(Of course, if your neighbours are using these methods you will have competition!)
Firstly... Although these methods will work, every dog has a different mentality, as does every owner. The KEY to having a dog that you can take anywhere and not be totally embarrassed with is: perseverance and more perseverance!
The more consistent you are with your teaching methods and not putting up with shenanigans, the faster your dog will learn that it’s in their best interest to do what you’re telling them to!
Secondly, don’t start without the intention of following through. So many times pet owners will start something, and then after a few days, either get lax in their diligence or give up all together. Just as with potty training, it will take time, give your pet a chance to show you they are really quite intelligent.
Next, are you starting with a puppy? Or has your pet already gotten quite large (or older) and you are now on damage control? Or, did you just adopt an older pet who has no idea what a leash is?
For the adopted older pet, these methods should work, although without knowing the animal’s history it is quite hard to predict what might cause them anxiety. We encourage you to start slowly, give your pet time to get used to each step before you move forward. Keep the training sessions short, and reward often! (Of course, this goes for all dogs, not just older ones!)
My father once told me that "the way to make a dog yours is to take him/her for a daily romp in the park". This time spent exploring unknown paths, playing with a toy or just roaming around the neighbourhood is great for your dog and for you! You will get regular exercise with your dog, and both of you should be healthier for your efforts! (Of course, tugging on the leash and shouting for your pet to heel, or to ‘stop that’ will result in a lot of exercise, but little enjoyment for either of you...)
To start with you really should have your dog learn their name. This is a simple method. It just takes repetition, and lots of it!
A fun game to help them learn their new name, (whether it is a young puppy or an older adoption), is played with tidbits. Mmmmmmmm! You can make your own,
(see recipes on the "What are you feeding them anyway?" page.)
, or use pre-made ones. Just be certain, what ever you use, it is small enough that 20 or so of them at a time, two or three times a day, will not result in an overly rotund pet!
Now, when the dog is rested and not overly hungry, start firstly by showing them the snack. They should be eager to taste it. (Keeping a closed fist will help your dog to develop a ‘soft mouth’.They will have to ‘lick’ the treat from your hand, rather than ‘grab and inhale!’) You should let them have one of whatever you are using as a treat, to perk their interest.
Next, call the dog’s name. As soon as your pet makes eye contact with you, praise them and offer a snack. Repeat. Keep this up, several small training sessions, spread out over several days. (Say, three or four times per day for three or four days.) Doing this in an area where there are no distractions at first will lead to more positive results.
Your dog should be looking at you when you call its name at the end of this time, they should not be looking to your hand for their reward. Remember ALL dogs and owners are different. Some dogs will be ready to move on to the next step ten minutes after you start this, some won’t be ready for two weeks, two months, or more! Be patient and consistent. Don’t give up, or change methods in mid-stride! If after a month, your pet is still not answering to their name, we HOPE you will have already figured out that they may have a hearing or vision problem. Take them to your Vet who should check to see that they don’t!!!
Now, add in distractions. Have people, other dogs, cats, whatever, around to distract your pet. Don’t try all at once, start with a quiet training session, and after a few good responses, toss in a distraction. Slowly build it up to where your pet will train their focus on you when you are at the park or off-leash area, (or your sister’s/mother's/brother's/friend's backyard with their unruly pets...).
Ready for the next step? (I hear you. YES, this is the way you should start training your pet to walk on a leash. It will take time to develop and if you miss a step, you may not be pleased with the results!)
The next step is to withhold the treat. Give it to your pet only every third positive reaction. Then fourth. Then fifth. Reward them with OOOOOODles of praise and affection, but not a treat every time. Continue this until you can call your pet and they will look at you no matter where you happen to be in relation to them. (As long as they can SEE you that is!)
As before, use short, 5-10 minute sessions, just do at least four per day until your pet no longer requires the treat to obey. Build on this by having the pet across the room, say their name and then the command, “Come”, (or what ever word you choose, just be consistent!)
Ready for a walk? Your pet really doesn’t need to leave the safety of your yard until they have MASTERED the trick of responding to their name and coming when called. This will keep them safe in the event of an emergency when you don’t have time to play the chase game.
Attach a short lead, (1-3 feet long). If this is the first time your pet has had a leash on, let them wander around a bit (30 minutes or so) to get the feel of this new item. (Hopefully you have been getting them in the habit of using a leash as you potty trained them, but maybe you didn’t...)
As a side note: You can potty train them AND leash train them at the same time, just be patient for all the new commands to sink in!
Now, it’s time for their first leash walk. You probably won’t get far. Maybe only out the door before you find yourself turning around. Then again, your dog may be one of those highly intelligent, quick learners. They DO exist!
