buy squeakers without toys online, or rescue them from toys your dog has disemboweled. Keep one in your pocket and give it a brief squeak or two at opportune times, then reinforce with treats or play.

Success!

Most important, as with all force-free training, set up your dog to succeed. Create environments with distraction levels where he is able to pay attention so you can reinforce him for his lovely behavior and convince him you are worth his focus even around bigger distractions.

The post How to Get a Dog to Listen When Distracted appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

Start with empathy for your dog’s needs

When a human client asks me to help them with their dog’s “problem behavior,” I make it a practice to wonder how the dog client would describe the problem. If they were in a couple’s counseling session, what would the dog have to say about their human?

When it comes to pulling-on-leash conflicts, I suspect most dogs would say, “Could you stop torturing me by bringing me outside and then forbidding me from enjoying myself? Our walks are weirdly slow and straight-ahead; can we make them more interesting, please? I’d like to smell some stuff, and it would be great to play some games part of the time.”

Sometimes, the fastest way to get what you want in a relationship is to make sure your partner gets what they want, too. In the case of the dog/human leash-pulling conflict, that means offering – structuring time for and facilitating – parts of the walk that will meet your dog’s species-specific needs. Using a pattern in every outing of intentionally switching from styles of walking that dogs enjoy most, to styles that work best for you will transform that activity so that it’s more fun and less work for both of you.

“Ugh!” you might say. “That sounds complicated. I just want to walk my dog!” I know. But just give this a try for two weeks. You’ll be experiencing that gorgeous “J” shape in your leash more and more – and you may find that you feel closer to your dog and more connected to nature. I’m not promising world peace, but I swear good things will happen.

First Phase: Training

If I’ve got a dog who’s barely keeping it together at the beginning of the walk – bursting with energy – I start that walk by training with a super high level of reinforcement. Our initial steps down the driveway are going to be a string of cues: find it, heel, side, spin, heel, touch, heel, find it.

“Hey, lady, if it were that easy for me to get my dog to heel I wouldn’t be reading this article.” Fair point, but the devil is in the details. An authoritative (or annoyed) “heel!” is worlds apart from the rapid-fire fun I’m proposing. Here’s what my version involves:

• Head-turning food, whatever that means to your individual dog. I tend to start a walk with jerky in play, and then turn to less enticing stuff when arousal levels are lower and the dog and I have gotten into a groove.
• Rapid-fire cues. Ask for 10 different things in two minutes. Reward every single one at first! Don’t lose momentum. Keep your energy up to hold your dog’s interest. If your engagement flags, so will your dog’s. One particularly helpful exercise is “Fast! Slow! Fast! Side!” as you reward your dog for matching your varying pace.
• Enthusiastic vibe. Note that adding “training” sections to your walks does not mean “kill the fun by being very serious and demanding things.” Quite the opposite. This is your dog’s fun opportunity to earn extra yummy treats for doing stuff he knows how to do! How great is that? Demonstrate with a happy voice, good energy, and confident connection that this is an especially fun part of the walk.

Doing a “training” section of the walk right off the bat accomplishes a few important things. It gives the dog someplace to throw that initial big energy. It confirms that I have great food on me, which will be important as we pass challenging things like that barking German Shepherd around the corner. And it starts us off psychologically together, engaged. That sets us up for better loose-leash walking.

Second Phase: “Go Sniff!”

“Go sniff!” is something the dogs I’m working with hear maybe a half a dozen times in a half-hour walk. That’s the signal that they can go ahead and inhale the world to their heart’s content for the next few moments. I won’t rush them or pull them away.

We humans with our 6 million nasal receptor sites cannot fathom what dogs can smell with their 100 million. That’s why it’s so natural for us to say after two seconds, “C’mon, there’s nothing there!” The dogs beg to differ. The information they gain by sniffing is probably akin to our scanning our email, news headlines, and social media gossip. I imagine they can smell the raccoons that walked down the sidewalk yesterday, the pizza that was delivered last night, the UPS driver’s cat whose fur is on the guy’s shoe, and all the other dogs in the neighborhood that passed by in the past few days. By reading the pee-mail left by other animals, and commenting with some pee themselves, they gain and share important information.

Even if you don’t take delight in your dog’s sensory experience, keep in mind that it’s also in your self-interest to let your dog sniff. Allowing our dogs to really be dogs sometimes makes it a heck of a lot easier for them to live according to our human rules the rest of the time. Sniffing is, hands-down, the easiest way to help your dog obtain his required daily allowance of dogness. This kind of data-gathering for your dog can also help enormously with anxiety and reactivity. Plus, it’s not difficult for you to provide and you don’t have to learn anything or plan anything; just stand still for a few moments or minutes while they sniff!

So the case for sniffing on walks is very strong; the key is to make it official. Obviously you don’t want your dog yanking you hither and yon whenever they catch a great scent – which is exactly what happens when we never give our dogs the option to sniff in a leisurely fashion. Faced with that utterly unfair situation, dogs will take their welfare into their own hands, put their heads down and drag their owner to the bushes.

In contrast, if an owner regularly makes a point of noticing where good smells tend to be and – just as that spot comes up, before the dog tries to pull for it – says, “Go sniff!” the entire dynamic changes. After a few weeks of this kind of pattern, the dog isn’t desperately pulling toward everything, because she can trust that she’ll get a chance pretty soon.

Third Phase: Loose-Leash Walking

Now we get to the whole reason you started reading – the loose-leash part. I started with the other sections because that mimics my typical progression: When I’m just starting to work with a dog, I expect to do a lot (maybe 15 minutes?) of alternating between sniffing and high-engagement training before we get to a place where we’re going to succeed with a section of loose-leash walking. In essence, I wait until I’ve met some natural canine needs, drained some energy, and reminded the pup that engagement with me is incredibly rewarding.

After a sniffing session, I’ll say, “Bella, let’s walk!” to indicate we’re officially in a new pattern together. Then we move ahead. I’m looking for that leash to be in a nice “J” the whole time. If the dog pulls so that the leash becomes taut, I simply stop moving. I wait. She’ll look back, which usually also creates slack. I reward that slack leash with movement forward: “Let’s walk.” If it tightens again, we repeat that cycle. Soon enough the dog learns that walking in sync with me offers its own reward: forward motion.

If I try the stop-at-every-taut-leash business with a new dog right out of the gate, it’ll be a very frustrating exercise for us both; we’ll be stopping every two feet. Many folks approach loose-leash training that way, but I don’t enjoy that one bit. Instead, if we’ve been alternating between lots of high-reward training and sniffing for 15 minutes or so, I’m set up to succeed with getting that loose leash without frustration. In fact, some pups will then be ready to relax into this style for much of the rest of the walk. Others do best if I continue to alternate sniffing, training, and loose-leashing the rest of the way.

IT’S A JOURNEY

When a dog is new to all of this, I’m highly deliberate and communicative so that we both know which part of the walk we’re in at all times: sniffari, training, or loose-leash walking. As time goes on, though, the need for that precision fades away. That early, predictably clear structure allows for mutual learning that paves the way for mutual trust – and that trust turns out to be the key.

For me, walks are about the relationship. When it comes to getting a “polite” walk, there is tons of chatter out there about equipment and complicated training instruction, but to me that mostly misses the point. What gets you to an enjoyable walk with your dog is two-way connection. Get that right, and watch the leash loosen.

