Basic Obedience - Week 5
Extra Leash Walking Activities
The Two Step
A good activity to help improve your dogs focus on you during leash walking is a fun “game” we call the two step. If you think of the Two Step it goes slow slow quick quick, and this is exactly what we want you to do. Start off walking with your dog, now slow right down (think how a 95 yr old grandma walks, she should win a foot race with you right now), now speed up (faster than your normal walk, not quite jogging). Repeat this, mixing it up between slow, normal, and fast. Make sure to reward your dog often for GOOD walking.
Turns
Another good activity to practice when working on leash walking is your turns. You can do this “free for all style” or you can set up a square (use cones, chairs etc) in an open area. If you are doing it “free for all” begin walking at a normal pace and then turn around by turning IN TOWARDS your dog and then continue walking as normal, now turn again but this time turn AWAY from your dog. If you are using a square practice walking around it one way (this will result in your turns being either in towards or away from your dog depending what side you walk your dog on) and then switch directions (effectively switching if you are turning towards or away from the dog). This activity helps to clean up our turns as often when we turn IN towards our dogs it can get a bit messy and we start tripping over them as they walk in front of us. If you are struggling with the inside turn practice holding your dog back a bit via leash pressure to get them used to waiting for you to turn before they follow suit.
A good activity to help improve your dogs focus on you during leash walking is a fun “game” we call the two step. If you think of the Two Step it goes slow slow quick quick, and this is exactly what we want you to do. Start off walking with your dog, now slow right down (think how a 95 yr old grandma walks, she should win a foot race with you right now), now speed up (faster than your normal walk, not quite jogging). Repeat this, mixing it up between slow, normal, and fast. Make sure to reward your dog often for GOOD walking.
Turns
Another good activity to practice when working on leash walking is your turns. You can do this “free for all style” or you can set up a square (use cones, chairs etc) in an open area. If you are doing it “free for all” begin walking at a normal pace and then turn around by turning IN TOWARDS your dog and then continue walking as normal, now turn again but this time turn AWAY from your dog. If you are using a square practice walking around it one way (this will result in your turns being either in towards or away from your dog depending what side you walk your dog on) and then switch directions (effectively switching if you are turning towards or away from the dog). This activity helps to clean up our turns as often when we turn IN towards our dogs it can get a bit messy and we start tripping over them as they walk in front of us. If you are struggling with the inside turn practice holding your dog back a bit via leash pressure to get them used to waiting for you to turn before they follow suit.
Auto Sit
We are big believers in teaching a dog an “auto sit”. Auto sit’s are nice because it teaches the dog if you stop during a walk they should stop. This can be potentially life savings for example at a corner of a busy street.
To teach this start walking and stop every few feet, when you stop ask for a sit and then reward the sit. Repeat this a few times.
To teach this start walking and stop every few feet, when you stop ask for a sit and then reward the sit. Repeat this a few times.
Door Manners
Coming soon
