Help! My dogs pull too much when we go for a walk

Dear Jennifer

I hope you can help me. My fur-brother and I looooooove going out for walks. It is so exciting to see all the stuff happening outside but I can hear my mom complaining that we pull too much and that it is too hard for her to take us out for walks. We dont even realize we are pulling, we are just so excited to get to everything. Please can you help my mom by telling her what she can do to make our walks a bit more manageable and enjoyable for her? It seems that at the moment, me and my brother are the only ones enjoying our walk, mom is not a fan. We would love for her to enjoy the walks with us.

Love,
Joshua and Hayley

Hi Josh & Hayley,

Pulling on the lead while out for a walk is one of the most common complaints among dog owners. Unfortunately walking calmly and politely on a loose leash at your mum’s side is not some magical genetic behaviour dogs are born with but rather something your mum has to teach you.

Explain to mum that the most enjoyable walk for both her and yourselves is on a loose leash with mum allowing you to casually do “doggy things” like stop and sniff, mark things and generally explore but without either of you pulling or yanking each other around.

So how does mum go about teaching you good leash manners? First thing is to remind her that walking together is a team effort! If mum wants you to be relaxed and attentive then she too must be relaxed and attentive. Holding your leash nervously and tightly or talking to a friend on her cell phone will most likely result in her failing to see or reinforce any good behaviour that you may display. Also give mum a gentle “aide-memoire” that the leash is not a steering wheel and just as she does not want to be pulled around, you too don’t want to be dragged about.

Let’s first do a quick equipment check. I recommend mum walks you on a harness as it is more comfortable and prevents any inadvertent jerking of your neck which can lead to both medical and behaviour issues. A good quality leash (not a chain) is also essential and should be approximately 150cm long. And finally a treat bag that mum can fasten around her waist to hold those all-important treats.

Ask mum to start teaching you to walk on lead in a quite area in your garden so you can give her your full attention without any distractions ( obviously this must be done with one dog at a time). Let her start with you sitting or standing calmly next to her. Tell her to hold the leash in the hand opposite to the side that you are positioned i.e. if you are on her left side, she must hold the lead in her right hand. In a calm relaxed voice mum must give you a cue like “let’s go” and start walking forward. (She can use any cue she likes as long as she use the same cue each time)

As you both move forward mum must give you a verbal marker like “yes” and immediately give you a treat with her free hand. If mum is familiar with clicker training she can replace the verbal marker with a ‘click”. The marker (verbal or click) will indicate to you that the behaviour you offered i.e. walking forward with mum is what she wants from you and the treat she gives you reinforces that, making it more likely you will repeat it again when she requests you too.

Initially mum must mark and treat each step you take as long as there is no tension in the leash. I’m sure you will quickly learn that it is more worth your while to stay close to mum and receive those tasty treats. When you’re both happily walking next to each other and you’re showing no desire to wander away mum can slowly reduce the rate of reinforcement, but mention to her not to do this to quickly to avoid you losing your focus on her and wandering off. At this stage it is important mum reinforces randomly. I’m sure you guys are pretty smart and if mum offers the treat in a predictable manner, for example every twelve steps, you’ll both learn to fool around for eleven steps and shoot back to her side on the twelfth step for the treat.

Once mum is comfortable that you are walking around the garden on a loose lead she can take the plunge and venture into the street or park where you will experience your first real distractions and all this training may will seem in vain as you pull and strain to get to the source of the distraction.

There are a number of techniques mum can employ to correct this. A change in direction can be very effective. If you start to move ahead of mum and before the leash pulls tight, mum must do an about turn and walk in the opposite direction. As she does so she must call you to her in a calm cheery voice to alert you to the fact that she has changed direction. When you return to mum she must be ready to mark the behaviour (click or yes) and offer you a treat, again while the leash is still slack.

Another useful method mum can deploy to correct you pulling is for mum to “be a tree”. As you surge forward she must immediately stop walking and stand still (be like a tree). Mum must keep this position and avoid any verbal cues or communication with you. She must wait quietly and patiently until you look back at her. As you turn to look at her the leash will slacken, immediately it does mum must mark the behaviour (she is marking the loose lead behaviour). You will have to return to mum to get your treat and will then be back in a loose leash position where mum wants you. Mum can then move forward again marking and treating while you are walking calmly next to her again.

Kind regards,

Jennifer