Last note: Could you get a loose leash fast by using aversive tools and methods? The ones that use pain (at the very least, discomfort) and fear to ensure compliance from your captive animal? Sure. But . . . is that who you want to be? I promise it’s more fun – and much more effective in the long run – to not resort to using these tools.

The post How to Stop a Dog From Pulling on a Leash appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

I hike with my dogs off-leash a couple times a week. I am supremely lucky to live nearby a “wildlife area” where it’s legal for dogs to be off-leash for much of the year (not during the bird nesting season, however). It has wide-open views, offers several areas where dogs can drink and swim in safe, clean water, and best of all, I hardly ever see anyone else out there!

But it’s not without hazards. The area is home to lots of rattlesnakes, and we see them frequently in the late summer and early fall. There is a shooting range nearby, and hunting is allowed in various seasons; some dogs (not mine) are frightened by the sound of gunfire and may spook. There are always birds on the various bodies of water we walk around; dogs who chase waterfowl might take off and never be seen again! And the boundary fenceline we sometimes walk along is just barbed wire and cattle graze on the other side; a nave town-dog who decides to crawl under the fence in hopes of a fun chase risks getting stomped by the range-smart mama cows, who defend their calves from coyotes year after year.

To me, the benefits of off-leash walks in this area are worth the risks – but I also work hard to make sure my dogs have razor-sharp recalls, that they respond to “OFF!” by halting or turning away from whatever has piqued their interest, and that they will sit down immediately on cue and stay put until I release them with another cue. We practice each of these behaviors every single time we walk out there, and I bring high-value treats (and Woody’s favorite squeak ball) to reward them richly for their cooperation.

It’s not for everyone. I have friends who are put off by the snakes, others whose dogs are so overstimulated by the water birds that they cannot be let off-leash, and one whose dog comes unglued when she hears gunfire. That’s all fine with me; my dogs and I are fine with being alone in our (practically private) park.

CORRECTION

I inadvertently left Solid Gold off the list of our approved dry dog foods in last month’s issue. It was an oversight and absolutely no reflection on any lapse on the part of the company. We have added their company and product information to the online version of the February issue and will include this information in the April issue, along with some other notes and discussion about the dry food review.

The post Price of Freedom appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

But taking a dog for a walk or hike off-leash must be done appropriately and legally in order to prevent any number of risks to the dog, other dogs, or humans who may encounter the off-leash dog, as well as livestock or wildlife in the area. Off-leash dogs may run off and get lost, run onto roads and cause serious accidents, cause hikers to fall and bicyclists to crash, and chase or even kill other animals.

Readers of WDJ will likely appreciate another hazard of off-leash dogs: The unfettered approach of an off-leash dog can trigger all sorts of behavioral issues in dogs who are being walked on-leash. Service dogs, for example, should never have to be distracted by, much less defend themselves or their human partners against an incursion by an off-leash dog (whether its exuberantly friendly or attacking!). Dogs who are anxious about, terrified by, or even offensively aggressive to other dogs and are being treated for these behaviors can suffer long-lasting or even permanent behavioral setbacks following even just one untimely, uncontrolled approach by a loose dog.

Mandatory Prerequisites for Off-Leash Dog Walking

We assume that you, as a caring, responsible dog owner, are as concerned about the safety and well being of other dogs as much as your own. Before you even think about taking your dog off-leash anywhere other than your own safely fenced yard, you should be able to accomplish the following prerequisites.

■ Know your own dog’s personality and temperament well. Your dog must be dog-friendly and human-friendly if you are going to take her off-leash anywhere. There is too much risk, and too much to lose, if your dog attacks another dog or bites a human.

■ Teach an excellent recall. You must be able to call your dog back from any temptation – wildlife, small children, grannies with walkers, other dogs, etc. Even if she is dog-friendly, there may be other dogs who don’t appreciate her attentions. And – heaven forbid she chases a cow or deer deep into the woods, never to be seen again. Note that in some places, it is legal for anyone to shoot a dog that is chasing livestock or wildlife.

For more information about teaching a fast, reliable recall, see Whole Dog Journal‘s articles on this topic by three different trainer/authors in the September 2015, September 2014, and September 2012 issues.

■ Know and obey leash laws. Regardless of how friendly and well-trained your dog is, you must obey local leash and control laws. The consequences of any incident that might occur are greatly magnified if you’re in violation of local animal control laws. Make sure your dog is currently licensed and wearing her tag!

■ Learn about the hazards in your potential off-leash hiking areas (and how to avoid or combat them) before you take off your dog’s leash there! We wouldn’t suggest taking off your dog’s leash in any place you hadn’t been before, unless you are with another dog person who is familiar with all the potential hazards and can alert you to them ahead of time.

Before the leashes come off, you should know what, if any, potentially dangerous conditions are present in that location. A few of the possibilities include things such as:

• Venomous snakes
• Pond ice that your dog could fall through
• A spot along the beach where the ocean undertow is unusually strong
• Ponds that sometimes contain toxic algae
• Cliffs, caves, or abandoned mine shafts your dog could fall into or over
• Wildlife predators that could grab your dog
• A gap in a boundary fence near a busy road or highway.

If you are aware of these hazards, you can proactively prevent your dog from going near them, or respond quickly and effectively if a potentially dangerous encounter happens despite your best efforts.

Which Dogs Should NEVER Go Off-Leash?

There are a few canine behaviors that absolutely preclude off-leash options for your dog, other than your own safely fenced yard, including:

• Strong, uncontrollable predatory behavior
• Strong, uncontrollable scent-tracking behavior
• Aggression toward other dogs or humans.

Unless or until these behaviors are modified and you have trained a superbly reliable recall, you have no business having your dog off-leash anywhere in a public or private place where you might encounter/threaten the safety of others or of your own dog.

Sample Leash Laws

Most state laws have some form of dog control laws that prohibit an owner from allowing a dog to “run at large.” In addition to state control laws, counties and local municipalities are also free to pass more restrictive leash law ordinances – and many do. Know your local laws – and obey them! Here are some examples:

State of Delaware: No dog shall be permitted to run at large at any time, unless the dog is accompanied by the owner or custodian and under the owner’s or custodian’s reasonable control and is licensed in accordance with county ordinances. (Note: This is a “control” law; the dog does not have to be leashed, but must be under the owner’s/ custodian’s immediate control.)

Marin County, California: Dogs shall at all times be kept under the immediate control and direction of a competent, responsible person who is capable of controlling such an animal. Any dog which is not subject to such control and direction may be seized and impounded. (Again, this is a “control” law, it does not state that the dog has to be on a leash. However, most of the cities within Marin County have actual leash laws.)

Alachua County, Florida: A dog owner has a duty under Section 72.12 to maintain “physical control” of the dog when the dog is off the owner’s property. “Off the owner’s property” includes streets, parks, public property, and private property of others. Physical control means immediate and continuous control through the use of a leash or continuous control through the use of an enclosure. (This is an actual county-wide leash law.)

New York City: A person who owns or controls a dog may not allow it to be in any public place or in any open or unfenced field abutting a public place, unless the dog is effectively restrained by a leash or chain no more than six feet long. (This is a city leash law.)

You can find your local ordinances online on government websites, and/or ask your local animal control agency for a copy of local animal control laws.

