# Dragging me around the block



## doglover (Aug 4, 2009)

How do I train my dog to heal? He is almost 6 months old and he is dragging me around the block. I have tried the gentle leader which he HATES and I have a pincher. Both options are better than just his regular collar but I just want him to stop this behavior all together. When the leaves are blowing he is like a crazy man running in the road trying to catch all the leaves blowing by.


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## Crazy Kian (Aug 10, 2009)

Well, our guy gets a dogwalker twice a week and that helps, because she puts him in with a pack of dogs...if he gets out of line then one of them will let him know in a K9 sort of way. ;D
Since we have been doing that, he has become much better at walking on a leash, this is not to say he is perfect. 
We always have an abundance of treats when we walk him.
If he starts to pull, we stop and wait til he comes back to us. You only move forward when he stops pulling.
Yes, your walk will take a long time.
Other than that you have to work on it constantly, even if it's in the home or in the yard..
Good luck.


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## Sahara (Mar 22, 2009)

I was having this issue with Tizane. One day while at Petsmart I ran into some one who owns one of her older sisters. They told me about the Sporn halter which they said worked with their dog. I went online and picked one up and it did wonders with our girl. It goes on like a harness but it works completely different. When they start to pull, the halter pulls at their chest, so they don't want to pull (not comfortable.) If she starts to pull all I have to say is no pull now and she falls back in line. We've even had squirrels and cats cross our paths with no problem.


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## aaclonts (Nov 4, 2009)

I've always used the command "slow" and "leave it". Slow is when Charlie needs to walk by my side. This took a few days of constant treats when responding to "slow". Now (at 4 months), he knows the command. We are working on "leave it" and are seeing some great progress.

I know how you feel about the leaves blowing...he thinks it's his duty to chase every single one of them. We were/are very consistent with our commands, and as challenging as they are for us, it's definitely paying off.

Just hang in there and be as consistent as possible 

Good luck!


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## jas (Mar 31, 2009)

You have to hang in there. I started Oscar from day 1 and it has helped. Now, if he pulls i give a couple of short jerks on the leash and he's fine. Sometimes i just put pressure on the leash and say sshhhh... and he slows down. But if i don't keep on top of it, within a couple of days he thinks its ok to pull again, I've found that all training needs to be constant!


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## gunnr (Aug 14, 2009)

Doglover

Training a dog to walk at heel is a fairly straight forward process. The hitch is that it must be taught and trained.
To train your dog to walk at heel, get a 9' leash and a regular old leather safety collar.You don't need a choke collar.
Attach the leash to the dogs collar and place your dog at a position where his neck is roughly at your left knee. Have just enough slack in the leash so that the collar is not applying pressure. Applying pressure at this point will encourage your dog to begin pulling. Your left hand will be on the shorter length going to the collar, and the balance will be loosely coiled in your right hand.
Start the dog off with the "Heel Up" command given and take a step or two forward. If your dog does not maintain the correct position with respect to the left knee, stop, place him at the heel and start again. You may literally only be taking two or three steps and stopping. _*Don't get frustrated here !*_
At 6 months old ,the start and stop may confuse him a bit,a nd he may actually not move forward after the first few commands. He'll pick it quick, I promise, but just talk to him in a nice even tone, as if everything is just as natural as can be. Don't jerk on the leash, or pull him off his feet, just a nice steady stepping off while commanding "Heel Up"
Once he is generally moving with you let a little more slack out with your left hand and keep a coil of about a 3 foot length in your right hand. As he's moving you're going to sound off the "Heel Up" command as if you were a drill instructor in boot camp. Heel Up.. Heel Up... Heelup..." Once again as steady and calm as can be. no yelling and lots of praise and pets. Keep him at that knee. Change direction on him too. Gentle left and right hand turns.
Once you're sure he understands what "Heel Up" means, which won't take very long either, you're going to change some things. Your left hand that was on the leash will now be at your side, and the right hand will have that 3 foot coil of lead. Position him at the knee again and step off. commanding "Heel Up". The moment he strays from your knee, Three things are going to happen. Slap your thigh and command "Heel Up",make an abrupt right hand turn, and step off smartly dropping that of lead, of course you still have the leash handle in your hand though. When you do this, he will be pulled toward you, and that dropped coil of lead put a little pop to his collar. 
You're not trying to pull him off his feet, or get rough with him. You're trying to get him to pay attention to where you are at. Get him back to the heel position and repeat the process. He will get tired of being jerked by that coil of leash of leash and start to pay attention.
Work with him everyday at this, multiple time per day, but keep the sessions short due to his age. Everytime he decides the direction, you change it on him. If he pulls to get back to the house, drop that coil and do a 180 and take him away from the house, or wherever he wants to go.
This is a smooth methodical process. Don't be harsh or heavy handed. You just want to approach the walk at heel as if it's the most normal thing in the world.


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## doglover (Aug 4, 2009)

Thank you for alll of your words of wisdom. I have taken your advice and things are MUCH better already!


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