Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Introduction
I think it is probably the most common problem I see, owners following dogs that pull. It is so unpleasant for the dog and the owner, but the dog wants the walk badly enough to endure strangling itself, and the owner keeps going forward! It feels so wonderful and gets the dog more walks, if the dog walks loosely on the leash. A dog does NOT need to be in heel position, except for short periods where you need or want more control. For the most part a dog should be given the full leash as long as they do not put tension on it. Exploration/exercise is not a luxury for a dog, it is a necessity. If you do not provide enough of it you will likely have a range of behavior issues crop up. To make a dog always walk next to the human is seriously restrictive, as dogs need far more movement than the human provides. It makes the human have to do at least triple the amount of walking to get even the basic needs met for the dog.
A dog is like a bank account, you can only get out what you put in. How much have you invested in your loose leash portfolio?
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Dogs that pull are often leaving you mentally on the walk, in their eagerness to go and explore. This means less chance to get them to come back all the way when they are off leash as well as being a way for the dog to take control of greetings with new dogs or people. Dogs that run off, do not always come back when called and those who ignore you on the leash, should all go through this program. Basically though it is the humans responsibility to communicate. By stopping, more exciting walking behavior and refusing to follow a pulling dog in order to re teach a new and better leash walking habit.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George I will outline different exercises to follow that should completely retrain any owner to be able to get their dog to; •
Check in frequently on leash first then off leash. (check in means look at you and come to be caught if need be)
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Make frequent eye contact and be ready for instructions
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Follow you when you walk away WITHOUT having to call the dog most times, comes right away when u do call.
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Make a game of walking, where it is far more interesting and satisfying for your dog
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Increase distractions so your dog comes when called no matter what (give or take a moment of delay here and there)
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Walk loosely and not pull on the leash at all, for any reason.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Retrain Yourself
Humans teach a dog to pull, by reinforcing the dog that pulls by continuing the walk. Don't blame or punish the dog, change the way you respond to pulling. STOP FOLLOWING A DOG THAT PULLS! How many times has your dog pulled (put any tension) on the leash? In just one walk count it and you will be horrified if you have been having this issue. What horrifies me more is how many times people FOLLOW the dog after each pull. Even if they jerk the leash or any other *correction* they keep moving forward! Think about it, you are doing nothing to tell the dog that unwanted pulling, will stop the desired response, the walk. Dogs NEED to explore, sniff and enjoy physical exercise. Every dog in the world should be able to enjoy a long walk on a loose leash, where they are taken to interesting new places to relax, sniff, meet new people and animals, eliminate and to share the joy of walking with their human and pack mates.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George If every time your dog pulled, instead you stopped (stopping is vital because it shows a distinct reaction to the pull that the dog can associate with quickly.) then said *EASY* (or UH OH, whoa etc any word or noise). if your dog is concerned about you and you yell OWWWW they will turn and come to you if they do not just say something to INFORM them we are stopping.) and turn away turning away from the direction the dog thinks you are always going forward in, is extremely significant. If you did it consistently (i.e every time from now on even if only briefly) and made yourself aware that you cannot ignore even one single tug on the leash, you would have a new walking pattern for the rest of your life.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Of course this means that your walks are going to be full of interruptions for a while, think instead you are learning to stop before you walk. Take a book, do your texting when you stop but patience is ABSOLUTELY what wins this race. It is so much more important to have your dog actually understand that pulling on the leash is totally unacceptable. Dogs will often completely ignore you tugging or jerking the leash, because you are STILL MOVING FORWARD even when using harsh collars or devices. Even though it causes strangling, they see it as *nagging* or they just think your a bit nutty when your walking and do not often associate it with a request to stop pulling. Far better is to make a noise to inform them they did something that causes the following behavior from you...i.e the STOP and turn round, PAUSE a moment. When you stop saying Uh Oh can be a nice polite way of saying you felt tension. Remeber anything you do that sets you up to feel ignored and frustrated, like jerking on the leash is going to ruin the experience for both of you. EXPECT to have to repeat this process many times (nothing like the amount of times it took to TRAIN the dog to pull, yes you followed tension so you really did train it YOURSELF !!!! )