Things to Teach Your Dog for Off-Leash Reliability

It’s not enough, however, to have a friendly and well-trained dog; you need to keep your dog’s responses to your cues sharp and fresh. Here are things to practice regularly so she doesn’t lose her edge:

Regular, automatic check-ins.

Your off-leash dog should stay fairly close to you, and frequently turn back toward you, or, better yet, return all the way to you – all without being prompted to do so.

Anytime you notice your dog turning toward you and/or looking at you, mark the moment with the click of a clicker or a verbal marker (such as the word “Yes!”) and give or toss her a treat. The more frequently the checking-in behavior is reinforced, the more frequently your dog will offer it. This valuable behavior should be kept fresh with frequent reinforcement, whether that means treats, a quick game with your dog’s favorite toy, verbal praise, and/or petting.

On the trail, you can encourage your dog to stay close to you and keep glancing back toward you by paying close attention to her and marking/reinforcing her check-ins.

Another game you can play to encourage your dog to keep an eye on you is to occasionally step behind a tree or duck behind a boulder on the trail; when she glances back and doesn’t see you, she will likely turn and run back toward you to locate you. Don’t make it difficult to find you; you don’t want her to race past you in a panic! Instead, as you hear her approach, you can step out of hiding and throw an enthusiastic reward party! Note that this should be a fun game, not something that makes her anxious. Skip this game if your dog suffers from separation anxiety or gets panicky if you step out of her sight.

You can also do unannounced U-turns and playful changes of pace – breaking into a jog or even taking off in a little sprint. Most dogs will respond to these behaviors by speeding to find or catch up with you. When your dog does this, reinforce her well with high-value treats and/or preferred play.

Emergency sits and downs.

These can sometimes work better than a recall in an emergency. Practice at a short distance (perhaps five or six paces away from you) and gradually cue her for these behaviors at greater and greater distances, until she will sit and/or drop to a down immediately on cue, even at a distance.

Reliable recalls.

A fast, reliable recall is worth its weight in gold. Practice, practice, practice. Reinforce, reinforce, reinforce. Use whatever your dog loves best in the world for off-leash recall rewards.

Walk Aways.

My new favorite! The Walk Away behavior can be used to cue your dog to quickly turn away from any potential hazard you (or she!) just noticed. When you want your dog to actively avoid going near something, you say “Walk away!” and move away with her, feeding a jackpot of treats from your hand or tossing treats out in front of her. It’s a fun and dynamic behavior – and because it’s unlikely that it has been “poisoned” (associated with a potentially aversive result, making the dog speculative about the cue), it may work more effectively than a recall.

Here are some situations where Walk Away could be used:

• You see your water-loving dog running toward a pond that is covered with a dangerously thin sheet of ice. Say “Walk away!” and when she swivels her head toward you, run away to encourage her to run after you, away from the pond. When she reaches you toss treats on the ground or feed from your hand and throw a happy party. Good dog!
• A horseback rider appears around a bend in the trail just 20 feet away. Your dog perks up and starts to move forward. You say “Walk away!” and when her head swivels toward you, step off the path and feed treats from your hand as she follows you. If necessary, continue to feed treats until the horse is well past.

I provide step-by-step instructions on teaching this behavior in the September 2018 issue.

In Case of A Dog Attacking YOU

I’ve heard a disturbing number of reports in recent months from clients who were walking their dogs on-leash in areas where dogs are legally required to be on-leash, when their dogs were attacked by loose dogs. In most cases, the attackers were either dogs who were walking off-leash with their humans or dogs who charged off of their own properties at passers-by. But sadly, I have also heard about these incidents happening in places where it is legal to have your dog off-leash – dog parks, for example, private fenced yards, playgroups, open space areas where dogs are allowed off-leash, and jurisdictions that don’t have leash laws.

It pays to be armed and ready if you take your dog anywhere – on-leash or off – both to be able to prevent encounters as well as break up a fight if one occurs. Of course, prevention is the much-preferred option! These are all things you do before the other dog gets close enough to make contact:

1. Be an assertive advocate for your dog. If you see someone with an inappropriately off-leash dog headed your way, loudly (but not angrily) call out, “Please put your dog on a leash!” If you get the “It’s okay, he’s friendly” response, answer, “Mine’s not!” (Even if she is.) This might work. And it might not. Be prepared.

2. Use a noise aversive. Potential noise aversives include a marine air horn, a loud whistle (my favorite is the Storm Whistle), loud hand-clapping, or a variety of party-favor style noisemakers. With any of these, as with other suggested aversives, be sure to condition your dog to the sound first, so you don’t scare her in the process.

3. Use a visual aversive. A pop-open umbrella may effectively startle an approaching dog who is getting close (remember to condition your own dog to love the umbrella first!). A loud “Go home!” accompanied by an angry face and arm motions also might work for an unaccompanied dog who charges off his property.

4. Block with a physical barrier. You can block an approaching dog by stepping in front of yours, using your own body as a visual/physical barrier. Alternatively, you can teach your own dog a “get behind” cue so you can ask her to step behind you. Keep an eye out for natural barriers the two of you can get behind (or on!) – cars, trees, garbage cans, fences.

Too Close for Comfort

When all else fails and the other dog is clearly going to make contact, all bets are off, and force-free/pain-free goes out the window. The following are products that you can use to deter an approaching dog (they are obviously never to be used on your own dog!), and that I would never recommend for any other purpose: SprayShield Animal Deterrent (citronella spray) may be effective, and the Pet Corrector shoots out compressed air while making a hissing noise. Carry a stout stick, and don’t hesitate to use it if necessary.

Transitioning from On- to Off-Leash

Once you are certain that you and your dog possess the basic prerequisites for off-leash walking (you know your dog well, she has a reliable recall, you know the local leash laws, and you are aware of the potential hazards in your walking destination), and you are equally certain that she poses no danger to anyone else, you are ready to introduce her to off-leash hiking.

How you begin depends on your dog and her level of energy and excitement on the trail. Mature dogs and inexperienced puppies may be inclined to stay close to you regardless of their energy levels and can be let off-leash right away. In contrast, if you have an athletic eager beaver, and her enthusiasm may carry her too far from you too quickly, begin the walk with her on-leash, at least until some until her raw energy has dissipated a bit. Reward her amply for checking in. Practice Walk Away a time or two.

When your dog has demonstrated that she’s listening and responsive to you, quietly unsnap the leash and continue walking as before – rewarding her for checking in and occasionally practicing a recall or Walk Away.

Continue to pay close attention to how your dog responds to the environment and other people and animals. If she begins to get overstimulated, paying less attention to you and a little too much attention to those ducks in that nearby pond, take the next opportunity to reward her for checking in or coming to you, and cheerfully snap the leash back on for a little while.

Keep the on-leash experience very positive and let her off-leash again as soon as she has calmed down and is once again responsive to your cues; you don’t want her to think that every time she comes back to you she might be put on leash for the rest of the walk. To that end, make sure every time you leash her you are happy, using a cheerful tone of voice, and delivering lots of reinforcement.

Do NOT Do These Things with Off-Leash Dogs

While there are a number of things that should be practiced at least once during every off-leash walk, there are also things that you shouldn’t do while walking your dog off-leash.

