How To Stop Your Dog Pulling On The Lead

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How To Stop Your Dog Pulling On The Lead

21 02 11

Please see the video at the end of this post to show you the

most comfortable method to stop your dog pulling on the lead.

Nikki Shows You The New Fleece Harness & Wrap Around Lead Technique.

As you know I don’t use any treats or clickers when training dogs. I don’t see the need to use bribery to get a dog to follow your commands, some may call it positive reinforcement I just call it bribery.

If the dog sees and respects you as its natural pack leader and you carry the right energy around your dog, he or she will happily follow your commands through respect and not because it is going to get some food reward at the end. Many people also use commercial pet food treats to train their dogs with which can be high in sugar, wheat, cereals and chemical preservatives. Overloading your dog with these toxins is not going to help matters when trying to get your dog to concentrate on what you are doing.

In order to get your dog to walk to heel naturally with you, the dog must have a level of trust and respect for you and see you as the natural leader of the pack. It is about the energy you carry around your dog and what body language you are using. If you are “off balance” then good chances your dog will be too. Off balance means a negative mind-set which produces negative body language or the chances are that if you are in pain or feeling frustrated, worried nervous or scared whilst walking your dog then you dog will feel these things too.

Let’s think about the lead walk from the dog’s point of view. Ok we have to put our dogs on a lead in public places, it is the law. However dog does not know of human law and all it knows is that it is being tied to you and once of its most basic defence mechanisms is being taken away. That defence mechanism being the right to flee or run away from danger.

Dogs have three main defence mechanisms, Freeze, Flight and Fight. If we understand that when we tie up the dog to us, we take away its right to flee then we need to understand that some dogs will only have two options left, freeze and fight. This is one of the reasons why some dogs show more aggression when on the lead than off the lead.

It is likely that the dog enters a more anxious state of mind when being tied up to the lead, therefore we need to take this into consideration when we go out on our walks. The dog needs to know that you have everything under control should danger arise. They need to know you are their body-guard and protector.

Imagine if someone tied your hands up behind your back and sent you into the outside world. You would feel vulnerable right? Your hands are actually a major source of protection for you, they stop you banging your head if you fall over, you can protect yourself should someone attack you, in fact without your hands and arms, life becomes quite a scary place indeed.

Now imagine if someone tied your hands up but sent you out with a body-guard to look after you, you would relax more knowing that this bodyguard was looking out for you and protecting you.

Many humans take on a dog for protection, you see young guys with status dogs and even ladies walking their dogs with the mind-set that should someone attack them their dog will dive in and sort things out. It’s a massive amount of responsibility to put onto any animal in today’s human world. We really should be the ones looking after our pets and not the other way round. I am sure the dog would do all it can to protects its pack should an attack happen but it should not have to go around thinking this is its job all the time.

Getting your mind-set right before attempting the outside walk with your dog is crucial. If you are worrying before you even leave the house then your energy becomes weak and the dog will feel the need to take over and protect you.

Remember you set the energy and mind-set for your pack. You are the leader. So you need to go out relaxed, and calm but also assertive. The outside world can throw a number of things your way and you never know what to expect so be alert but just trust yourself that you can handle whatever life throws your way. You have survived this long already haven’t you?

What you think about you attract.

Worrying about your dog walk will make things worse

If you start worrying about the walk with your dog before you leave the house then you are more likely to attract negative situations to you both which will just reinforce your fears even more.

It is important to get yourself into a really positive mind-set before you leave the house. Take 5 minutes if you have to and close your eyes, take a few deep breaths and imagine what sort of walk you would like to have. See yourself calm and assertive, see your dog relaxed and happy. Plan the route you’re going to take in your mind and notice the joy around you on your walk. Imagine you see other nice dog owners and other nice dogs on your walk. Imagine your dog playing with these other dogs happily. See your dog walking nicely to heel with you, looking up at you and looking for the next direction or command from you.

As you take 5 minutes to do this positive mind-set exercise, you will feel more calm and in control, and so too will your dog. Your dog will pick up on your mind-set and images in your mind and you will be communicating what sort of walk you would like you both to have.

If you find you mind is thinking “fear thoughts” and “what if ” thoughts then just let them go, let them pass and concentrate on your image of a nice walk. If you do this every day for three weeks you will soon be noticing an amazing difference on your walks.

