Help with leash manners?

[Newpiggiemom]

Ok, so I adopted another beautiful dog to be a friend to my lab mix, Honey. He's a beautiful dog and we love him but he's got horrible leash manners. He pulls like a freight train! I've tried two different kinds of harnesses to walk him that are supposed to help with the pulling. The one that seemed to work rubbed a sore on his leg so I had to quit using it.

We tried to take a walk tonight and it was miserable. Now my poor Honey is losing out on her favorite thing, a walk. I can't take her and leave him and I can't handle him.

What has anyone tried that worked to get their dog to stop pulling against the leash?
I really need some good advice.

[fourboys4now]

I would work with the dog a little bit a day. Maybe practice in your yard and slowly make the walks longer and longer until he's used to following with you, not yanking you along.

[piggly wiggly]

My dog is like that. The best thing I have found is like a face halti, but much safer than a halti. I actually got it from my vet, he sells them. It looks like a horse halti. It goes around their muzzle, then comes up each side of the face, and connects behind the head into a collar. Since it comes behind the head, it does not pull their head to the side, it is just like a collar at the back. My vet uses one for his rotweiller he just rescues. These things are awsome, I can actually walk my dog now and it is great. I don't know the name though, I will try to find out and write here.

[PrincessAngel]

I started my dog's leash training by walking him around the back yard and the house. Then everyday we would take increasingly longer walks. I would do it at night or in the afternoon when others weren't walking their dogs and would go say to the next house and back a few times to get him used to it first. Then for his pulling I distracsted him with treat and I kept leash short. Luckily for me my dog is a 6lb yorkie and he can't pull me very much. I swear if i had a dog that weighed more than 40lbs I would be pulled down the street often.

[mocha&frijoles]

Ok, well first off, harnesses don't stop the pulling. They just make it worse. Becuase instead of the dog pulling by its neck the dog is now pulling by its body, which is a LOT stronger and they can get more power behind it(same reason why people who do carting with dogs have a harness on them).

Secondly, you'll need a training collar of some sort. Sort of like a chain collar, but instead of chain collars my work uses a version that is made out of cloth. This should allow you to have greater control over the dog. And if you use it properly by keeping it high up on the neck they'll be able to pull even less. Becuase that's the weakest part of their necks.

Thirdly, whenever the dog starts to get ahead just give a quick jerk to the leash. You want to make sure that as soon as you jerk you loosen the leash back up.

Finally I'm not just saying all of this. I work with dogs for my living. I help train them and I can have four groups of about 20 dogs all playing with each other at once and keep them all under control. I work at a doggy daycare center.

Here's the web address if interested.Pawtropolis

[Aertyn]

My Jack Russell used to pull to high heaven and would actually choke himself. We invested in a halti (cloth halter that goes around the muzzle, when the dog pulls it puts pressure on the top of the nose) within a few hours he'd figured out that if he pulled it put pressure there.

These are far more humane than check chains.

Personally I find the harnesses useless as it allows to dog to put a lot more of his body weight into pulling and I only ever used them for strapping my dog into the car.

[Jenni_Feathers]

I don't know enough about the tecnique to describe it very well, but have you tried the way of everytime the dog pulls, change direction. Its something along those lines. I think you can also do it where you stop as soon as the dog starts to pull and then you dont walk again till they stop pulling, then if they start to pull again stop walking till they stop pulling etc. Its something along those lines, maybe someone else could embelish on it a little more...I've only heard of others using it, I haven't really read up on it our anything.

[luvsgiraffes]

Hi,
My dog used to pull a lot and choke herself, even with a regular cloth collar.
We bought her one of those collars that people have been describing that go around their face. It is called a "gentle leader" it puts pressure right behind their ears when they pull. It did stop my dog from pulling but she got really depressed when we brought it out and i think it took some of the joy fom her walks.
This is the website that came up for me but I bought mine at a regular pet store (bad I know).
http://www.sitstay.com/dog/supplies/...73_26907_13272

But we've been taking my dog to training classes and have found a better alternative that works better and doesn't make her as depressed. It is called a prong collar.
It looks really mean and like it will hurt them but my dog doesn't seem to mind it at all. She will come to me when I hold it and let me put it on her but not with the gentle leader she'd try to run away.
The technique with the prong collar is that it is supposed to act like an alpha dog gently biting the submissive dog. It acts like their teeth. So as soon as the dog starts to pull you "pop" the leash up. But you have to do it real quick so that it doesn't hurt the dog, it just is a quick pop of the prongs. Some dogs in our class cried but the teacher said they weren't in pain they were just throwing temper tantrums.
This is a good article that generally explains it:
Dog Owner's Guide: The Prong Collar

I haven't read the article for this, but if you scroll down just a little there is a picture.
Google Image Result for http://bp2.blogger.com/_yJ6NLe1DBAk/Rgi9riGu5kI/AAAAAAAAAHk/tJTZC_9rRhg/s400/DSC04573.jpg

Sometimes my dog still likes to pull even with her prong collar and it makes me feel sad to keep popping it so I will make her sit and wait for a few seconds to calm her down each time she starts to pull. I think the important thing is to be consistent and let your dog know that you are the boss and they are going to do what you want. (walk nicely on their leash)

Good luck!

