Loose Leash Walking Foundations: Why It Doesn't Start with a Leash

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Teaching "Come to Heel" and "Join Up" as the first steps to teaching loose leash walking. If you're looking for a video to start your loose leash walking journey, start here!
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[@rachelminneapolis]

The leash is a safety belt not a steering wheel. Love it. Good reminder for us all.

[@cruisingkind3405]

This is the BEST loose leash walking training video I’ve found so far online …wish I found you months ago. Struggling with other methods for my 1yr old. Thank you so much. Will be binge watching your videos!!

[@DoggyU]

Welcome to the channel! I'm so glad it was helpful! i actually have a full playlist that you can watch in order to get the full progression of loose leash walking training that I use! You can find it here: kzbin.info/aero/PLOv3ykszW9t_doI9cfzn3plX56c1sQLOn Happy Training!

[@SD-my9so]

I like your completely clear training instruction

[@DoggyU]

Thank you SD! Appreciate the comment! :)

[@kaiferox8008]

Very informative! I feel so helpless when trying to train my dogs but you gave so many helpful pointers.

[@DoggyU]

So glad you enjoyed it! Take it slow, be clear and patient. You're both learning! :)

[@EpsilonAD]

"The leash is a safety belt not a steering wheel" What a terrific way to explain. Thank you for this awesome resource of useful, kind and practical cue giver skill building.

[@DoggyU]

Thanks Epsilon! :)

[@alip2107]

LOVE your videos. I became a dog trainer a very long time ago - but really abandoned most of the principles as it was based on choke chain corrections which I never liked in the first place. Your technique is brilliant, evidence based and effective. LOVE IT!

[@DoggyU]

💜💜💜

[@souldreamer9056]

After many months, my toy poodle will now finally walk to heal. Yay! Well, most of the time anyway. There are still two situations remaining when he definitely will NOT. These are: 1: Whenever I slow down to a comfortable, enjoyable walking speed. and 2: Whenever I give him more leash than the shortest physically possible distance between my hands and his harness. I don’t want to sound like I am some perfectionist, but it would be nice to polish off these last two blemishes from our walking routine. I’ll give what you’ve suggested a try and, if you like, keep you posted.

[@DoggyU]

please do!

[@Emily-hc9xh]

"The leash is a safety belt not a steering wheel." Great reminder!

[@DoggyU]

😊💜

[@thisgirltrainsdogs]

"The leash is a safety belt not a steering wheel" is actually an expression I use in my classes when I teach loose leash walking! 🤣 I love it 😂

[@DoggyU]

Love it!

[@MerriLoPresti]

Great video! Love this

[@DoggyU]

Thanks Meredith!!

[@benjaminerrico6760]

Excellent video! Thank you for sharing!

[@DoggyU]

Thanks Benjamin!

[@allisonhadland7148]

This is a great video! Some training videos explain things too fast and you don't actually see enough of what's happening. This was really helpful!

[@DoggyU]

Thanks Allison! I really appreciate the feedback!! Make sure you subscribe. I'm going to be releasing a lot of new how-to videos in the coming months!

[@earth2wendy]

Super! So fundamental and so valuable to be racking up the reps for this behavior. New concept for me is walking those big leftward circles, on a long line outdoors (for safety). Brilliant. From SG I learned to touch my pants seam with the treat before delivery. It’s really helped my bc find reinforcement zone. But now he tends to lag just a bit, so is maybe not ideal for, say, future guide dogs. Thanks! Am bingeing DoggyU and it’s all awesome.

[@DoggyU]

Aww thanks so much Wendy! So appreciate the comments! Happy Training!

[@nurseadrianern]

Great video -

[@DoggyU]

Thanks Nurse Adrian! Glad you enjoyed it! :) Happy Training!

[@leoandrews1696]

Excellent tutorial. Thankyou so much for posting. I will be putting your methods into practice in our training tomorrow.

[@DoggyU]

I'm so glad you found it helpful! You can check out more examples and my full loose leash walking playlist here: kzbin.info/aero/PLOv3ykszW9t_doI9cfzn3plX56c1sQLOn

[@jessif.]

Wonderful video! Thank you! I need all the help with my new rescue.

[@DoggyU]

So glad this was helpful Jessif!

[@mazcambs]

Just watched this and feel I've been asking too much of my puppy. Expecting her to not pull down the street when outside when not been trained. Finding it hard and stressful hoping some of these techniques will help

[@fenderman9178]

Started doing this training about a week ago, and am already seeing a big difference in my 4month old border collie. Then again, my puppy tends to learn things rather quickly lol

[@DoggyU]

That's awesome! Be sure to tag us on instagram @doggy.u so we can show off your hard work!

[@LAKR47]

This is an excellent video - simple, dog and trainer consistently illustrating what you're saying, all of the talking is worth listening to!

[@DoggyU]

Thank you Lori! I appreciate the kind feedback!

[@jessicajones2143]

What if the dog isn't very good motivated unless the food is burger, deli turkey, something that isn't great to keep out of the fridge for a length of time? My pup nibbles his kibble a tiny bit throughout the day. Very picky in general.

[@LoneLupine]

Great video! How would you do it with a dog who doesn't want treats?

[@DoggyU]

Hi Coco! I would work on increasing food motivation. If your dog eats (which all do to survive) I would find out what makes your dog really excited and work with that. This video might help: kzbin.info/www/bejne/sIu1eJl6hcetotU

[@LoneLupine]

@@DoggyU thank you so much!

[@DoggyU]

@@LoneLupine You're welcome :)

[@acerashley8479]

Is it okay to train them on the right side since I’m left handed? Is there any benefit for training on the left side?

