Walk Nice Course

Walking nicely on-leash is one of the hardest behaviors for dogs to master. The world is an exciting place and they want to go investigate, not just walk in a boring straight line. They also have two more legs than we do. However, using positive reinforcement and reward-based training, we can teach your dog to walk nicely with you, not against you.

There are many reasons why dogs pull when they are on-leash:

• They are trying to investigate things;
• They have two more legs than we do;
• They've learned pulling works (it gets them where they want to go);
• They are pulling against the pressure on the leash (oppositional reflex).

To counteract this, we need to help the dog understand walking at our side on a loose leash is a far better alternative to pulling at the end of the leash. Training loose leash walking not only will make your walks more pleasant, it will also avoid injuries to both yourself (shoulder, wrist, back strain) and your dog (collapsed trachea, neck and back injuries).

In this 4-week course, we will outline how you can help your dog understand walking at your side is the ideal place to be. They will find this position to be pleasant and fun, not something they dread or fear.