Background: Recently a dog owner came to class with the goal of getting the dog to walk without pulling. This adult dog had recently been retired as a conformation dog. He had spent several years being trained to put a significant amount of steady pressure on the leash, out ahead of his handler. The new family needed the dog to be walking very well and had not just acquired the dog as a pet, but to help with some very specific therapy work with the owner’s job.
The family had consulted with other trainers and it didn’t go well, the dog was still pulling. The dog was starting to bark and lunge at bikers, joggers, and other dogs. The behavior was getting worse.
Our Plan: The family was very discouraged and that concerned me more than the dog’s behavior. The commitment of the owner is a huge part to success with training and without their buy in, I was concerned about how soon we would be reaching our goals.
Management: We found alternate exercise and eliminated exercise walks. The dog had been getting significant amounts of walks….pulling on leash the entire time. We changed from a collar and leash (similar to what the dog had originally been trained in) to a front-attach harness. We avoided areas with people/dogs/bikes.
Training: We used the normal walking training plan that I use in classes. A very short summary: We start with the handler walking backwards and shift to the dog walking next to the forward-moving handler. From that point, we just work on increased distractions and challenges. We reinforce the dog for the choice of turning back to the handler but also limit the number of times the dog is at the point of being distracted.
If Pulling Starts: We stop. Wait for the dog to turn back. Or gently pull the dog away to a very great distance from that distraction. If the dog is barking and lunging, nothing good will come of waiting it out. But if the dog is mildly distracted, it’s a good opportunity for him to learn to turn back to his owners.
The Results: Within three weeks the dog is completely different. He went from ahead of the handler with steady leash pressure to walking beside the handler, loose and prancing, glancing up often. It’s a complete change in a short period of time. They’re seeing the same progress at home and in the real world. There is still a lot of maintenance and training needed to overcome all of the pulling practice and training, but the family is feeling better, the dog is happy, and other behaviors are improving as well.