# How do I teach my dog to walk on a leash better?



## AllisonK (Dec 16, 2010)

We love to walk Simon (our 9mth old 90lb GSD) but it has become a really difficult task.
Whenever he sees the leash he flips out and starts jumping all over us so that it's hard to get it on him.
Once the leash is on he pulls, puts the leash in his mouth, and will occasionally jump up on whoever is walking him. 

We love his enthusiasm but would love for him to be more focused!


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## jakeandrenee (Apr 30, 2010)

Has this puppy been to any OB classes yet? I suggest you get him in classes ASAP.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Make him sit. Tell him to sit, pull out the leash, and at this point he will probably break his sit so repeat Sit. If he doesn't, calmly put the leash down and walk away. Just keep repeating that until he holds his sit. 

I would work on Sit and then work on him holding the sit with the distraction of the leash. And do that when you don't actually have to go anywhere.  If he jumps on you, game over and he doesn't get what he wants. Make sure you REWARD him for sitting!

As far as pulling, there are several training collars out there but if you plan on ever doing anything with him in regards to competing, I would urge you to start teaching him heel and start teaching him to look to you for commands. I've seen a great difference in Jax once I started to teach her heel. On a loose leash, she gets to the end of the leash and as soon as there is pressure, she looks back at me like she's checking in.


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## DJEtzel (Feb 11, 2010)

You are encouraging his antics by putting the leash on him and taking him out anyway.

Pull out the leash and ignore him completely until he settles down. Then start by walking him around inside. If he bites or jumps, drop the leash, game over. Do this a ton of times until he's got it down inside, then move outside. 

Invest in a prong, a clicker, some treats, and an obedience class. Watch this video.


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## RyanH (Dec 22, 2010)

Hi all, first time posting here. I have a 7mo old GSD, female. I also have problems walking her comfortably. I've had her since she was 4mo and i don't think she had a lot of obedience or socialization before i got her. Having said that, in relaxed situations she is doing really well. I can get her to heel around the house very well using a food reward and clicker. She is pretty well behaved in the house with just her and I. Outside on walks though is a totally different story. Food means nothing to her on our walks (at least the food i currently offer). Her favorite thing to do is chase a rope tug in the yard but even that doesn't phase her on our walks. She runs ahead with her nose to the ground or is fixated on anything other than me. She will do a nice "sit" while we're walking but she just sits there and wants to look around and is alert to every little sound or movement. I'm at a loss on how to focus her in this more distracting environment. 

I've started introducing distractions in the house while she is heeling and she has done well so maybe i just need to take baby steps. Any advice is appreciated.

Also, here she is!


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## beowolf (Sep 3, 2010)

AllisonK said:


> We love to walk Simon (our 9mth old 90lb GSD) but it has become a really difficult task.
> Whenever he sees the leash he flips out and starts jumping all over us so that it's hard to get it on him.
> Once the leash is on he pulls, puts the leash in his mouth, and will occasionally jump up on whoever is walking him.
> 
> We love his enthusiasm but would love for him to be more focused!


My GSD is seven months and I still keep a lead on him everytime he is out of his crate. He hasn't learned to get excited at the sight of a leash as a result of me making sure he has his leash on the moment he steps out of his crate.


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## supaflyz (Jul 28, 2006)

My dog did that to. She use to pull really hard. Almost pull me down the river when I was standing on a slope. She lunge at another dog and pull me down the hill along with her. I bought the Easy Walk Harness and it works great. I also teach her some commands when I'm walking her. She tends to calm down with treats also. What I do is pull her back when she pulls. Wait for a minute or two then proceed on walking. After awhile she gets the idea that if she wants to go somewhere it will be on my pace not the other way around.


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## slaen (Apr 27, 2009)

What I did to train Kai is I got a long lead. About 15 feet long and we went to a local park. I would start walking (lead attached to him obviously) if he got ahead of me or went in another direction I would change directions and walk the other way from him.
This will do a few things.

1. Your dog will get a correction and he wont know it came from you. By the time he hits the end of the lead your back is to him when he turns around. So he just got a correction but you didnt say anything and you arent making eye contact when the correction hit so he wont feel punished.

2. Soon he will learn the only safe place to be will be right next to you on your left side. If hes not there he will get corrected.

3. Its very important your timing is dead on. If the dog is next to you even for only a few seconds you need to praise him/her. Any time you get a desired result you praise, if you dont get it you do it over as many times as it takes. And remember your attitude effects your dog as well because they can read your body language like a book. So dont get frustrated.

So don't say a word to the dog or look at them during this process unless you are getting the desired result. If you are walking and you do look down and the dogs there praise him or her. Also another thing, walk fast. This will make the dog focus on you and if you are moving fast and can turn any minute he will be less likely to let his mind wander off whats going on. Stop the problem before it starts if that makes sense.

Remember if the dog gets ahead of you go the opposite way.

You want your dog to look to you for decisions. You never want your dog to make decisions for themselves. You introduce the leash, you introduce the food and take it away, you introduce play time and when playtime ends. That way you are higher in the pack order and the dog knows it.

The next level after that I would cut up some hotdogs in small peices and take him to a crowded place with distractions. Put a peice of the hotdog in your hand and walk and when your dog trots next to you and looks up at you for the treat, praise and reward. Walk ten feet, stop and say sit. If the dog sits he gets a treat if not you do it over until he gets it right. I do this with Kai at the outdoor mall by my house, there are other dogs and lots of distractions. So the hotdogs help, dogs bark at him and he looks and shows no interest because Im walking fast with treats and thats more interesting to him than the Paris Hilton look a likes with the 3 pound dog stuffed in their purses yapping away.

Also remember if the dog does something right get excited and really praise him/her. Pet, scratch and praise, **** act like they won the lotto. It will build his/her confidence and the dog will enjoy training. 

I never used a pinch collar on Kai. He has a nice size leather collar about 2 inches wide. I just did what I mentioned above and he walks like a champ.


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