Focus on your mobile phone. Your dog is your first and primary responsibility. If you must answer your phone, keep the conversation short and keep your eyes on your dog at all times. No texting, no Googling, no game-playing.

Socialize and fail to closely monitor your dog.Your dog is your first and primary responsibility. Keep your eyes on your dog at all times, even if you are chatting with other dog owners or hikers.

Ignore hazards. Do not fail to take action to prevent a potentially dangerous encounter. If you see a bicyclist, horse, another dog, a frozen pond, or some other attraction in the distance, call your dog to you and keep her safely secured until the hazard has passed.

Off-Leash Walking is the Best!

There are few activities more rewarding and enjoyable for you and your dog than a long off-leash hike in the woods, up and down hills, through meadows, across beaches, and anywhere else that the two of you can enjoy the natural world at its best and your dog gets to just be a dog. Conversely, there are few experiences more traumatic than losing your dog – either because she runs off, gets gravely injured, or is impounded after attacking someone else’s dog. If you use common sense about whether, when, where, and how to allow your dog off-leash, and always remember that your dog is your first and primary responsibility when you are out and about with her, you should be able to enjoy her company for many outings to come.

The post How to Train Your Dog for Off-Leash Walks appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

The fact is, your dog should have both a collar and a harness for the most effective training. The harness is the appropriate place for attaching your leash – it keeps your dog securely connected to you while eliminating strain on their neck. Harnesses are hard for dogs to slip out of, and they increase the walker’s control over where the dog moves.

Whole Dog Journal believes collars are a great way to keep licenses and other identification tags on dogs – not necessarily for attaching a leash. For walking, we prefer a well-fitting harness.

Read more: The Safest Types of Dog Collars (and the Most Dangerous)

There are many types of collars AND harnesses on the market, and some serve specific purposes. The front-clip harness, for example, is a useful tool for a dog who pulls on the leash during walks. Head halters can be helpful for helping control a dog who pulls hard and is being handled by a physically frail or small person, but many dogs find them highly aversive. In this case, a consultation with an experienced, positive-reinforcement-based trainer would be advisable.

Both dog collars and harnesses should always be taken off during any play – whether with other dogs, or roughhousing in the backyard. Collars are known to get caught on things, and could seriously hurt your dog. Harnesses, too, should be taken off in play. They may not strangle your dog, but they can still catch on objects or entangle your dog’s playmate.

Comparing Harnesses vs Collars

The post Dog Harness vs Collar: Which is Better? appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

Trainers call this behavior “door darting.” Not only is it inconvenient, it’s dangerous – especially if your dog fails to come reliably when called. Door darting can be an issue in any home, but it’s often challenging in homes with heavy foot traffic, especially when young children are present.

Door darting is an impulse-control problem. It’s also incredibly self-rewarding. Remedying the issue requires teaching the dog to exhibit self-control around an open door, while employing diligent management to prevent the rehearsal of unwanted behavior. The following tips can help.

Train a “Wait” and a “Get Back” Behavior

Teach your dog to patiently wait at a safe distance from the door. This is easiest to teach your dog in an environment that has an obvious threshold or change in flooring – the line where a carpeted living room intersects with a tile entryway. If an obvious line of demarcation isn’t present, a marker can be created with a throw rug or even a strip of painter’s tape.

As your dog follows you to the door, calmly say, “Wait!” and toss a treat behind him just before he reaches the “no-fly zone.” Be ready to toss another treat as soon as he finishes and turns around. Repeat several times before reaching for or opening the door. The goal is to use a high rate of reinforcement to make the area away from the door a wonderful place to wait.

Unlike a formal stay, when I teach “wait,” I don’t require a specific position, nor do I care if the dog changes position during the exercise. He can sit, stand, lie down, or move laterally, so long as he doesn’t drift past my line of demarcation. If he does, step into his path to block his forward movement, and then invite him back into his “safe zone” and reinforce him there. As soon as he’s in the desired area, praise calmly, remind him to “wait,” take a step or two backward to relieve the social pressure, and toss a cookie at the first sign of hesitation, which is the beginning of self-control.

The goal is to help your dog do the desired behavior (back up) so you can reinforce him for it, not to coerce, pressure, or frighten him. Use calm, controlled movements and adjust your technique as necessary, based on your dog’s overall temperament.

As your dog demonstrates a willingness to hover in the “safe zone,” thanks to your generous reinforcement history, slowly start working toward opening the door. Split the behavior into several small pieces, repeating each step three to five times – or more, depending on what your dog needs – and rewarding his patience every time. Steps might include reaching for (but not touching) the door knob; touching and turning the knob without opening the door; opening the door an inch or two and then closing it, etc.

If, at any point, your dog steps into the “no fly zone,” immediately block his path and invite him to “get back.” If your dog makes the same mistake twice, revisit the easier step.

As you progress to opening the door, put your dog on leash or use an exercise pen as a second line of containment to ensure his safety, should he unexpectedly make a break for the open door.

Train a Strong “Sit-Stay” Behavior

Another option is to teach a reliable sit- or down-stay away from the front door. This requires a very high level of impulse control since the main entryway to a home is a high-excitement area for most dogs. It’s important to increase the difficulty of this exercise slowly, and “pay” your dog well throughout the training process, in order for your dog to begin to believe it’s worth it to stay on his spot instead of rushing toward the open door.

Ideally, the finished behavior consists of three main parts: “go to your spot” (so you can “send” your dog to his spot as you move toward the door), a solid stay, and the ability to hold a sit-stay or down-stay around a high level of distractions.

My preference is a down-stay. I like to teach the basic down-stay first, practicing increasingly longer stays and stays in the face of small, and increasingly larger distractions, until the dog can confidently remain in position for about one minute, even as the handler walks around him or squeaks a toy.

Separately, I’ll teach the “go to your spot” behavior. Depending on the dog, I might use targeting, shaping, luring, or any combination of these to teach the dog to go to and lie down on a dog bed or mat.

Finally, the two behaviors come together and the dog is reminded to “stay” after he goes to his bed. From there, it’s all about slowly building the behavior such that it resists the myriad distractions associated with opening the front door.

Be sure to reward often. A Treat & Train or similar remote-operated treat dispenser is often helpful, as it allows you to reward the dog from a distance without needing to toss the treats. At the advanced level, you can even teach your dog to go to his “spot” on the cue of the doorbell!

Training is Critical for Dog Safety

Realistically, it’s difficult to actively train this behavior as actual guests are entering your home. Training is what happens when your focus is on your dog. Testing is what happens when you’re focused on visitors. As you work up to the distraction of receiving actual guests, recruit helpers to come knock on your door and play the role of visitors – guests who understand they aren’t there to socialize, but are playing an active role in your training program. Practice often!

Management is Just as Important

If you aren’t in the position to actively train the desired behavior, it’s important to use good management to keep the dog from practicing unwanted behavior. Some examples include:

“Feeding the chickens.”Teach your dog that good things happen away from the front door. Any time you approach the door, toss a small handful of kibble eight to 10 feet from the door, and encourage your dog to “Find it!” Finding kibble on the floor is incompatible with rushing the front door, and it gives humans a chance to enter or exit. Play this game often, not just when you or your guests actually need to pass through the open door.

