Loose Leash Walking

Loose leash walking is a skill that teaches your dog to walk calmly beside you on a leash without pulling or tugging. It’s not just about avoiding a sore arm; it’s about creating a positive walking experience for both you and your dog. When your dog walks on a loose leash, they’re not just following you, they’re learning to pay attention, stay engaged, and make good decisions without being distracted by the environment. This is important not only for safety but also for the bond between you and your dog. Whether you’re walking down the street, through the park, or around the neighborhood, loose leash walking means your dog is learning to follow your lead and respond to cues in real-time.

Teaching loose leash walking can take time and patience, depending on your dog’s age, energy level, and previous experiences with walking on a leash. It’s not something that happens overnight, but with consistency and positive reinforcement, most dogs can learn it. It’s all about setting up your dog for success, rewarding them when they’re walking nicely, and gently redirecting them when they pull. While it may take weeks or even months of practice, the results are worth it: you’ll have a dog who is not only more enjoyable to walk but also more focused and responsive to you overall.

I’ve decided to add my own personally written protocols for Proximity Training, Leash Pressure Training (it’s not what you think), Loose Leash Training, and some games.

This is one of my all-time favorite games to play with dogs because it yields such great results.

It’s easy, it doesn’t require any spectacular equipment, and it doesn’t require any special skills.

Teaching your dog to LOVE being close to you will make training a thousand times easier. Think about your loose leash walking, or your recall.
If your dog loved being next to you, how easy would those skills be?

By simply rewarding our dogs when they make the choice to hang out with us, we can reinforce this mentality, improve our relationships and help our training in extraordinary ways!

Step 1:

Find a nice open space, and hook your dog up to a long line. (I always use a harness instead of a collar when I’m long lining for safety’s sake.) I like to use my 50’but 15’ and 30’ line are wonderful tools too. It all depends on the dog and the environment.

Step 2:

Now for the hard part: Do nothing! Hold the end of the line, and wander about. Let your dog do whatever she pleases. Let her sniff, roll, wander… but here’s the key:

Anytime she chooses to check in with you: reward her!

Give her a treat, praise her up. If she’s 30’ away and stops to look back at you – capture that moment. Mark the moment she turns her head back to you with an enthusiastic Yes! If she comes in to see why you’re suddenly so happy – reward her!

If something has her attention and she’s standing at the end of the line, just wait. Eventually she will move on. If she looks to you – praise! If she just wanders on, that’s okay! Some dogs get this exercise right away, others take time. You’re building a foundation for a better relationship – it’s okay to take as long as you need! However, if your dog is reacting, you’ll want to remove her from the trigger by creating more space. You can lure her, and call/talk to her, while gently wiggling the leash to get her attention and move away from the trigger. Then you’ll want to work on Engage / Disengage and or contact me for help.

Don’t Help!

Many people fall into the trap of trying to ‘help’ their dog. They give a little tug on the leash, or call their name, then reward the result. This is okay – but it defeats the purpose of this exercise. We want the dog thinking and making the choice on their own, not because they felt the leash or heard you call.

If your dog just isn’t getting it, and is just straining at the end of the leash and won’t give you a second glance; go back inside. Find a room that’s quiet, with no distractions. (no toys on the floor, no other pets, no children or spouses interrupting, no TV making noise). Take the leash/harness/collar off. Stand quietly. Observe your dog, but don’t stare. The moment you observe them even thinking about looking at you; reward them. Praise them, give them a great treat, let them know how much you like when they acknowledge you! Once your dog starts getting the concept and is offering more attention; move to a different room. Practice in several different rooms; then add the leash/harness/collar.

You may have to start over, and practice just like you did the very first time – depending on the association your dog has with you and his leash.

Once you can work successfully in the house, move to the garage, then the driveway, then the yard… etc.. gradually adding distance/distractions.

