Loose Leash Walking
When we first got ChoCho she was awesome at loose leash walking... but that could've been because she was scared and shy. Now when we walk her at night and all the critters are out (especially cats) she pulls harder than a sled dog! Goro is starting to also pull pretty hard. We've worked on loose leash training before, but is this just their prey drive overwriting their training or did we just do a crappy job? lol
She was pulling so hard that her harness started to cut her underarm. We had to switch to a choke collar (half cloth/chain)...
She was pulling so hard that her harness started to cut her underarm. We had to switch to a choke collar (half cloth/chain)...
Comments
Are you walking her with Goro each time? Sometimes you have to separate the two in order to train properly. I had to do that with Mei. I couldn't teach her how to loose leash walk with Koda around. There was too much going on for her to focus on training.
I also taught a really good "Leave It!" command similar to this video:
Thankfully Conker's "Leave It!" is generalized and can be applied to just about anything.
I worked on distractions in the yard on-leash. I'd walk out, and if the dog didn't pay attention to me right away, we'd go back inside. Rinse and repeat until the dog pays attention when I ask. Then I'd walk down the sidewalk a short distance and praise/treat for good behavior. If we came across a cat or other enticing critter, I'd instantly turn in the other direction and walk briskly away, then once we were out of sight, I'd ask for a sit and wait for the dog to calm down. Rinse and repeat. Took a long long time, but now Conker will ignore cats, unless they are completely brain-dead and decide to follow us at a distance of three feet for five blocks...
(1) Ditch the harness (of any sort).
(2) Apply martingale collar and attach long line.
(3) Do exercises as outlined in this blog post: http://cynography.blogspot.it/2011/12/it-takes-two-to-tension-foundation-of.html#comment-form
(4) Train each dog individually.
(5) Combine with "Leave It", or "On By" for critters. Use Premack principle and occasionally allow dogs to hunt/chase squirrels but WHEN you ask.
Yes, Kilbe and Kaiju has a hard time with leash pulling too. Kilbe wants to hunt everything and Kaiju just wants to mark everything, lol. However, when I do stop, both of them come back to me (albeit Kaiju scoots back as little as possible each time). I found that a shorter leash really helps a lot, though I may try @teamlaika's approach. My biggest issue though is after we start walking again (from stopping), they go crazy.
A properly fitted harness is not going to hurt a dog, and for a puller, it will do less damage than a collar will as there will not be pressure on the trachea. It's not a solution--obviously you still need to train the dog--but it's management.
One of the biggest problems with head halters and front-clip harnesses is that they don't translate well to other equipment - you guys have already mentioned this and the fact that they are a management tool only. Many people can't make the transition out of them with their dogs and so the critters either stay in them forever, revert to pulling, or cease getting out on walks at all.
A standard harness does protect the trachea, but it also encourages pulling - there's a reason sled dogs wear them.
If you need to stop urban mushing, and you're dealing with a dedicated puller who has had months or even years of practice, the long line method is a good technique to have in your arsenal. It's good to have lots of options to fix a problem
Silky leash is fine if you have a dog that is going to be interested in food treats. Some are so distracted on outdoor walks by the environment, that they cannot eat (even if you start the work inside). The long line puts the responsibility on the dog and I believe it is fair and easy to implement.