This approach often also works well for dogs who suffer from what I call “Excessive Greeting Disorder” – over-the-top excited jumping on people. A scattering of kibble, followed by some additional rapid-fire tossing of single pieces, helps change the dog’s focal point, and the sniffing required to source the food bits even has a mild calming effect on some dogs. In homes with multiple dogs, be mindful of potential food-guarding issues.

Gate in the doorway. An inexpensive, pressure-mounted baby gate can be installed in the doorway to serve as an emergency barrier to prevent door darting. In many doorways, a gate will fit even with a screen door and will still allow the main door to close. A 24-inch gate is short enough for most adults to step over, making it realistic to keep this management strategy in place at all times in homes with accomplished door darters.

Exercise pen air lock.Use an exercise pen on your front porch to form an emergency corral just outside of the door. If your dog manages to slip past you, he’s safely contained on the porch and can’t embark on a neighborhood joy ride. This doesn’t solve the root problem – the door darting – but it’s especially helpful in high-traffic homes where many people might be opening the door and not everyone is as committed to active training.

Tether station. Another valuable management tool is a simple tether. You can use a spare leash or make a simple chew-proof tether with a length of vinyl-coated cable, cable clamps, and a couple of snaps.

Attach the leash or tether to a heavy piece of furniture (or an eyebolt screwed securely into something solid) near the main entryway to your home. As your dog follows you to the door, make it a habit to quickly tether him before opening the door. A sticky note on the door is a great reminder for everyone in the family. This works well when receiving visitors, or bringing the groceries into the house from the car, but it’s not safe to leave him there, unsupervised, when you leave the house.

Last, but not least…

Train a reliable recall. While the end goal is to give your dog rewarding alternatives to door darting, mistakes sometimes happen. Should your dog unexpectedly get loose, it’s important you be able to quickly call him back to you. Investing the time to train your dog to reliably come when called – even when distracted – is vitally important. A solid recall is a potentially life-saving behavior. It takes committed practice (training versus testing!) and ongoing maintenance. Fortunately, there are many fun training games designed to improve a dog’s recall. For a review, see past WDJ articles:

“Rocket Recall,” Sept 2015.

“Games for Building Reliable Recall Behavior for Your Dog,” Sept 2014.

“Training Your Dog to Execute an Extremely Fast Recall,” Sept 2012.

Stephanie Colman is a writer and dog trainer in Southern California.

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1. Holding a tasty treat in your hand, have your dog sit in front of you.

2. Show her the treat and move it to the corner of your eye. When her eyes meet yours, click and treat. Repeat.

3. Say the cue “Watch!” just before you move the treat to your eye. When she makes eye contact, click and treat. Repeat.

4. After several repetitions (the number of repetitions needed will depend on the individual dog), pause after you give the “Watch!” cue and see if she looks into your eyes. If she does, click and treat. If she doesn’t, move the treat to your eye, click and treat.

5. Say “Watch!” Move the treat halfway to your eye, and wait. Just wait. Eventually she will glance at your eyes. Click and treat. (If she never looks at your eyes, do several more repetitions of Step 4.)

6. Say “Watch” and hold the treat at arm’s length out to the side. Wait. She will likely stare at the treat for a moment or two, but invariably, within a few moments, she will glance at your face (usually, in an effort to try to figure out what you are doing!). When she makes eye contact, click and treat.

When your dog has come to realize the value of eye contact, she will sometimes offer the behavior without being cued. Be sure to reinforce offered eye contact as well as cued eye contact. To help her be comfortable with eye contact from other humans, ask your friends to play the “Watch” game with her as well.

The post Teach Your Dog to Make Eye Contact appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

No one enjoys walking with a dog who constantly pulls. It’s terribly unpleasant and in some cases can be downright dangerous. Dog owners often end up avoiding walking with their dog altogether, which inadvertently can make the problem worse – the less often the dog gets to go for a walk, the more excited he becomes when he eventually does get to go, the faster he walks, and the stronger he pulls! It’s a vicious circle.

Walking with a dog on leash can look like many different things: dog on the left in a traditional “heeling” position, dog on the right, dog in the front, dog zig-zagging with his nose to the ground . . . for the purposes of this article, all are correct, as long as there is no tension in the leash. The goal is walking harmoniously with your dog – and “checking in” is the key ingredient to creating the type of relationship that is conducive to harmonious walks. You can help your dog develop the habit of frequently checking in with you simply by reinforcing the behavior.

If your dog already pulls on leash, you’ll want to begin training the “check-in” behavior in a location with low distractions. In other words, start where your dog is most likely to succeed at looking at you. If he’s very excited about being out for a walk, he’ll probably be too distracted to start learning a new behavior in that context, so avoid starting the training while actually out walking.

In the article “Train Your Dog to Check In,” (March 2017), we covered how to start getting your dog in the habit of checking in with you in situations with low distractions. Once your dog has acquired those skills, it will be much easier to begin working on loose-leash walking out in the real world.

Granted, there are lots of different reward-based methods to teach loose-leash walking, and success is often the result of a combination of several positive techniques. “Checking in” is just one ingredient in a training recipe, yet it’s an important one and is a useful part of any loose-leash walking training program.

Loose Leash Walking Rules

There are a few fundamental elements to loose-leash walking that will make the activity much more enjoyable for everyone involved. If you follow these basic rules, you will be more likely to succeed:

– Be present! You’ve probably heard this before, but it’s worth repeating: Being present means putting your phone away during walks. You’re asking your dog to curb his enthusiasm for his version of social media – the kind he “reads” with his nose – in order to be more connected to you during your walk. The least you can do is be available to respond to his “check-ins” by paying attention. This also applies to times when you walk your dog with a friend. Chatting is lots of fun, but keep an eye on your dog and make him a priority – at least during the training period.

– Carry rewards. Never under-estimate the usefulness of a treat pouch filled with at least a handful of yummy bits of food! My dog Chili already walks politely on leash and she has the check-in behavior down pat, but guess what? I still carry treats with me on every single walk we take. I continue to randomly capture and reward behaviors I like, and once in a while I’ll play a game of “find it” with Chili while we walk by tossing treats on the ground and letting her sniff around to find them.

– Let your dog sniff. Few dogs get adequate daily physical exercise from an on-leash walk. We humans move much too slowly for that (unless you’re running with your dog, of course). That doesn’t mean that the walk isn’t an important part of your dog’s day – it’s a crucial information-gathering activity! Allow your dog to follow his nose. Let him investigate the scents he picks up, even if that means pausing for a moment while he inspects a blade of grass.

Keeping these important elements in mind, it’s time to starting using the check-in behavior to teach your dog to walk politely on leash.

TIP: Trainers often recommend that we stop moving forward if there is tension in the leash. The logic behind this is that by stopping we avoid reinforcing a pulling behavior. This technique is often successful in helping a dog learn not to pull; if he wants to move forward, he has to keep the leash slack.

The check-in technique described here is another tool that can be used to teach a dog to walk on a loose leash. The focus here is on reinforcing any and all check-in behavior, rather than freezing if the dog pulls.

Checking In with Your Dog on a Walk

By now you will have already heavily reinforced the check-in behavior that your dog has been offering you in low-distraction scenarios. It’s time to increase the difficulty a notch or two by taking the behavior on the road – literally.