Now – before you say “she’s only staying with you because you have food!”… let me remind you of the difference between bribing and rewarding! If I had food in my hand, and was enticing her to follow the food – you might be right… but that’s not what’s happening.

Your dog has freedom to move around.
Your dog makes choice.
You praise and verbally reward choice.
She chooses to come in closer, you continue to praise and reward, then produce a treat from my pocket to reward as the final step.
We then continue; treats go away, and I encourage her to move on again.

The psychological impact of letting her make a decision on her own, then rewarding it is far more important than the fact I have a few treats in my pocket! She’s learning that staying near me is wonderful; and if that happens to involve food – so be it!

Heads up:
This may seem counterintuitive because we are trying to get puppy to pull on the leash, but I promise, the end result is worth it!

First:

Put puppy on the harness and leash.

Step 1:

When the leash gets taut, you will move in the opposite direction (no jerking and no sounds) until the puppy looks at you, then mark immediately and reward. Feed the puppy close to your body so they understand the “good spot” is really close to you. You may need to lure or use an attention noise (like a kissy sound, for example) at first.

Practice time: 2-3 minutes, 2-3 times a day.

Step 2:

put something distracting down just out of reach of the puppy (food or toy). If the leash becomes taut, gently and slowly walk backwards (again, no jerking, no sounds or cues). The moment your puppy turns to you, mark and reward. Again, because this is a higher level, if the puppy does not turn towards you in the first 2 seconds, you may need to initially use a lure or attention noise. If puppy still does not turn towards you, it’s ok take a break (no not give the distraction to the puppy) and try again in a little while. The next time you try, you will create a bit more distance initially to the distraction. You can also try using a higher reinforcing reward than the distraction (for example: if the distraction is kibble, you reinforce with liver treats).

The idea is that your puppy will feel the leash pressure and realize that they need to come closer to you. They will not get reinforced for the pressure, but they will be reinforced for relieving the pressure by moving closer to you.

Step 3:

The more you practice this game, the more the dog will generalize it. You will need to practice with different things: different toys, different treats, different things to sniff, different environments, etc. If something you’re trying is too hard for the puppy, go back a step or two and reinforce that for a bit, then continue to make things harder bit by bit.

Remember: This isn’t a race, this is a long game.

The more you practice, the better it will become and the more your dog will realize that if there is something they want “over there”, the only way to get it is to stay close to you where there’s no leash pressure.

If, at any time, it’s too hard for your puppy to be successful, then you can just to go back a step or two, creating either more distance, or choose something a little less distracting, and spend more time focusing on the reinforcement the moment puppy gets back into the space you want them to be in.

Once you get out into “the real world” with your puppy, spend some extra time just connecting and reinforcing being close again before going on your walk, keeping in mind that they more they actually succeed in staying close, the more they will succeed in staying close!

Loose Leash Game 1

Loose-leash walking is going to begin as a game.

Here are a few simple steps you will train BEFORE you do any walking with your dog:

Put your dog’s leash on and just stand still. When your dog releases the tension on the leash, click and show him the treat in your hand. Let him see you place the treat on the ground by the outside of your left foot. Once he’s eaten the treat, move to the end of the range of the leash so it is taut and stand quietly. When he moves to release the tension, click. Show him the treat and place it by your left foot. You don’t care about eye contact. What you are teaching is that releasing the leash tension gets clicked and treated. Do this a number of times.

Continue to stand now that your dog is not pulling. Now you will click for eye contact. After the click, treat by your left foot. Remember after he has finished eating the treat to move to the end of the leash. Click and treat three times for looking at you while on a loose leash.

Again, just standing with your dog on a loose leash, looking at you, toss your treats right past your dog’s nose to about three feet away. When dog eats the treats and comes back to you looking for more, click and treat by placing the food by the outside of your left foot. Move and repeat.

Again toss the treat right past your dog’s nose. When your dog finishes eating it and turns around to come back to you, you turn your back and start walking. (Just take a few steps in the beginning.) When you dog catches up to you, but before he gets past your pant leg, click and treat. Repeat.

