Teach Your Dog To Walk On A Loose Leash

The ability to walk on a loose leash is essential for your dog to learn because it will make taking your dog out in public much simpler.

Educating your puppy will take time and patience. Still, with the right resources and simple training techniques, you can teach your dog to walk on a loose leash.

How to teach your dog to walk on a loose leash

You will need:

• A collar or harness, such as a martingale, a front-clip collar, a gentle leader or Halti, etc. (Easy-Walk or Freedom No-pull)
• A leash that is four or six feet long (not retractable).
• Treats

To start

1. Treats should be placed in a treat pouch or pocket.
   2. Hold some treats on the side of your body you want the dog to walk on after selecting that side. For example, if you want your dog to walk on the left side, hold treats in your left hand.
   3. Support the dog with the hand that is holding the leash. For instance, if your dog is on your left, hold the leash’s end with your right hand. The remaining material ought to hang adrift in a “J.”
   4. Go ahead, then stop. The dog is not required to stay in the “heel” position. Feed the dog multiple treats from your hand, aligning them with the seam of your pants. This makes it simpler for you to position the dog.
   5. Continue. Take a step, pause, and then munch on a treat at your side or the seam of your jeans.
   6. When the dog is excitedly looking up at you for more treats, take two steps rather than one before pausing and feeding the dog.
   7. Stop immediately if the dog starts to lead. Call your dog back to you or call the dog to you while feeding treats in your hand, but don’t treat her until you’ve advanced two to three steps. This is vital to prevent teaching a sequence like “I pull ahead, I come back, I eat.” We want them to learn that wearing a loose leash and strolling alongside you results in treats, not pulling.
   8. Increase the distance between each treat by a few steps. You can keep your dog’s attention on you by conversing with her.
   9. When the dog is well-behaved on a loose leash, give this type of walk a name. You might say, “Heel,” “with me,” “let’s walk,” or any other word or phrase you like.
   10. Release your dog by saying “all done,” “okay,” “that’ll do,” etc., when they are no longer required to walk on their heels.

A walk “off-duty” to teach

This will be used when the dog can unwind and is not obliged to be in the “heel” position. The only limitation is that you cannot move forward.

1. Choose a word to describe this innovative kind of walk. You can substitute “free time,” “hike,” “at leisure,” or any other term of your choice as long as it differs from your official walk cue.
   2. Give the leash’s length before giving it to your dog. If you walk your dog on a 6-foot leash, you may hold the loop end and let the rest hang loose. Keep the leash in your hand for the entirety of the walk if you decide to have some of it in your hands rather than releasing and gathering it frequently. This is done to teach the dog how much leash is available to them.
   3. Give walking after giving your dog the cue (“free time”). They can sniff, turn their sides, glance around, and occasionally lie down in addition to pulling.
   4. If your dog starts to back up, stop, call him to you, and then start moving again.
   5. If your dog becomes focused on a person, another dog, or another animal, call your dog by name and if you can go in the opposite direction. It will become more challenging as you get near the distraction, and your dog will probably start pulling.
   6. If you want your dog to walk in the “heel” position, bring him back to your side (because a bike, walker, or other object is coming).