Ideally, take your dog to a relatively quiet spot to walk. I drive to walking paths that offer quiet space for me and my dog to connect more easily. If this isn’t an option for you, work with what you’ve got. Practicing in an area with lots of distractions might require extra patience on your part. If you work in an area that makes it more challenging for your dog to offer you the behaviors you want, his efforts should also be rewarded more frequently and generously. Big effort, big pay!

With your dog on a six-foot leash and a well-stocked treat pouch at the ready, give your dog the cue to start moving forward with you – I like to say “Let’s go!” – and start walking. Since the goal is for the leash to remain slack at all times, follow the steps below to help your dog understand the game.

1. Start Reinforcing Your Dog Immediately

Seize the moment! While your dog is still near you and before he ever gets the chance to bolt forward and tighten the leash, quickly say, “Yes!” and offer him a treat. Avoid reaching toward your dog; instead, deliver the treat close to your body. Why offer a treat right out of the gate? Well, in those first few seconds the leash was still slack, and that’s the goal, so don’t miss the opportunity to highlight that good behavior!

2. Try to Reward Your Dog in Motion

I like to mark and deliver a reward while still in motion, if possible, even if it means I’m moving very slowly. It can feel a bit awkward at first while you get used to the coordination required to mark, reward, and walk at the same time. If it’s a bit too much to juggle at first, it’s okay to stop to deliver the treat. However, you should work your way toward staying in motion. After all, your dog really wants to move forward, and frequent stopping might lead to some frustration, even if it’s for a treat.

3. Talk to Your Dog While Walking

Use your voice to stay connected with your dog while walking. I find that the dogs I work with are more likely to shoot a glance my way if they hear my voice. As we’re walking, I might say with a happy tone, “Where should we go today?” Or, if the dog has found something interesting to sniff I might say, “Ooh, whatcha got there?” or anything to encourage a response from the dog. If I get a tail wag or an ear flick, I’ll take that as a sign of interest and I’ll add a little more excitement to my tone. That will usually elicit a glance my way, and bingo! – I’ve got something to mark and reward.

As you move forward, feel free to whistle or make a kissy sound to encourage your dog to look at you. When he does, mark with a “Yes!” and reward with a treat. Repeat frequently, say, every six to 10 steps, always in motion if possible. Every time you deliver a treat, let your dog know he can return to walking and sniffing as he was (“Let’s go!”).

If you wonder whether you’ve done enough repetitions of attracting his attention with noises, try staying quiet as you walk. If he checks in with you of his own volition, you know he’s caught on! Mark and treat his spontaneous check-ins, and tell him the walk is still on (“Let’s go!”).

Keep Reinforcing Your Dog

I mentioned earlier that I still reward my own dog for behaviors that I like when we walk together. She is no longer in training, but I continue to reinforce the check-in behavior in order to maintain it, either with food or with a few upbeat words.

Checking in is such a friendly habit, and it’s no different from what we already do when walking and talking with a friend. Every now and then, we’ll turn our head to the side to look at our friend as she speaks. It shows we’re listening and it keeps us connected. Keep that connection strong with your own dog, and you’ll see his leash-walking skills grow quickly.

Common Leash Training Issues

Your dog just isn’t checking in with you: If your dog was previously checking in with you in your home and on your front doorstep, as described in last month’s article, then the distractions might just be too much for your dog. If you’re unable to practice in a quieter area, try making the exercise easier. Rather than walking a long distance, stay within a few yards and keep covering the same area over and over again. That particular area will no longer be as exciting to your dog and it will become easier to capture his attention. This should offer you more opportunities to reinforce the behavior you want.

Your dog is pulling too far ahead of you: To help your dog pay closer attention to you while walking on leash, change directions frequently. This should never be done by suddenly pivoting and jerking the leash. Always let your dog know you’re about to change directions by teaching him a cue – I like to use “This way!” Slow down gradually and say your cue. Stop walking and wait for your dog to turn back to see why you’ve stopped. This may take a moment; be patient. When he looks back at you, mark the check-in with a “Yes!” and when your dog starts to walk toward you to get his treat, start moving in the new direction. As he catches up with you, deliver the treat and say, “Let’s go!” Repeat this exercise often, and always gently. Your dog will soon figure out that “This way!” indicates you’re about to change directions, and he’ll more easily check in with you.

Your dog is checking in too much: Oops! Your dog has taken the check-in behavior very seriously and now walks with his head turned toward you, staring. While we do want our dogs to be connected with us when we walk, this is a bit over the top. Encourage your dog to resume walking normally by saying your forward-motion cue (“Let’s go!”). This cue will come to mean that there is no reinforcer coming at the moment, so just keep walking.

Get more trainers’ tricks to teaching dogs the loose leash walking method by reading, “How to Teach Loose Leash Walking to Your Dog,” (October 2012).

Nancy Tucker, CPDT-KA, is a full-time trainer, behavior consultant, and seminar presenter in Quebec.

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– Help your dog develop a habit of checking in with you. Start where he won’t easily be distracted.

– Reward your dog each time he spontaneously glances at you throughout the day.

– Prepare some small yummy treats in advance and put your dog on leash. Stand quietly and mark and treat every glance toward you until your dog is focused on you.

– Take the game outside in a low-distraction area. Mark and treat any effort your dog makes to pay even the slightest attention to you. Be patient.

– Practice stepping outside with your dog so he learns to look at you and wait while you lock the door.

– Make it easy for your dog to choose to pay attention to you, so he gets as many opportunities for reinforcement as possible!

Recently, while out walking with a friend and my dog, Chili, my friend noted that Chili often turned to glance toward me and she asked, “Why is she doing that? Is she afraid to lose us?” I chuckled and answered “Not at all. She’s just learned to check in with me now and then.”

Chili is walked on a leash, but she is free to follow her nose, and interesting odors often lead her to a position that is several steps in front of me or farther off to my side. I don’t mind at all, and in fact, I encourage lots of sniffing during our walks. My only requirement is that she keeps the leash nice and slack, and that she checks in with me frequently.

Checking in is one of those behaviors I like to place in the “habit” category; I want my dog to offer it easily and without really thinking about it.

The purpose of the “check in” behavior (why or when a dog may do it) varies, but it always looks like this: The dog momentarily connects with her human through eye contact. Chili and I have gotten so good at it that we often find ourselves turning toward each other simultaneously! I absolutely cherish those moments of instant, genuine connection with my dog.

4 Good Reasons to Encourage Your Dog to Look at You

The utility of having a dog who regularly checks in with you is undeniable. Communication is a two-way street, and checking in facilitates communication between your dog and you. Take, for example, the following circumstances in which Chili has learned to check in with me:

1 If she is unsure what to do in a given situation, Chili will check in with me by glancing my way and seeking eye contact for guidance. For example, faced with the unexpected rapid approach of a stranger, she might look to me for instructions on how she should respond. “Friend or foe? Should I worry? What’s your take on this situation?” I might ask her to come closer to me, or I might let her know it’s okay to go and say, “Hi.”

2. If she needs my help with something, she’ll check in by looking at me. If I’m not near her, she’ll seek me out. For example, if a toy has rolled under the couch and she can’t reach it, or if she wants the door to the backyard opened, Chili will capture my attention with eye contact in order to seek my assistance, rather than sitting and staring intently at the toy or the door, or whining or barking at the toy or the door.