Note: Make sure when you toss the food it goes right past the dog’s nose. This is the warm-up. Now that you have the dog following you for a few steps it is time to start walking and reinforcing behind or next to you.

On The Move

Your dog is on leash. You turn away from him and start walking. Your dog follows. As the dog catches up to you and is coming up next to you (maybe even makes eye contact) mark (click or “yes!”) and drop the treat next to your left foot. Don’t keep moving and be sure the first few times that you let the dog know that you have food in your hand. Once he’s finished his treat, start again. Show him the treat and then turn and take a few steps away from him, walk till he catches up, drop the treat next to you or a little behind you.

Note: Dropping food next to your side or a little behind helps the dog to stay close to you. It prevents the dog from anticipating and forging ahead. So drop the food behind you or you can even let the dog take it out of your hand behind your back. Don’t drop the food so far away that the dog has to drag you to get it.

Start again. Begin to walk in such a way that the dog is at an angle beside you or is behind you. As the dog catches up, drop the food behind you (or next to your pant leg). Once the dog has eaten the food and is coming back toward you, start walking away from him again. Try for more steps before dropping. Timing is everything! Don’t let the dog get in front of you. If he does, pivot away, wait till he catches up BUT is next to you or slightly behind you (or his nose is at your pant seam), and drop the food.

Now it’s your job to increase the number of steps before dropping the food behind you. Never drop food if your dog has gotten in front of you. Work towards walking more steps before rewarding. You can vary this and reinforce while he is next to you if you wish, or toss the treat way behind you so the dog has to hunt for it and then reinforce him for catching back up to you.

KEEP IT UP

As your dog gets better and you can now walk quite a distance without forging and pulling, don’t fail to reward intermittently. For your dog to walk without pulling he has to believe (because you rewarded him) that there is a better chance of good things near you than in the wide world. Use the long line if you have to control your dog and are not taking a walk. Remember, if you never let the leash get tight, your dog won’t learn that he can pull you. What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him or you!

Cookie Bowling

This is a Susan Garrett Game

(Video below)

Phase 1:

Hold the dog back, toss the treat nearby and tell your dog to “find it”.
When your dog goes towards it, you turn (but still keep an eye on your pup) and “run” the other way. Run is in quotations because you don’t want to go far or fast, you just want to turn away and move a little bit at first. You’re just enticing them to chase you. If you run too far or too fast, they may lose interest and not want to chase you, so just go a little bit to make them want to run towards you.
When they catch up to you, you give a higher value treat.

Phase 2:

Throw the treat into the corner of the room. This way, the corner controls the turn and they are limited in where to go and where to turn.
You keep an eye on them and as soon as they get that treat, immediately start to “run” in the opposite direction.
When they catch you, give them a higher value treat/reward.
Repeat

Phase 3:

Think “pinball machine”. Again, you’re going to throw the treat into the corner of the room, but this time, you’re going to aim for it to bounce so that they go toward you but then have to watch it and change the course of where they’re going in order to get it.
As soon as your dog gets the treat, that’s when you turn and run.
Once they catch up to you, give them the higher value treat.

Phase 4:

Have the treat ready in your hand, with your hand facing the dog, as you run away.
When your dog reaches you, you let them eat the treat from your hand as you are running, don’t lose the momentum, keep going as your dog catches you and takes the treat from you as you run.

Phase 5:

The same as phase 4, however, this time, when they get to you, you’re going to quickly turn your hand around to face the other direction, and you’re going to turn with it and run in the other direction, back the way you game from. This will make the dog need to do a quick turn around to get the treat.

Phase 6:

This time, instead of turning your hand around and continuing the movements, you are going to stop very briefly, switch the treat from your right hand to your left hand, and then turn and run back where you came from and feed them the treat after you’ve turn around.