leash training

cas12

I was just wondering if anyone can help me, It is another three weeks before I am allowed to take Ozzy and Missy out on their walks can't wait, But I have been getting them used to being on the leash in the back garden. Ozzy will with a treat shown to him now and then but Missy no chance she just stand their fighting the lead, lies down and thats that she ain't going nowhere even for treats.

Please can any one help

sujewel

Some puppies just aren't food driven, which makes it so difficult with training. Try a Martingale collar. That worked with my foster Koji. He absolutely hated the leash. Cried like we were killing him and not at all food motivated when it came to the leash.

sunyata

I know the feeling. I am having the same trouble with Nola and the leash. Sometimes she is just stubborn and will not move, other times she throws a fit and screams and lies down. It is rough, but you just have to keep working at it. They will eventually get it. And if they are not food motivated try a toy, or someone she really likes.

LoveMyMylie

I walk Mylie with a retractable leash, I know you're not supposed to use one, but it worked well for us. As a pup I would let her wander on the leash as she pleased in the back yard. It worked perfectly because when she decided to stop and lay down, I'd continue walking and she'd eventually run to catch up with me. Once she became use to the feeling of the leash and was excited about our back yard training, we began taking real walks where I kept her at my side. The only problem we had was that she'd become tired and I'd have to carry her home towards the end of our walk! We took the same walk, over and over again to get her use to it. 4 months later she's great on her leash, the pulling ahead stopped a few weeks ago, she stays right with me. The excitement on her face when I get her leash out is ADORABLE, and we even go for a run together in the mornings with no issues. We still have problems walking in new areas, but I think that it's just the new smells of the area taunting her curiosity.

brandon_w

Do everything you can to make time on the leash fun. If you have only tried dog treats, try something else to see if that peaks her interest. Little chunks of cheese, chicken breast, hot dog, things like that.

You could also try a harness to see if she prefers the way the leash attaches to her body.

kwyld

My Kai Kohji used to not be food motivated when it came to training, so I started doing what Brandon mentioned and using cheese to get his interest because he thought using his own dog kibble was over rated. Cheese is now his favorite treat. You can also start only feeding your pup when the leash comes on and it's time to train. He will get the hint real quick that leash training means food and that's what every dog lives for even if they don't realize it yet. Using a clicker to reward small achievements will help too. Just start off sitting in one spot and as soon as your pup looks at you click and treat. Then start moving with her on the leash and click then treat for her even getting up off the ground and following. Eventually she will get the picture you just need to be patient.

Kaddy

Kieko has been amazing with her leash until the past few days. At first I used food as a motivator to keep her with me, and that worked amazingly well!!! For almost 2 weeks now she's been so great about her walks. We usually have between one and three 'stops' where she either sits of lays down and doesn't wanna walk and until recently a treat has broken that. But of course, all that has changed...

Now, she'll stop and wait until I dig a treat out, then she'll walk for a little bit, she'll get the treat and tons of praise while walking (she doesn't get the treat if she stops) and keep going for a little bit longer. Then she'll stop again, cock her head to the side (in my head she's saying "well, get the treat out or it's not gonna happen!") and stare at me until another treat appears. This goes on for the whole walk now and the distance she is willing to walk decreases until she just doesn't walk at all. Did I inadvertently train her that it's ok to stop and wait for a treat??? I feel so lost lol... some days I just feel like the worlds biggest dummy when it comes to Keiko. I guess I thought it would be easy after training Border Collies - stupid assumption on my part )

I have tried using her toys instead, but she doesn't really care for them outside of the house. We've also tried both a regular buckle collar and a harness - she refuses to go anywhere on the harness and usually yelps like it's hurting her when she does walk and the leash tightens. (The harness is properly fit, I had our trainer double check to make sure that wasn't the issue). Still waiting for her to grow into her Martingale collars.

I guess it's back to square one, since walking was how we finally got her to potty outside /sigh

(This post is long and got out of hand and jumps around a lot! I apologize lol)

dlroberts

Don't apologize! From how you describe it, it sounds like she has trained you to give her treats on command. ;-) I think some tough love is going to be necessary to break her of that habit. Off the top of my head, I would try to two things (although neither of them is very compelling, others may have better ideas):

1) Start with the treat out and give it too her while she walks. Keep taking new treats out before she stops. If she stops, put the treat back in your pocket and ignore her. Eventually she'll get up out of boredom and at that point just start walking again. Once she's been walking for a few feet take the treat out again. The goal here is to teach the counter behavior to what you did before. As long as she continues to walk, she'll get a steady stream of treats.

2) Drop the treats all together, make sure you have a lot of time on your hands, put her in a harness, and just be more stubborn than she is. When she stops, just wait for her to stand up (she will eventually because she'll get bored) and resume walking when she does.

Kaddy

Trying to get used to her harness... and just general puppy sleeping cuteness...

dlroberts

Ah yes, the old puppy sleeping on a toy. I love puppies! :-D