3. If she wants to eat something. For example, if an item that looks like it might be edible unexpectedly falls to the ground – she’ll check in with me before diving in to gobble it up. That has proved especially useful on many occasions!

4. Before crossing a road or turning in a new direction. If I haven’t already let her know what I intend to do (by asking her to “Stop here,” “Keep going,” or turn “This way”), she’ll look toward me for clarification.

Reinforce Your Dog’s Check-In Early

In the early days when I first adopted Chili, I reinforced any eye contact she offered me as a way to start building a bond between us. I would simply say, “Yes!” whenever she looked at me and I’d follow up immediately with a small treat. It didn’t matter what else she might have been doing at the time – whether she was sitting, lying down, standing, walking, or even barking! My only goal at that time was to make it very clear to her that if she paid attention to me, good stuff would happen for her.

More importantly, I wasn’t soliciting this attention by calling her name or attracting her with sounds or movement. Instead, I made a point of reinforcing as many spontaneous gifts of attention that I could capture – and I do consider attention from my dog a gift!

It wasn’t long before Chili developed a beautiful habit of seeking eye contact with me for a reward. Once we’d established that simple rapport, it was easier to start training the behaviors I wanted Chili to learn. Checking in was especially useful when teaching her to walk nicely on leash. It also played an important role in teaching a solid recall.

But before tackling advanced behaviors like loose-leash walking, it’s much more useful to start with the basics.

How to Teach Your Dog to “Check In” With You

Whereas at first I would reward Chili for just glancing my way without any solicitation on my part, I soon started adding some distractions and accessories in order to start teaching her some more complex behaviors.

Whenever you decide to teach a behavior that you’ll need your dog to know while in high-distraction areas (like outside on the street or at a park), the first step is always to start training in a low-distraction area in order to build the foundation skills. As your dog becomes accomplished in the low-distraction areas, you’ll be able to gradually make the learning sessions a bit more challenging by adding distractions. This is how your dog will acquire the skills needed to succeed: Start easy, and gradually make your way toward the more advanced levels.

I wouldn’t expect a dog with little or no loose-leash walking skills – and with only beginner check-in habits – to be able to remember to connect with his human while out walking. Who could blame him? There are just too many things vying for his attention out there!

Here’s how you can use the check-in behavior to improve your dog’s leash-walking skills:

1. While inside your home, prepare some small yummy treats in advance and put your dog on leash. Simply attaching the leash is often enough to excite some dogs, and he might start pulling toward the door, anticipating a walk. Stand still, remain calm and wait him out.

2. Watch your dog carefully and mark the slightest glance in your direction with a clicker or with a verbal signal, such as the word “Yes!” and give your dog a treat.

Try to deliver the treat close to your own body rather than reaching forward toward your dog. I personally prefer to drop the treat on the floor right next to me, but later on, when we take the exercise outside, that might not be possible because of the surface of the ground (there might be snow, mud, rocks, etc., making it more difficult for my dog to find the treat or to successfully pick it up). In that case, I’ll deliver the treat directly to my dog’s mouth, but close enough to my body to encourage her to stay near me.

3. Keep marking and giving a treat for every glance, until your dog is focused solidly on you. For most dogs, this won’t take long! The realization that there is a steady source of treats available is often a very powerful motivator for dogs to focus happily on their human.

4. Take the exercise outside, in an area with few distractions (more distractions than indoors, but not as many as walking on a street or in a park). A backyard, porch, balcony, or deck will do nicely.

Let your dog listen to the sounds around him, let him look around, let him sniff the air. Just as you did indoors, stand still and quiet, keep your eye on him, and mark and treat every glance he throws your way. Let him return to listening, seeing, and sniffing the air around him (while staying in one place).

Keep practicing this exercise until he’s offering you attention on a regular basis – not necessarily staring at you, but checking in with you frequently. Now you’re ready to add some distractions.

5. Go back inside and this time, take your dog out through the door you would normally use to go for a walk. Close the door behind you. (If you live in an apartment or condo, you’ll do this step twice – once outside your unit door, and once outside the main door to the building.)

Stay put next to the door. Chances are, your dog will already have begun pulling toward the street. Hang on, remain calm, and wait him out. Immediately mark and treat the slightest glance your way, and continue marking and treating any attention your dog offers you.

If you find it’s taking rather long for your dog to glance your way, encourage him by making a sound (like a kissy sound) the first couple of times just to get the ball rolling. After that, see if you can wait him out again.

Remember to mark and treat any effort to pay even the slightest attention to you. You want your dog to have as many opportunities for reinforcement as possible.

6. When your dog appears to be calmer and better able to offer you some attention just outside the door, go back inside. Keep your dog on leash and play the attention game just inside the door for a few seconds, then go back outside and repeat exercise #5.

You can play this in-and-out game a few times. Your goal is to be able to step outside and have your dog looking to you in anticipation of a treat, rather than bolting for the street.

Imagine how useful this real-life behavior will be when you need a free hand to lock the door behind you as you leave!

During the learning process, mark and treat every single time. Later, when your dog is offering this behavior reliably, you’ll be able to taper the treats and the reward will be to move forward. But for now, reinforce heavily with food.

Nancy Tucker, CPDT-KA, is a full-time trainer, behavior consultant, and seminar presenter in Quebec, Canada.

The post Train Your Dog to “Check In” appeared first on Whole Dog Journal.

There’s one question I’d like you to consider every time you snap on your dog’s leash and head out for a walk: What kind of walk are you taking?

I have various goals for my dog walks at different times. Sometimes my walk is more about meeting an exercise goal for myself, or an opportunity to socialize with a friend, and I bring my dog along so he can benefit from the exercise as well. For those walks, my focus is mostly self-centered, as I will myself to push farther up an inclined trail or enthusiastically chat with a friend.

While walking, I might use a no-pull harness to manage my dog’s leash pulling (since I know I’ll likely be too distracted to train), and my dog and I are largely in our own separate worlds as we walk. Of course, I still keep an eye on the environment, as it’s my responsibility to ensure our safety. Fortunately, my dog doesn’t have any major reactivity issues I need to be alert for and prepared to suddenly train through or manage. I might ask for a sit here and there, but largely, he and I are walking together, yet each doing our own thing.

Most of the time, though, my walks are far more interactive. I don’t want to take my dog for a walk; I want to enjoy a walk with my dog. Dogs as a species were bred to work cooperatively with humans, and training time is a wonderful way to honor that evolutionary history, while helping to meet your dog’s need for human interaction. Time spent training together can strengthen the connection and bond you share with your dog. Training while on a walk allows you to practice a variety of known skills, and working away from home helps your dog learn to deal with real-world distractions.

“It takes energy to solve puzzles,” says Amy Cook, PhD, of Full Circle Dog Training in Oakland, California. “Training on walks means our dogs have to concentrate more and work to filter out distractions, and that’s costly in energy.” In other words, thinking is hard work. The more your dog thinks, the more energy he uses.

Even a simple walk around the block is full of plenty of opportunities to have fun while asking your dog to think through some simple training challenges. When I head out for a training walk, I still give my dog some “personal time” where he’s allowed to sniff and explore on a loose leash. That’s important, too. Roughly one-third of a dog’s brain is dedicated to olfaction; it feels unfair to deny them a good sniff-fest!

When you’re ready, there are lots of ways to throw some training into the mix, while keeping the walk light-hearted and enjoyable for the animals on both ends of the leash.

