Walking the Dog

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Controlled Walking

Dear WOOF:

Until I can get my dog into a group training, I still want to take her for walks. She is a 1 year old lab, with no manners, 85 lbs. and very strong. She pulls on the leash and makes walks very difficult. Any tips on what I can do to improve our walks until we can get into a class?

Hi:

I have a few suggestions for your pulling lab. The first is to stop taking her on walks. The more she is allowed to pull, the more she is reinforced for pulling. The pulling is working for her or she wouldn't waste her energy doing it. It is getting her closer to whatever it is she is pulling toward. Dogs will not continue behavior that is not reinforcing for them. So as long as she has learned that pulling works for her, the
behavior will not go away. In fact it will get worse.

We must first teach her how to walk correctly. Getting her into a group class is a great idea. Here, you will be guided on how to teach your dog to keep a loose leash. Once you are taught these loose leash
exercises, you will start practicing in low stimulus environments, such as your living room or kitchen. Even at this point, taking her on walks will set her up to fail. On walks, all the neighborhood dogs, cats, squirrels, etc., are just too exciting for her to do any learning.

Once she learns how to keep a loose leash in the house, you can slowly begin to increase the stimulation of the environment. You might try to do the exercise in your garage, working toward your driveway, and eventually walking in front of your home.

I would also recommend fitting your dog with a head collar (we recommend the Gentle Leader). This piece of equipment works like a halter does on a horse. With a head collar in place, we lead the dog
by the nose, so the dog does not have as much strength to pull. It also takes pressure of his trachea (and saves your arm too!). It does take some conditioning to get some dogs used to it, but a good
instructor can give you a few exercises that will help your dog learn to love her head collar.

Many people worry that by not walking their dog, their dog is missing out on exercise. For most dogs, especially young sporting dogs (like labs), walks are more of a change of scenery than real exercise. To
make sure she is getting ample exercise, play ball or Frisbee with her. Get her really running. DayCare is another way to give her great physical and mental stimulation.

Good luck and thanks for writing!

Devene Godau, CPDT

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