Off-leash Following
If your dog is pulling on-leash, it means they are neither interested nor motivated to walk by your side. While you can use the method in the previous video to train your dog to walk on a loose leash, it’s really worth putting in the time to train your dog to walk by your side even when they are off-leash.
Most dog training is easier to do when the dog is off-leash. When people have a leash in their hands, they usually try to use the leash to control their dog, especially when it comes to following and heeling. The people neglect the hand signals and verbal feedback that they should be giving their dog and as a result the leash becomes a crutch and the dog’s obedience becomes dependent on it.
But most dogs spend most of their time at home, off-leash, and dogs can slip their collar or run out an open door. If your dog doesn’t listen to you when they are not on-leash, this can be a big problem.
On the other hand, if you start by training your dog off-leash, then when you put them on-leash, they will already be well behaved and the leash can function purely as a back-up, and not as your primary means of keeping your dog close.
Furthermore, if your dog walk happily by your side, it is a powerful sign that you have a wonderful relationship, and that your dog enjoys your presence and wants to be near you.
This is why we prefer to teach dogs off-leash before on-leash. When it comes to training dogs to walk on-leash, we use four distinct steps: 1. Off-leash Following, 2. Off-leash Heeling, 3. On-leash Heeling and finally, 4. On-leash Walking.
First, teach your dog to follow off-leash in your home. This should be easy and fun. To get most puppies to follow, all you have to do is keep walking … away from your puppy. If your pup forges ahead, turn around; if your puppy lags or stops, speed up. If your pup drifts left, you go right; if the pup drifts right, you go left. Imagine there is a bungee cord stretched between you and your pup, if you want your pup to follow you, then stretch that bungee cord.
Keep it interesting with frequent changes of pace and direction. Create little following courses in your house — around furniture, weaving through a line of chairs, into other rooms, upstairs and downstairs and then into your yard. Make it fun and keep your pup’s interest with silly noises, and goofy dances. Feel free to skip, sing, laugh, giggle and … praise your puppy the entire time.
With an adult dog, it may be easier to start with a food lure. Hold a piece of kibble in your left hand and put a bag of kibble in your righthand pocket. Today, your dog will eat their entire dinner on the move. Just like with a puppy you want to lead your dog around your home, hand-feeding them pieces of kibble occasionally when they are doing a particularly good job.
Give your dog a running commentary; especially, praise your dog when they are on track. Try to vary the intensity of your praise to let your dog know how well they are doing. Remember, you want your dog to follow you, not you following them and so, keep walking, … … away from your dog. If you walk towards your dog, they can’t follow you. Practice in safe confined areas — indoors, in your yard, in family and friends’ yards and eventually a dog park.