Make the fundamentals fun! Incorporate basic skills practice into the walk:

– Practice a quick response to your dog’s name. When he turns and looks at you, sometimes mark and reward on the fly as you keep moving, and sometimes mark and back up a few steps, encouraging your dog toward you, then deliver several small treats (one after another, rather than a handful at once), paired with praise and petting.

– Play “Red Light, Green Light!” This children’s game is a great way to work on sits and downs. At random intervals during your walk, ask your dog to “sit” or “down.” This can be adapted easily to your dog’s level of training, from using a lure to help get the behavior, to challenging your dog to be ready to respond to verbal-only cues when he least expects it.

Vary the challenge by sometimes specifying where you’d like your dog to sit or down. For example, if he likes to swing out in front of you, work on keeping him parallel to you, in heel position. Sometimes vary your pace just before you ask for a sit or down. Can your dog contain his excitement and pull off a quick sit or down after you excitedly run forward 10 steps? Try changing sides. If he’s used to working on your left, can he walk on your right (“Green light!”) and sit or lie down (“Red light!”) on that same side, without trying to drift back to the familiar left side?

These little changes might sound easy, but remember that dogs can be slow to generalize a behavior. Even subtle changes can feel like a totally different behavior to your dog at first.

– Recall Challenges. People often assume they need an extra-long leash in order to practice what looks like a real-life recall, but all of my recall training is done on a regular six-foot leash. The hardest part of coming when called is not the distance the dog travels back to the handler. The hardest part of coming when called is choosing to leave an exciting distraction in favor of returning to the handler – whether he’s six feet or 60 feet away.

After I’ve spent time teaching my dog to associate his recall word with an amazing party of treats, praise, petting, and play, and have spent a fair amount of time practicing at home (where it’s easiest to do), I start challenging my dog to come away from distractions while exploring on a walk.

The first few times I introduce this challenge, I warm up the recall behavior with a few practice sessions that closely match how I trained the behavior at home. Then I walk my dog up to what I think will be a relatively easy distraction, for example, the base of a tree (as opposed to a tree full of dog-mocking squirrels). While he’s sniffing, I quietly move behind him, backing up to the end of the leash. Once in position, I call my dog using his name (which I teach to mean, “Quick! Pay attention!”) and his recall word.

If he turns toward me, I immediately mark the correct choice (with the “Click!” of a clicker or a verbal marker, such as the word “Yes!”) and cheer him on as I run away, encouraging him to chase me for several steps. Then we stop and enjoy a full 30 to 60 seconds of praise, petting, and several rapid-fire treats delivered one at a time.

If the dog doesn’t immediately turn away from the distraction when I call him, I’ll quickly step in and make a funny noise to get his attention and/or lightly and playfully goose him. The instant I have his attention, I excitedly repeat the recall word as I run off and invite him to chase me. This sequence ends in an even bigger reinforcement routine than if he’d done it right all on his own.

This often puzzles people who think, “If I had to help him, why should he be rewarded?” The reason? If you had to help him, your dog is telling you he doesn’t believe you’re willing to be as much fun as he was having with the distraction. In other words, he didn’t think it was worth it to leave the distraction. Over time, the magnificence of your reinforcement is what teaches your dog that coming when called is definitely worth it. Be sure to pay well!

Note: If you find your dog frequently needs help leaving distractions, choose less-exciting distractions and revisit your early recall training in a distraction-free environment.

I try to fit at least five recall distraction trials into every walk. Walks are full of myriad opportunities for practice: Call your dog away from a prolonged sniff of a tree. Call your dog away from staring at other dogs across the park. Call your dog away from the neighbor after a quick “Hello.” You can even call your dog during the walk itself. If you’re cruising along and your dog’s focus is fully forward, surprise him with a quick recall trial. Be creative! In my opinion, learning to turn away from distractions is the single most important skill needed for developing a reliable recall – and a reliable recall might save your dog’s life some day!

– Interpersonal play. I’m a big fan of interacting with a dog through play. I love teaching tug games because they give dogs a great outlet for normal dog behaviors, while providing opportunities to practice impulse control and relinquishing a prized object. I often walk my dog with a favorite tug toy in my back pocket. He never knows when I might suddenly invite him to play a quick game of tug during a walk. Sometimes we stop walking and tug for 30 seconds, and sometimes I invite him to tug while we walk.

Many dogs enjoy playing tug games with their owners at home, but are reluctant to engage in the game away from home. For some dogs, it’s a matter of habit; they’re used to playing tug at home, not while on a walk. Some dogs are so interested in the environment that a game of tug suddenly seems less exciting. And some dogs worry when away from home, and lack the confidence needed to “let their hair down” and play.

Each case provides its own unique training challenge, but it’s well worth the effort to systematically work through the issue. Adding quick games of tug while on a walk is a great way to reward polite leash walking and correct responses to cued behaviors, while helping your dog burn additional energy.

If your dog is confident and able to focus away from home, but doesn’t enjoy tug games (or you prefer not to play tug), experiment to discover what type of interpersonal play is fun for your dog. Challenge yourself to keep your dog’s interest without using food or toys. Turn sideways and crouch down in a playful stalking gesture. Tap into his opposition reflex by gently pushing him away and encouraging him to move back into your space. Send him through your legs as you run the opposite direction and encourage him to turn and chase you. (Okay, that last one is hard to do on-leash during a walk, but it’s still fun!)

Play is a key component of building a solid relationship. For some dogs, you’ll need to build this skill at home before taking it into the world on a walk. As you practice, watch your dog’s body language, and be careful not to overwhelm him with your enthusiasm. While it might sound easy, interspecies play is a complex topic in dog training. To learn more, check out Dog Sports Skills Book 3: Play! by Denise Fenzi and Deb Jones.

– Use the environment to keep training interesting. Random objects in the environment are great for helping dogs learn to generalize behaviors while adding novelty to daily walks. Invite your dog to hop up and sit on a bus bench (for you city slickers) or a tree stump (for the rural dwellers). Practice any tricks that can be done safely on an elevated surface. Ask your dog to put his front feet on a raised object such as a drinking fountain, the bottom of a slide in the park, or the base of a tree. Hop up and walk along a raised barrier wall. Walk underneath an A-frame-style advertising sign.

Be creative as you look for new, safe ways to challenge your dog. Using objects in the environment is a great way to engage your dog’s body and brain, and is even part of a fun new sport called Dog Parkour. (For more information, check out the International Dog Parkour Association, dogparkour.org.)

– Change your route to change the scenery. I live in a densely populated, busy Los Angeles suburb. When I walk out my door, I have access to several different walking routes. I make a point to not take the same route twice in a row. The change of scenery keeps things interesting for everybody. A familiar walk is always better than no walk, but watch your dog while walking in a new environment; you’ll likely find his senses are in overdrive as he takes in the novel sights, sounds, and smells. Processing all the new stimuli is tiring work!

If your immediate neighborhood options are limited, consider jumping in the car and driving to the nearest shopping center. Shopping centers offer a wealth of novel stimuli to dazzle your dog’s senses, as well as urban distractions around which to train.

With a little forethought and creativity, you’ll soon find that training walks set you on a path not just toward better cardiovascular health, but a stronger, more interactive relationship with your dog!

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