Pick up your end of the leash and call your dog to your side. Reward them. Have them sit. (This will also be part of their training. Remember, it’s a lot for you to remember, but it’s even more for your dog to comprehend all at once, which is why several shorter sessions are so much happier for them and far less frustrating for you.)
To get them to sit, say “Sit” and lightly push down on their haunches, while at the same time giving a LIGHT tug upwards on the leash. Reward them. (Or you can take one of the treats you are using, have your dog look at it, close your fist around it and raise it above their head, going 'over' their nose, and up so they naturally sit as they try to seek out that bit of food in your hand.)
Work for a few sessions on just that. Call your dog, make eye contact. Call them to you. Then work on “sit”. (Remember all of the commands used can be changed to whatever word you feel most comfortable with, just be consistent, and remember short, one or two syllable words will garner the quickest results.)
Your dog is now coming and sitting on command? Perfect! Finally we’re ready for “walkies”.
The total amount of time spent on the previous lessons can be as many as two months, (or more!) or as few as one week, (or less!... not likely, but, hey, it COULD happen!).
Get yourself ready for a walk. Go to the door. Call your pet. (Remember to praise them lavishly when they come and sit!) Click on the leash. Keep the dog sitting while you do this. Open the door. Give a LIGHT tug on the leash and say, “Walkies!” (or whatever...). As your dog tries to rip your arm off bounding out the door snap the leash sharply, (hopefully not choking the dog as well), and say “NO!”, then after a second, “Sit!”.
This is about as far as you will probably make it the first, (or second) time. Sometimes the dog will do it perfectly the first time and then act like they’ve never seen you the next! You can teach them to walk IN the yard, if it is big enough, but you will eventually have to venture out into the public. If they have mastered come, sit and walkies, the transition to public areas should be a simple event.
Over the next two or three weeks, slowly and consistently work with your pet. Only take a few steps and then have your pet sit, reward them, then take a few more steps. Sit. Reward. Step. Repeat, over & over.
As your pet progresses you can slowly whittle down the sit portion until you are walking for at least an hour without incidents. It’s a good idea to review the sit command periodically during your walking sessions, as there will be other times when you want your pet to sit and stay.
As mentioned, you might only make it out the gate, (or not even that far!) for the first two weeks or more, but watch out! When your dog suddenly ‘clicks’ it will be a fast and furious learning curve. Suddenly they’ll be doing it! And your neighbours will be sooooo envious of you as your dog obeys effortlessly!
What a GREAT feeling of accomplishment that day will be!
Remember: As you hold the leash, keep it loose, (sort of limp-wristed). Don’t let your dog pull it tight. If they do, the lesson should end. (I said it was a frustratingly slow beginning, didn’t I?) You should wait at least an hour before starting over. The idea is to make this a pleasant experience for both you and your pet.
You will find, perhaps, that you are getting all dressed up, ready to take that hour long power walk you need, and your dog makes it as far as the opening of the door before they are tugging on the leash, (and you begin to feel like the toddler who’s mom gets him all dressed up to play in the snow only to have Jr. complains seconds later that he has to go to the bathroom!). Returning your pet to the house and continuing your walk without them SEEMS mean, but two months of frustration for your pet, will result in 10 years or more of safe, happy walks later. (And figuring at least one walk per day, that’s going to equal out to about 3,650+ walks!)
These methods were not learned by us overnight, we actually trained using the clicker method without an external clicker. (I can hear you now, “HUH?”).
We used our tongue and ‘clicked’ it so it made a ‘click-click’ sound. You could use a whistle, but be careful, it’s got to be the same tone and length or it may confuse your pet. I believe for years Koda thought her name was ‘click-click’! I will get around to writing more about clicker training as I find time, but for those of you who must know now, (or who believe no other method will work), the basic theory is that as you gain the pet’s attention, or they do something by accident, you ‘click’ a ‘clicker’, (there are hundreds available on the market). The rest of the training is pretty much the same. Sorry, it’s not a magic clicker, you still have to spend the training time with your pet.
We thank the various trainers, behaviourists and pet owners for their advice and help in learning this/these methods and for being confident enough with them to share them with you. Please remember, these are only guidelines. They work for some pets and owners but not all. Each pet and owner have different needs and varying levels of experiences that will require slight variances or totally different methods. If the training sessions aren’t going well, or they seem to make you both a little less than happy, call in the experiences of a professional trainer. Even a few sessions with a group or one-on-one situation should reap benefits by having an outsider assess the difficult points and offer suggestions that should help.
Let us know what you think by using the e-mail link below, we'd love to hear from you. Let us know if this/these methods work for you, or if you feel that other methods are far superior!