Teaching Three Dogs in Santa Monica to Stop Pulling on the Leash

For this Santa Monica dog training session, we were called in to stop three dogs from pulling on the leash (from left; Tosh a 10 year-old Xoloitzcuintli, Kona, a 2 year-old Australian Shepherd and Bear, a 4 year-old Australian Shepherd / Golden Retriever mix).

The dogs were excited to see me when I arrived for the session but aside from invading my personal space and a little jumping, they did pretty good.

After sitting down with their guardians discuss the dog behavior problems she wanted help with, it appeared that she had done a good job of providing rules and structure for the dogs which is why they were pretty well behaved while inside.

I made a few suggestions and offered a few positive dog training tips as well as ways to more effectively communicate with her dogs before I turned my attention to their primary problem.

Stopping a dog from pulling on the leash is different than teaching it to walk with a loose leash. But because I’m usually able to fix most problems in one visit, I decided to try to create a free dog training video that covers both subjects.

It’s going to be important for the guardian to keep practicing each step of the process over and over in the easiest situation possible until the dogs stop pulling on the leash or start walking with a loose leash.

Once that is the case, then she can start making me exercise slightly more difficult each time. When it comes to loose leash training, steady and consistent progress is the name of the game.

By the end of the session the guardian’s timing and technique with the leash was much improved. Best of all, you could see a real difference in how Kona was behaving. She was paying attention to her guardian and already following behind her in a nice heel position.

If the guardian continues to practice these techniques, warm up the dogs before the walk and provide a lot of positive reinforcers, it shouldn’t take long before all three dogs are walking next to her with a loose leash.

To help the guardian remember all the dog behavior tips we covered in this in home dog training session, we shot a roadmap to success video.