How To Improve Your Dog Walking Experience...

Successful Dog Walking Techniques For Dogs That Need Leash Training

For dog owners who enjoy walking, there is nothing worse than a dog that pulls and lacks manners on a leash.

This is one of the biggest problems that many dog owners face which unfortunately often leads to owners giving up on walking the dog at all.

Understand And Establish Your Leadership Role...
All training including dog walking starts with the dog owner and the position the owner holds within the pack.

To correct issues such as dog walking or jumping on people, you must first develop a bond between you and your dog. "Bond" means your dog's understanding of the role you have within the pack. Your role should be "leader" and your dog's role should be "dog". Understand that dogs respond best to a pack leader that remains relaxed yet assertive. Without this understanding between owner and dog, control will be a hard task to achieve.

Many dog owners unknowingly make the mistake of providing their dog with the "alpha dog" position by confusing discipline with being mean. They think that by enforcing boundaries they are hurting their dog, when in truth it is the complete opposite.

Remember, dogs were first bred to do a job whether it was guarding, herding or retrieving and they relied on their master to tell them what to do next. Although most domestic dogs are no longer working dogs, in order to be completely satisfied and content, they still need this structure.

Training Yourself To Accept Alpha Dog Status
This is where you come into the picture. You must train yourself as well to believe and realize that you are the leader, the alpha dog. It is critical that you understand the importance of this since dogs can sense how you feel. If you don't believe it, your dog won't either. Although dog owners should never give up their position in the pack, surrendering their role to a more dominant breed must never happen.

Dogs that are laid back and easy going often don't require much training. Infact, they seem to walk well on a leash without being taught anything at all. On the other hand for those dogs that are strong willed, training must continue until these results are applied.

The point is that no device in the world will work better than your own behavior when it comes to dog walking or training your dog to do anything. Force is never necessary when training your dog. It's about repetition and trust, remaining calm and relaxed and working with your dog regularly to achieve results.

Are You Ready To Be The Leader And Do You Believe It?
Once you have conditioned yourself to accept and actually believe your place in the pack, then move on to applying it. Again, keep in mind that dogs interpret what you are feeling by the energy that you release. So when you release a calm, positive and assertive energy, they will pick up on it.

Let's Walk...
As your dog's trainer, understand these three critical factors and there given order:

1. Dog walking develops a leadership bond for you and your dog.
2. To provide him with daily exercise
3. To sniff and enjoy the surroundings.

First decide on your style of leash. Many established dog trainers prefer a short leash like a Martingale Show Lead for dog walking. These leashes are like the ones used in most large dog shows like the AKC or Westminster show. A loop goes around the dog's head behind the ears, not around the neck. This gives the trainer ultimate control of the dog by gently pulling up on head if necessary.

Before placing the leash on your dog, make sure he's calmly sitting in place. Never place a leash on a jumping or out of control dog. This only encourages undesired behavior.

Believe it or not, but how you enter or exit the house also sends a signal to your dog. As the pack leader, you must enter and exit the home first with the dog behind you or beside you, but never in front of you. You should also use this method if you already have a dog and brought another dog into the home. In order for the original dog to maintain alpha status, that dog must always come first whether it's eating, letting in or out, placing a leash on, etc.

Now, the leash should always be held loosely with your dog by your side. If your arm is extended holding a taunt leash with the dog out in front of you, you need to address this issue with your dog immediately and consistently until it sinks in. Whether it's by sound or an assertive (not aggressive) touch, draw your dog's attention back to you "the leader". Remember, you want to release the energy of a relaxed and assertive "alpha leader" so that your dog gets the correct signal from the other end of the leash.

After walking awhile, allow him to sniff around a little and enjoy nature.

After the walk and upon returning home, reward your dog's good behavior with love and personal attention. Try getting your feelings across to your dog with actions vs words.

You must be consistent with your dog walking training to achieve the best results.

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