How to Leash Train a Puppy
Leash training a puppy is an essential part of obedience training for your new puppy. After all, dogs are required to be on a leash in many public places. Starting early is the best way to get your puppy leash trained.
Your puppy should already be used to wearing a collar. Now is the time to attach that collar to a leash. A whole leash may be a bit intimidating for a puppy. Some owners like to start with a string or an old shoelace. As the puppy gets used to something being attached to his collar, make the leash longer until you can use a real leash. Clip the leash to the puppy’s collar when he’s busy doing something else – eating, playing, chewing on a toy – and let him get accustomed to the feeling. If he gets annoyed with it, don’t remove it. That will just teach him that fussing gets him results. Only remove the leash once the puppy begins to behave normally again.
NOTE: Don’t leave your puppy unattended when he’s wearing his leash. It could catch on something and put your dog in a dangerous situation.
If your puppy chews the leash, you should apply some anti-chewing spray (like Bitter Apple) to the leash before every session. This will train your puppy not to chew leashes and will save you in both money and the possibility of a dog chewing himself free!
Before holding the leash yourself, train your puppy to come to you and move where you move. Treats work great to help this process along. Puppies love to follow, so this should be an easy and fun game and condition the pup to walk with a leash attached.
Once your puppy is used to following you while dragging his leash behind him, it’s time to pick up your end of the leash. Remember that a taut leash can cause damage to a dog’s throat, so your goal is to train your puppy to walk without pulling and maintain a loose leash. Did you know that the handler is the reason that dogs pull on leashes? If you are holding the leash tightly, your dog will want to pull. If you are loose and relaxed, your dog will pick up your vibes and be relaxed as well.
Your first step is to follow your puppy around while holding the leash. Then use the tricks that you used to get your puppy to follow you. Don’t pull on the leash and don’t let the puppy pull you. If your puppy tries to pull you, stand perfectly still. This will send the message to your puppy that pulling will get him absolutely nowhere. If the younger members of your family aren’t strong enough to do this, then they should not participate in leash training until the puppy has learned not to pull.
Once your puppy learns not to pull, you can do all the fun “follow me” games while holding the leash. Reward your puppy for staying with you and not pulling on the leash. Remember, keep training short, sweet, and fun and you’ll have a well-behaved, leash-trained puppy in no time!