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Imagine you are walking on thin ice on a pond or a land mine field and only you know the safe way through. Would you really tolerate any pulling in that instance? Well its almost as dangerous to have a dog pulling you on an icy road or even on any road with a large dog. I see more broken bones and dogs that loose so much quality of life because they cannot be walked. So teach your dog to stop before he/she can walk. Teach your dog to come back and check in on the end of a leash before letting them off leash. So a much better idea than NAGGING (if you have pulled on the leash more than a few times total, you ARE NAGGING and it is obviously not effective, punishment is what is an effective consequence and nagging is what is not) is to offer the dog a way to avoid having the collar tighten around his throat completely. It is harsh for the dog and no fun for either of you. You DESTROY your relationship because clearly you cannot be trusted on the walk and the dog often takes over or gets even more excited.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George A good leader is someone who has a clear vision and commitment for the future and cares for the safety and well being of the followers. You need to be patient and train yourself more than your dog but it works so effectively to teach the dog to stop before he walks. there is a book on leash pulling by Turgid Rugaas and also a video by Dr Ian Dunbar. I worked on combining the two, tweaking it for myself and testing it on a great many people who had extremely bad pulling behavior both in themselves and their dogs, is how i developed my method. I like to use a long leash with dogs that have a terrible habit of pulling or are over excited, where pulling on the leash isn't working for the owner. The shorter the leash, the quicker they run into putting TENSION on it, so make it longer to teach that whenever there is tension you will Stop and make a noise to alert him that he made a mistake. So he can sniff and explore. Then we gradually teach to have a shorter leash at the end of the walk for a period of time, reward them by letting them have a long leash again.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George The gentle leader can be a really good tool for interrupting the pulling pattern and I will often recommend it to provide immediate relief for owners that are difficult to re train due to a life-long habit, but it does not change the dog's mental attitude toward walking. You still have the same problem when it comes off (usually not always) because it PREVENTS it does not teach new skills. Also some dogs react very strongly to it, rolling on the floor and scratching and this puts owners off (try taking a hungry dog with tasty meat treats and keep walking, not stopping when the dog starts messing with the gentle leader, giving treats only when the dog is leaving it alone). The dog needs to learn cause and effect and how to have more control over his/her freedom. If you go still and turn your feet to lead, make a startled noise ( imagine your in a land mine field and each pull could take you into a mine...only you know the way through) to get their attention that they made a mistake.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Wait until they remember to come back and check on you or bend down and smooch to the dog to get them to come back and touch you, this is the GO AGAIN BUTTON and you will walk forward once the dog brings tension off the leash and comes toward you. You will eventually turn and go away from the direction the dog is focused in if he keeps ignoring u and looking forward or being utterly distracted. But always PAUSE for a moment take a nice deep breath before moving on in any direction. Say the request *lets go* or whatever you want to say so the dog hears *come* or *lets go* right before you move away. Thus it begins to mean *I'm leaving* and has far more significance to the dog.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George The pinch collar should NEVER be used without a trainer's guidance (and never at all if possible) because you end up over using it without changing the behavior, just like any tool used incorrectly without the right philosophy and touch behind it. Put anything you will use on a dog around your wrist (you wouldn't dream of using it around your own neck!!) and really give it a hard pull.......you are doing that to your dog often hundreds of times in a walk if you do not learn effective strategy for changing the dogs MENTAL patterns on the walk.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George There are cases in the past where i did use the pinch or prong, when the dog is so under invested in by the owner (not satisfied enough mentally and physically, its something a lot of people do not realize dogs need so much), the owner now wants to get rid of the dog, or even put them down as is often the case. The dog has stopped being walked because they pull so badly and have even damaged or broken the owners bones! I have used the prong very temporarily on a large, dangerously out of control dog, to give a more significant interruption when they pull but i stop and turn and wait until they learn pulling wont budge me. I always always use as little force as possible and as much positive association as I can, clicker is my favourite method and patience then putting more investment of time and energy into the dog to create a willing partner.