Does your dog pull on the leash when you take him for a walk?  I think most dogs do unless they learn a better way to walk with you.  I have large dogs and I know that I have been pulled like a wishbone a few times.  Fortunately, it’s not too hard to train your dog to walk calmly by your side.

It is always easiest to train a puppy, but you can train any dog, of any age to walk politely on a leash. You will need a collar that fits correctly, such as a flat buckle collar.  Nylon is fine.  You should be able to fit two fingers between the collar and your dog’s neck, so make sure that it is not too tight or too loose.  You will also need a good leash.  A six-foot leash that matches the collar is a good choice, such as the Premier Leash.

When you are ready to go for a walk, you should attach the leash to your dog’s collar and go to an area that is unfamiliar to your dog so your dog won’t have any pre-conceived ideas about where you are going.  A park or an empty playground are good places to practice.  You can start walking and, as soon as your dog starts to pull ahead of you, you should come to a complete halt and refuse to move.  You should “become a tree.”  Or a statue.  You can think of it either way.  But do not move.  Your dog should notice that the walk has come to a stop and he will, sooner or later, turn around and come back to you to see what’s going on.  As soon as your dog returns to you, you can give him a “Good boy (or girl)” for returning, and start walking forward again.  If you do this every single time that your dog pulls ahead of you, your dog will soon get bored with halting and start staying close to your side.

If this method doesn’t work, you can try another method.  Start walking with your dog close by your side.  Walk in any direction for 10-15 seconds and then change direction at random.  Walk in that direction for 10-15 seconds and then change direction again. Keep changing direction every few seconds.  When you do this, which, believe it or not, requires a lot of concentration, your dog is forced to focus on you and watch what you are doing and where you are going.  He cannot move out ahead of you or pull you in a direction he wants to go because he has no idea where you are going.  This will make your dog walk close to your side.  You can only do this exercise for about 10 minutes or so because it does require a lot of concentration on your part and on your dog’s part, but it is very effective. This exercise will make even the worst pulling dog start to walk at your side after a few lessons.

So, if your dog pulls you, don’t give up hope.  Try these exercises and your dog should be walking on a loose leash next to you very quickly.