Leash Training Your Puppy

If you have a new puppy, wouldn’t you like to know the easiest way to start his leash training?  By leash training your puppy at a very young age, you can get a head start. My new puppy learned how to walk on his leash at only 6 weeks old.  At 8 weeks old, my puppy walked with his leash like he’d been doing it all his life.

You can leash train your puppy by using this very simple method and get great results without any resistance from the puppy.  I have seen other puppies and dogs that hate the leash, and get scared just at the sight of it.  A dog or puppy that is afraid of the leash probably wasn’t given the right exposure to it at first.

Use this easy method to begin leash training your puppy with positive reinforcement.Here is the way I begin the leash training of my puppies without causing any stress for him. In fact, they get excited when they see the leash, because they know they are about to go for a walk with Dad.

• Start by putting on your puppy’s flat collar-don’t use the choke collar for this. The puppy should have no problems with the flat collar being put on. Go ahead and put the leash on the collar, but just let it lay on the ground.  Don’t hold on to the leash at this time. For the first sessions with the leash, let the puppy walk around the house or yard while he does his thing. Walk along behind your puppy, making sure that the leash doesn’t become tangled in anything.  You puppy probably won’t even notice he’s on the leash if you keep it from getting caught on something.

• The following leash training step starts after the puppy is accustomed to cruising around dragging his leash along. Now you should pick the end of the pup’s leash up, but still keep it completely slack.  Now you can walk with your puppy but let him keep walking along without your controlling him.  Begin the next step in leash training after your puppy is very used to walking along with you on his loose leash.

• Now your puppy is reach to learn walking with you without pulling on the leash.  As he walks with you can begin to encourage him to learn to a “loose heel”  by having some treats with you for rewards. If you hold the treat in your left hand it will get the puppy used to the idea of staying by your left side. The left side is the side he will be when he learns to heel. Call your puppy over to your side and when he comes over give him lots of praise, affection and a tasty treat as a reward for paying attention. Be sure to reward the puppy each time to positively reinforce the right behavior.

• If the puppy isn’t paying attention when you call him over, just give a gentle tug on his leash to get his attention, and let him see you have a treat for him.

• Give him his reward and lots of praise for coming over for his treat and listening to you. You will see him quickly learning that he’ll get something good for listening. Even at 6 weeks of age, puppies are already in the learning zone. Remember, don’t get impatient or cross with your pet when you are first leash training him. Make sure the experience is a positive one for your puppy. For leash training your puppy, or for future obedience training also, be sure to train your puppy using positive reinforcement training techniques. If they are having a good time, your puppy or dog will learn their training much more quickly. I know that always works for me, too.

• Continue repeating this training frequently on a daily basis until your puppy walks comfortably at your side with a loose leash. Now that he has learned to do that, he is on his way to learning how to walk in the “heel” position. That should be all there is to get started with leash training. Follow this simple lesson, starting with a very young puppy and you will never have a problem putting your dog on his leash for a fun walk.

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