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George If the owner does not change his/her habits, then no tool in the world will help them because dogs learn who they can behave a certain way with. If you have a dog that pulls you and you are reading this, please, please realize that you need to put at least seven days with multiple daily walks into changing this. But even if you take a lot longer, start adding these things in and you will dramatically change your dogs perception. At first it seems like nothing is happening but your dog will learn they cannot make the walk happen when they pull you.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Electric collars are the worst tool man invented for dog training. They use only pain and punishment. People use them because they are unwilling or unable to use consistent and effective discipline (getting physical control of the dog, firm, fair and fun attitude, creating new patterns and reinforcing them daily). I have seen a place for them in field work and in retraining behaviors that are life threatening, I make it a policy to try every tool so if the owner is unable or unwilling to use one tool, I can offer another.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George However I have never wanted to make these a use in anything but life or death situations as I feel they are a lazy and CRUEL way of doing things, and if your timing is off, then you are quite literally abusing the dog. I would never ever use one on a child, for any reason, and dog's learn so easily if your consistent, no matter how bad your timing is if you stop when the dog pulls and change directions and call them to you and reward them when they come to you, they will AT LAST learn to change. Every person should reach for a treat or toy, before an electric collar, and realise how effective positive training which is MOTIVATIONAL TRAINING , can be. Find the right motivation for your dog, add a significant consequence (such as not walking) without pain and fear, which inhibit true learning, then you have the recipe for success.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George A harness is a wonderful tool for dogs and cannot strangle, but you need to learn not to allow or reinforce pulling when you use it, same as the collar. The collar though, is around the neck and this should be treated with the utmost respect. The Clicker. A click marks *yes you did it right, reward to follow a.s.a.p.* My absolute favorite tool because it represents only positive training. But one which requires understanding that you are shaping a behavior before applying it to a real life application. So it is like learning French before going to France. Go there too soon and all you hear is *blah blah blah blach*. Karen Pryor's Don't Shoot The Dog, or Reaching The Animal Mind and Emma Parson's Click to Calm are brilliant books that teach the principles. Kay Laurence also has step by step clicker training program.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George
Every dog should be able to graduate and walk calmly and gently in a normal collar or harness without any devices. If you are using the device for longer than a month, you are not making enough progress or learning how to teach the dog not to pull. With positive training at least you are not damaging your dog in the process! You need to experiment and make changes and monitor progress made. Some methods work for some and not others so i have learned to teach most methods now, but always tell the owner, you have to use patience and be prepared to commit for a few weeks, in this case 7 days, of not following pulling should change yours and your dog's walking habits for life.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George CHANGE THE WALK FROM THIS MOMENT ON:
The ONLY way to do this is to retrain the dog that any tension on the leash or pulling means the walk will stop!. That you will: FIRST AND FOREMOST do not put any tension on the leash yourself, hold it at the very end and keep it loose. So that the dog isn't constantly in opposition to you, you are always going to struggle if your holding tight, even if its because you are afraid it is NOT helping. It does not make you safer. Practice this method in a fenced area where you are safe or practice it in the house until you realize that holding the leash loose gives you so much more control because the *silence* when the leash is loose means so much more than all the *white noise* that goes on when both of you are making the leash taut.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George (as soon as you feel any tension, the slightest tug on the leash from the dog's end) STOP COMPLETELY AND PAUSE (for a few seconds) (say "Steady" or "stop", "halt"etc every time YOU stop so the dog learns what that means.) BEND DOWN AND CALL THE DOG ONCE MAKE A SMOOCHING NOISE to get attention and keep at it until the dog comes back to check in with you. Then you cam move forward, but always zig zag dont go straight. If the dog continually ignores you: TURN AWAY FROM THE DOG(to take your energy and focus off the forward direction, dogs are anticipating where we are going to). PICK AN INTERESTING FOCUS, (A NEW PLACE TO GO in a different direction).
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George PRAISE THE DOG FOR COMING TO YOU (even if this is not perfect yet) drop something tasty next to you so the dog has more reason to come by your side. or click and drop a treat to mark the moment the dog was correct, being on a loose leash near you. Turning completely away takes your energy away from what the dog is focusing on and puts you back in front, in the position of leading the walk, being involved with where you are going instead of being an automaton, mindlessly following your pulling hound until you notice your arms are coming out of their sockets!