The correct walking equipment for your dog is so important.

There are so many leads collars and harness on the market, it’s hard to know where to begin, and you may have already spent a fortune on trying different ones out.

I have tried and tested many and found some better than others, but this system that I am going suggest to you really is the most comfortable and safest equipment for both you and you dog.

You can see the massive strain on dog's neck, back, hips and legs.

First things first ok. Leads should never be attached to a collar. I see way too many dog owners attach the lead to the collar without much thought for the poor dog.

Collars should be used to attach ID tags to only, and look for a comfy collar like the Air Collars that I use and sell. They are made from breathable material and dry out if they get wet. Leather collars cause so many irritations to the dog skin and neck, they might look nice but they are not comfortable for the dog.

The reason why you should never attach a lead to a collar is because it can cause some serious damage to your dog’s neck, spine, hips, legs and paws. Just think about if someone yanked your neck time and time again. Many nerves travel through the neck and down the spine and constant yanking can cause a whole host of problems. Not just that but nearly every dog owner who has a lead attached the collar also suffers with back, neck and shoulder pain. All that yanking at your dog also can put your body and system out of balance.

Notice how both dog and owner are out of balance

Dog owners who have a dog that pulls on the lead has an unbalanced relationships with their dog. Both dog and owner are usually very stressed and it’s where the bond can really break down in the relationship with your pet. He pulls, you yank, both of you are in pain and frustrated. It is really important to take time to lead train your dog and get it right at the very beginning, the time you put in now will pay dividends in the future of your relationship.

Ever see those dog owners who have their dogs happily trotting by their side and you think “I wish my dog was like that!” Well just know that the dog owner has done a lot of work behind the scenes to gain the trust and respect from their dog and achieve a balanced relationship like that.

If you are suffering with back, neck shoulder or knee pain when walking with your dog then book yourself both in for a treatment with a Chiropractor, Kate Walder (see info at end of post) is a lady who I highly recommend as she is qualified in both human and animal chiropractor. She will have you both back in balance in no time at all.

Harnesses

Harnesses are much better than lead attached to collar but you still have to be very careful when choosing the right harness for your dog. Most of the designs on the market do not seem to have the dogs comfort in mind. They are made of rough webbing and plastic clips that can rub your dog and cause sores. We all know how grumpy we get if we get a pair of shoes that rubs, well it’s no different for your dog. One of the reasons why your dog is playing up on the lead is because it’s in pain with the equipment you have chosen for him.

Annie Shows The Fleecy Harness Here

I have tried and tested many different harnesses, but the only one that I recommend and sell is the Fleecy Harness. It is amazingly strong and well designed so that even the very large breeds such as Huskies, Cane Corsos and St Bernards can wear them safely. All the webbing is covered in a soft but durable fleece making it really comfortable for your dog. I have seen many dogs calm down instantly when one of these have been put on them. It’s almost like they are putting their dressing gown on.

The Fleecy Harness comes is 8 different sizes ranging from very small for puppies and tiny dogs to very large for the largest of breeds. They come in 12 amazing colours too!

I have produced a video below of my showing you this Fleecy Harness and how good they are. What I really want to teach you though is the “Wrap Around Lead Technique” I developed to stop your dog from pulling in the lead. The video shows this lead technique and it is very simple and easy to follow.

Each dog is different and will learn the new technique at its own pace. Patience is the key, and take thing step by step.

The Wrap Around Lead Technique

Remember that when a dog is wearing a harness and pulls it will still hurt the dogs chest, back sides and under the legs. The New Wrap Around Lead Technique ensures that all pressure is moved to the front of the chest where the dog is the strongest. It also creates a natural barrier for the dog and helps to put you both in balance.

You can see here in this picture how wrapping the Fleecy Lead around your dogs chest creates a system that both dog and owner can feel comfortable with and gives you both a sense of control and balance.

With Annie being an Ex racer, she has a very strong instinct to chase, and would squeal, somersault and slip her collar and lead and head off at high-speed for the chase. This system and technique I developed has enabled her to remain calm and balanced when she sees a trigger to chase such as a cat or squirrel and has made my life a whole lot easier too! Annie is a big girl and is very strong when she wants to pull and chase. This system enables me full control and full balance when those situations arise.

In the video below I show you how to put on the harness and apply the wrap around technique in easy to follow steps. Please enjoy.