[luvsgiraffes]

Sorry my previous post was so long, but the technique that Jenni_Feathers was talking about we learned in my training class. Our teacher calls it ignoring your dog. It was almost the first thing we learned about teaching our dog to walk.

So basically you start on your walk, as soon as your dog passes the side of your leg you are supposed to turn around and start walking in the other direction. You don't say anything to them and each time that they pass your leg you keep turning around without speaking to them. Eventually they are supposed to learn that when they pass your leg they will get jerked on their leash and then they won't want that.

It is a little hard at first especially if your dog doesn't get the idea but they will. At first again, I had to turn and walk a little and instead of just keeping turning in circles which made me dizzy from turning so often I'd just stop for a few seconds. And then start up again.

[Newpiggiemom]

I think I need to work on it some without my husband present too. I get the stopping when he pulls and changing direction but when I walk with my husband, he's not willing to keep stopping. I'll have to work on it during the day when I'm alone.

My dogs are both large and together they outweigh me! Honey is 85 pounds by herself and I'm not sure Samson's weight, he has an appointment with the vet on Wednesday but he's about 70 pounds. And he's strong as an ox. Thanks for all of the advice. I'm going to work on it this week. Hopefully it won't rain so much.

[mocha&frijoles]

The chains CAN be inhumane if used wrongly. That is why I described how it should be used. Because lots of people they get them and then don't use them right causing damage to the dog. Also why I stated that you must loosen the leash as soon as you jerk. As luvgiraffes said it's a quick pop. There are many many techniques out there that can be used. I was just explaining one of many.

As I didn't want to make an even longer post I didn't post all of them. The technique that luvgiraffes and Jenni_Feathers talked about is a very good way to work with the dog. The only problem that most people come to face with is that they soon find themselves not making almost any progress. So they start getting irritated because they haven't even made it to the next door neighbors driveway. And so they start feeling like it's a waste of going for a walk if they haven't gotten anywhere. Therefore they start letting the dog get away with it little by little. But it's still a very good technique.

There is one technique that is very similar to the one above that I find the best. Every time the dog starts to get ahead pop them back into place and then just stop. Once you've stopped make the dog sit(This works best with dogs that get VERY hyper when they go on walks, because it forces their mind to calm down). So they soon learn that the only way that they are going to smell that smell in front of them or just get to continue forward is to stay calm and near the owner.

This technique works well because progressing in the walk is like a reward to them. Because they get to see whats up there and smell it and etc. And you don't have to stay only right in front of your house. So you still feel like you went on a walk more so.

[mocha&frijoles]

You could get your husband to work with him, so that he won't pull around your husband anymore. Then you and your husband can both walk together again

[bamby71994]

My dog would not listen to me at first so I put the leash on her inside. I guided her along the house and anywhere she wanted to go I would turn the other way. It worked pretty well.

[piggly wiggly]

Okay, the collar I mentioned above that I got from my vet is called a New Trix Response Collar. It is fantastic. I paid $40 plus tax, but not sure what it would be there. These collars are great, I would never be able to walk my dog without it. It is like a gentle leader, but comes behind the head, instead of the side, so there is no jerking of the neck. You may be able to google it and read about it.

[crazywiggy]

Oh dear oh dear... not again.....

Sorry to hear you're having trouble newpiggiemom. But PLEASE do not resort to the use of dangerous, abusive tactics to do something as simple as train a dog to walk on a leash! I'm sorry to see you have had some very poor advice on an animal welfare / rights forum!

I am short of time right now (supposed to be working) so I will post a full description of ways to HUMANELY and SAFELY leash train later on.

In the meantime please do NOT start using any form of choke / pinch/ prong / shock collar etc.

Headcollars (eg haltis and gentle leaders) are fine if used correctly - but even they can be dangerous if you are not 100% sure what you are doing.
Harnesses are fine - I have never tried a no-pull type harness (never saw the point) but my dog is walked on a normal harness. Contrary to popular belief harnesses do not "train a dog to pull" or any other such crap! Dogs pull because it is rewarding - so unless your harness starts handing out cookies every time he pulls, it isn't going to encourage the pulling!

Anyway, will add more later - just please do the right thing!

[Jennicat]

Originally Posted by luvsgiraffes

But we've been taking my dog to training classes and have found a better alternative that works better and doesn't make her as depressed. It is called a prong collar.
It looks really mean and like it will hurt them but my dog doesn't seem to mind it at all. She will come to me when I hold it and let me put it on her but not with the gentle leader she'd try to run away.
The technique with the prong collar is that it is supposed to act like an alpha dog gently biting the submissive dog. It acts like their teeth. So as soon as the dog starts to pull you "pop" the leash up. But you have to do it real quick so that it doesn't hurt the dog, it just is a quick pop of the prongs. Some dogs in our class cried but the teacher said they weren't in pain they were just throwing temper tantrums.
This is a good article that generally explains it:
Dog Owner's Guide: The Prong Collar

I haven't read the article for this, but if you scroll down just a little there is a picture.