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Exercise 1 (do this at home in a quiet time if possible at first) STOP BEFORE YOU WALK
1/. Put the leash on when the dog is sitting and if need be open the door a few times until he is calm, if he is not calm, close the door and turn away until even a small improvement in behavior is shown. Turn back and open the door - repeat until you are getting a reduction in excitement before going and the dog can sit and you can go first. Use treats to reward calm behavior. 2/. Go two paces out of the door and say *Steady* calmly, come to a full stop - if the dog is pulling or ahead, turn back around and walk away a few paces. Stop and repeat this every couple of paces until the dog learns that you will be stopping a lot. Do not wait more than a few paces of walking for several days until the dog has a clear understanding that you WILL be stopping not surging forward all the time.
USE THIS BEFORE EVERY WALK AND FOR A FEW MOMENTS AT A TIME IN *REAL* WALKS
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George 3/. Start treating the dog for stopping with you and looking up at you is even better, touch them and praise them *Good Dog* Use something tasty like a piece of ham mixed in with some of their own kibble. 4/. Work on the steady at 4 paces, then later 6 paces and get longer and longer over the next few days, but be prepared to go back to 4 paces often. Do not worry about the actual walk at this stage, you will always stop if you feel tension, even if you are short on time, because if you take the time to work on this, you will improve the walk immediately and permanently and most important you stop following the dog that pulls. 5/. DO NOT FOLLOW A PULLING DOG FOR ANY REASON ON EARTH! always at least pause, change directions and get them to come up to you before starting moving again.
USE THIS BEFORE EVERY WALK AND FOR A FEW MOMENTS AT A TIME IN *REAL* WALKS
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George 6/. Start to go longer between *steadies* but keep adding them in all throughout the walk. Every time the dog pulls STOP for a moment, TURN AWAY AND GO A COUPLE OF PACES IN A NEW DIRECTION! (I had one woman that thought she needed to go 500 yards in another direction and she could never get to where she was headed ! A few paces in one direction at a time is all that’s needed so you are not as predictable. Its called ZIG ZAG. 7/. If the dog keeps pulling go back to saying *steady* every couple of paces and turn around if he is ahead too far or pulling. 8/. Take your dog to interesting places, so that following you becomes more motivational. Show them where to sniff and do not keep walking a straight line on a boring road ! No dog gets real pleasure out of that all the time, you need to take them into grass verges or at least find occasional places to sniff at the side of the road.
USE THIS BEFORE EVERY WALK AND FOR A FEW MOMENTS AT A TIME IN *REAL* WALKS
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Add a noise like *uh oh* when you stop to make yourself noticeable to the dog that you have stopped and are not responding favorably by continuing, the dog will be so used to lugging its human around in many cases, that they do not notice any amount of tugging or yelling. Much better to not only stop but actually turn your focus away so the dog becomes aware you are paying your attention to a completely different direction. You make the noise as soon as you feel the tug, then you wait for the dog to notice and come back to you, this startled noise helps you be on the look out for tugs and immediately indicates to the dog you are about to stop.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Then you wait to see if your dog will pause and maybe even look back at you. Either way you bend down and call to the dog in a pleasant manner (remember your dog needs to WANT to come with you) then pick a new direction and really focus on going there and off you go. Soon as you feel your dog with you praise him/her happily and give a treat or pat of affection and move out quickly. You can move off in a straight line again if the dog came back quickly and without ignoring you. If he comes up to be touched quickly after putting tension on, you may go forward, however you want to turn and move away if there is any amount of ignoring you.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Having said this, if your dog is not getting enough stimulation or mental discipline in other areas and has more frustrated energy due to lack of stimulation and exercise. This whole process is going to go more slowly. You also need to follow some of the at home games and other exercises. Look at the other behaviors and figure out if you are REALLY meeting your dog's needs. It is so very unfair to have a dog that needs stimulation and exercise, to provide the minimum of this, and still expect when you do take him/her for a walk, that they stay right by your side the whole way! This is ridiculous for us humans to do to their canine friends.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Your dog LIVES for going outside to explore with you, not in a yard by him/herself, with YOU his leader and best friend. You do need to provide stuffed Kong's to chew, i love to freeze moist dog kibble in a Kong with a blob of peanut butter or cottage cheese on top when i leave my dogs. You need to interact and stimulate them for a few minutes only every hour or so you are home with them. Teach them to use their minds and their bodies do not need as much then because thinking can tire dogs out! (See language for Life)
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George But dogs are physical creatures and there is nothing that improves behavior so much as regular walks and mental exercise. Just doing the loose leash program however gets the dog to think and helps them get emotional control so they are calmer. it can profoundly change a dogs behavior in minutes if the owner is committed and gets it quickly. It needs to make sense to YOU or you wont do it. I'm providing the thing that makes sense to the DOG and its up to you to give it the full chance to work.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George When humans walk along like zombies, uninterested in their surroundings, dogs decide to take matters into their own paws and start exploring and sniffing and they learn in this way to leave us for the walk. You suck, your fired, GOODBYE ! is what i tell people when i see them do this zombie shuffle, always in a straight line and always forgetting to provide the poor dog with ample run and sniff time. Make yourself pick a series of places to walk quickly too then stop and check them out and be interested. What does your dog's drives dictate it is going to be more interested in? Looking for smells of prey, things to climb over or on, other dogs, or new places to explore.