[@DoggyU]

Training them on the right if you're left handed is totally fine. Left side is traditional. But unless you're planning on competing in obedience, you're good to train left, right, or both!

[@elainechevalier5756]

I get confused with Loose-leash/heel and sniff walks Seems you are using LLW and Heel as the same behavior. I understand different equipment means different types of walks. I just don't have places other than sidewalks to walk my dog. I can use a 10 foot leash though. I have got heel down. When we go on sniff walks and my dog pulls so hard that even if I stop walking, the pulling is being reinforced by pulling his body and extending his neck to sniff Anyone have ideas of what to do?

[@dogenrichmentideas7564]

Do you walk them before you train?

[@DoggyU]

Hi Emma- do you mean before my videos or in general? In general, my dogs get a morning off-leash or long line walk before our training sessions but they also get training sessions throughout the day with no prior exercise. If you're looking to work on loose leash walking, I recommend giving your dog a nice long line walk and then working on more focused walking outside. I often ask the dog to do some good loose leash walking with me and then release them to the long line to go sniff. This can be a really effective reward! Let me know if I didn't answer your question correctly :)

[@loyale5543]

Do you prefer to do this without a harness when on the longline?

[@DoggyU]

Hi Elon! I always have harness on when using a long-line to protect the dog's neck.

[@loyale5543]

Oh ok good to know... I didn't see one on the puppy that is why I asked.

[@DoggyU]

@@loyale5543 Oh! If you're asking if I always do it on lead, I don't. I will use any enclosed space to practice without a leash or harness at all, OR with a harness and long-line on.

[@UnAshamed2010]

Are you using a clicker?

[@DoggyU]

Yes - i'm clicking for finding position. But if you don't happen to use a clicker, you can always use a verbal marker!

[@lynn4259]

How do you handle resetting when the dog is not really pulling away but trying to eat/get at things? Our adolescent rarely "forges ahead" like the pit around 8 minutes of this video, but he veers off to eat sticks, sniff, etc. The "be a tree" method of having them come back doesn't work often because he's able to just stand at the end of the leash and eat/sniff/blow the handler off, so he's just reinforcing himself to pull away. I've tried backing up instead or doing uturns, but he finds that very frustrating. If we back up or circle too much away from things he will exhibit frustration behaviors like leash biting and lose interest in training.

[@DoggyU]

So the first thing I'd look at is how long I'm having him heel for. Is it a reasonable amount of time for the dog's age? Next I'd put "go sniff" on cue and use it periodically to reinforce good walking behavior, and I'd also be teaching a leave it cue as well. Hope that helps!

[@looreliflander]

How long should one training session like this last? 30min-1h or more?

[@DoggyU]

Hi Loore, my training sessions last 5-10 minutes typically. I like to do several 5 minute sessions throughout the day so the dog is fresh and excited and doesn't lose interest. I want to finish the session with the dog wishing he was still training. Training length also depends on the dog. For puppies, maybe 30 seconds to a minute whereas my cattledog has an attention span for 20 minutes or so for new training. I switch it up a lot!

[@looreliflander]

Thank you so much for the info! I'm planning on getting a whippet soon and I am curious about all the aspects of owning a dog, your videos are really helpful! Looking forward to all of your future videos :)

[@DoggyU]

Thanks Loore! Whippets are so fun! Lots of recall work as a puppy, as those sighthounds love to chase, so want to work on that recall from day 1!

[@looreliflander]

DoggyU will do! Thank you for the advice :)

[@DoggyU]

Welcome :)

[@breahogenkamp]

So peter and i are working on heel he still tries to eat my hand unless i have a small treat underneath his chin hairs 😂 then he is very gentle in which i say good gentle and i reward anytime he licks a trick to praise for thats how i want him to take a treat. But if i do in the positon u do he kinda jumps and endsnup biting my finger he is a 4year old aussiedoodle so his breeds a bit mouthy but previous owner woukd throw treats so hes used to that

[@DoggyU]

Have you seen my video on reinforcement strategies? Check it out to see how I use a wooden spoon and a lick treat as an option while you work on calmness around food: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZqSqnoGLnNSsbKs Check out the Clamshell game on Patreon.com/doggyu to help with impulse control around food as well!

[@breahogenkamp]

@DOGGY•U yeah u told me that last time LOL haven't done clamshell yet did impulse I saw immediate improvement ended up with slobber hand bur better then bitten hand 🤣

[@DoggyU]

@@breahogenkamp lol i'll take slobber over teeth for sure!

[@serrotakire]

What if you're outside with the puppy on a leash and you're doing the game where they get a cookie anytime they come to you on your left, but the puppy just never does that?

[@DoggyU]

It sounds like the outside is too distracting for your puppy. I would start it inside with a kitchen table or island until you're getting solid behavior. Then take it to a different room of the house. Then to the driveway. You pup may need a slower progression with less distractions to be successful.

[@serrotakire]

@@DoggyU thank you so much for answering me! I will try that

[@malinoisamericanakita2022]

😅 it goes well until he sees squirells

[@DoggyU]

Hey Life! You're going to have to separate out walking and distraction training. It sounds like you need to focus more on working around distractions outside of loose leash walking. Check out the "Engage Disengage" game or "Look At That" game.

[@malinoisamericanakita2022]

@DOGGY•U he's been walking lovely all week lots of Distractions. Only one German Shepherd dog he pulled me for

[@malinoisamericanakita2022]

Will do defo . 👌 we have grand children over this weekend . He's 10 month now . And we haven't seen then for a month

[@malinoisamericanakita2022]

See how he is xxx

[@DoggyU]

@@malinoisamericanakita2022 Sounds like you're making a lot of progress already!