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George There are so many behaviors that an individual dog may need to exhibit and you are not providing an opportunity or ample outlet. This can be why your dog leaves you at the house and runs off. You are not regularly providing the kind of out of doors exercise your dog wants more than it wants to be with you at that time.
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Remember a dog will always always eventually choose to be WITH its owner if you provide the right amount of exercise and exploration, you can then lessen it over time to find the compromise for your life and his, but to start you need to INVEST MORE TIME AND ENERGY in getting them *sane* again and if you only focus on what you do not want your dog to do, instead of focusing on what good behaviors you are prepared to invest attention into, then the dog is hardly ever likely to be successful. Then they have no motivation to offer good behaviors in certain situations The example of this is the dog that is *great at home* but becomes a slobbering, excited beast when out on walks or in public. Reason? because they are not practiced with outside and they are used to what goes on indoors and there is very little for them to do that is wrong indoors. Answer = practice more of this program outdoors in less distracting circumstances first, then gradually building up on it.
You cannot fix it by avoiding it.
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Put yourself in a room for a whole day with nothing to do. Your dog waits at home for you while you leave in much the same way. We need to provide stimulation at home or else the dog goes into a resting state and waits for us, because to them, they believe that when we get home we will go hunting or exploring together as pack. Hunting leaves and smells (just a silly example) can easily replace real hunting but if you are holding onto a leash with little enjoyment of the surroundings and providing either too much freedom or none at all your dog is going to ignore you. Also remember some dogs need at least an hours walk at least once per day and some need a three hour walk! If that is all they have had that day. Or else you must come up with more things to occupy them mentally and still provide the ability to run sniff and explore with you for a period.
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Even a few minutes of off leash movement when you get home followed by a 15 min walk later on will change dramatically the dog over time. Its that bottle neck of energy when you get home you need to shift, you then should either play with them outside for a few minutes or walk around near your property or provide a quick leash walk,(i put this dog on a 20ft leash and move quickly) then do what you need to do and later take them again for as long a run and romp around that you can manage. If you cant do it every day, at least the few minutes when you get home will help and then a few times each week. Use a Doggie daycare if you can and if your dog is well behaved with other dogs. I always take the dog to new places if the behavior is bad and I always use line of sight and hide away from the dog, after working on recall and showing them i provide a fast paced, interesting walk.
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George I do not do hours and hours, usually an hour at most at a time because most people cannot or will not provide more and i do not want to set them up to demand more than they will be reasonably provided. But i will do several shorter sessions in one day so the dog looks forward to what I am doing with them and is then not spending time plotting his/her own escape plans!
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George CASE EXAMPLE:
If I get a dog that is running off, I identify what drive motivates the dog?, is it to meet other dogs? find prey? smell and mark territorial boundaries? For instance I had a hound mix that wanted to run literally miles and miles and no amount of leash walking would satisfy. However, he was completely untrustworthy to let off leash. I got a long 25ft line and started making sure first he could walk on a loose leash. I walked him for an hour at a time but no more. Then I allowed him more and more room to roam but made sure he knew how to come back in exactly the same way, bend down ask him to come, give him chicken or something super tasty and turn and walk off, treat for coming, repeat until consistent.
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Until the dog knew i would provide what it needed and provide more interest on the walk than he was providing by himself. At least within my human capacity, i could not run for as many miles as he could but i was the keeper of the chicken! I took toys and food and changed direction, pointed out rabbit holes and used discipline which all dogs love (that means only that i made rules up like when i ask you to come i will insist on it if you ignore me and reward you the moment you get here no matter what).
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Then I picked up the pace and changed directions and ran around like a loon, for short periods, expecting him to put no pressure at all on the leash and start watching me for changes in direction until he was regularly seeing that I was providing a fun diverting chase like exploration. He was a sight hound, not so interested in sniffing as exploring large amounts of territory and looking for things that ran. I made our runs interesting and changed constantly but never did more than about an hour with him even though he would happily go all day. I made sure I gave him lots of stimulation at home (see other chapters) and fed him by hand to build up the bond. Then I took off the leash and set out somewhere new.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George He did not know where we were going but he did know he could rely on me to go fast at times and change direction a lot, i had other dogs with me so there was more incentive to keep with us and I knew it was possible that he could run off but it was certain that he would run off if i did not keep working on it! Every single time he looked like going too far, I changed direction and put trees between us and tried to loose him. Soon as he *caught* me I would praise lavishly and treat generously. I had chicken with me every time he got close i thew chicken bits, but didn't always stop because he would get bored with too much stopping and starting. But i frequently put him back on a leash too and then took it off again so he was not worried about *being caught*. That he could trust the leash to not mean an end to the fun, which a lot of people make the mistake of doing.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George He never leaves without permission now, he will run in a large circle but he is totally cured of leaving me on a walk and i can always call him back if he roams a little too far. This dog was born utterly feral and it took me a month when I took over. He was supposed to be my husband's dog but my husband kept him on a short leash and went for slow boring walks instead of fast and more interesting walks (my husband was fitter than i was though and still bored the dog) Theo was never satisfied by that because of his strong drive for exploration. It might not sound it but this was the worst case of loooooong range dog I ever saw, he would travel so far when he got loose that you would not see him again unless someone caught him and this only happened once or twice because he jumped a 7ft fence before we realized how serious it was.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George He had no reason to stay with the human in his mind. He had been sent back to the shelter several times because he would tear up the house, run off and not return, howl and carry on because he had no idea how to live as part of a human pack and he had no need for physical affection until he learned to love us for what we provided for him in terms of his exercise and mental discipline.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George There are dogs I would not let off leash for about a month or so of doing this type of program but most I do within a day or two! You need to learn what program will work best for your dog and yourself, if it is not making progress after two weeks or so then something is wrong and you should video what is going on and send it to me or else have a trainer come see it. If you get loose leash walking and more obedience but your dog still runs away when they get the chance, then you probably have a dog with high motivation to seek out something you are not providing and you need to set up more adrenaline inducing activities on your walks. You might need coaching on this method because you cannot apply the written explanation but need to see it done before your eyes. We all learn in different ways, but it is not the dog's fault we are awful at teaching leash manners !
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George You do not need to be able to run like a spring buck either. You can do it at your pace, just make sure you do it often. You do not need to do this forever, just until the dog can trust you are satisfying their needs and then you find a compromise. I have gone days without walking due to illness or such, but my dogs are calm and know its coming, i always always get back to it and play with them for an hour or more total time each day. You can use throwing toys, planting treats around the garden and changing directions in a wooded area, bikes,horses, roller blades or just be much more dynamic on the walk and hide goodies that you take the dog to *find* and dig up.
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George Just know with absolute certainty that there is no reason on earth to have a dog that pulls on the leash, its dangerous and means the dog is not getting what it truly needs from you. Patience and understanding with firm fair and fun leadership. Enjoy walking with your dog on a loose leash !
Enjoy walking with your dog on a loose leash !
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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Manual and DVD for | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme from Marnie George
Manual and DVD | The Loose Leash 7 day training programme by Marnie George, edition 1.4, 4th February 2012
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