What to do if puppy pulls on leash?
It can be an annoying and potentially even dangerous habit if your puppy pulls on the leash when you’re taking them potty or out for a walk. But what can you do if your puppy has formed this habit? There are a few options to correct this behavior that will be covered in this article.
Why Shouldn’t your Puppy Pull?
Let’s explore why you don’t want your berne Doodle to pull on the leash. The first is that you’re giving up control if your Berne Doodle thinks it’s okay to run ahead of you when you take them out or go for a walk. This will make going off leash more challenging since your puppy will think it’s okay to roam wherever he or she wants. Therefore, they won’t listen to your command to ‘stay” or “come” meaning it will be difficult to get control of them and back in your possession.
Related, the second issue is that there’s always a chance, however small, that your puppy could pull so hard and unexpectedly that it pulls the leash right out of your hand. Again, if this happens, it will be challenging to get your dog back into the house. They think that being outside means they can do whatever they want. This could lead them to going “rogue” chasing after something like a rabbit for example. They could end up getting lost or even worse, getting injured from a vehicle if they’re running free.
These are difficult situations, but things to consider that you realize the importance of training your puppy to not pull on the leash.
Another big thing to consider is injury to yourself if your Berne Doodle pulls on the leash. Even if they don’t pull so hard that the leash comes out of your hand, it could jerk your arm causing injury to your arm, thumb, back or even your knee if it’s icy out.
Cooper Pulling
Cooper had a really bad habit of pulling on the leash. So much so that he caused Courtney to twist her knee on one occasion and sprained her thumb on another. He’s a big boy who doesn’t know his own strength so it’s not surprising that he could cause something like that to happen.
But the good news is that there are things you can do to prevent this behavior if it hasn’t started yet or correct it if it has. The first is training, which will take time and a lot of patience to get them to adhere to the desired behavior of not pulling on the leash.
Approach to Leash Training
Before you start the training process, grab a bag of high value (something that the dog loves but doesn’t get often to entice them to pay attention and listen). One way to start slow is to begin practicing indoors to ensure that your pup has minimal distractions while learning what behaviors are acceptable and what are not. The least amount of distractions the better so that you can help them succeed! With Cooper we began walking in small circles around the island and giving frequent praise and treats. Then we progressed to a larger circle around the kitchen and going more time between treats and kept progressing in size / time between treats until he was ready to practice outside with distractions.
Once we moved outdoors we again tried to stick to the backyard, then the front yard and then progressed to louder and busier streets. The frequent praise and treat giving helps your dog to learn that sticking by your side, not pulling way ahead, is the preferred behavior. Eventually it will become a habit and you won’t need to provide the frequent treats!
Some other areas to work on once the dog is walking next to you is to ensure that the dog knows some commands during the walk, such as “heel”. This is especially helpful to give a gentle verbal reminder to the dog that they should be by your side, even when a distraction is present. Having them sit is also a helpful way to curtail any unwanted behaviors and reset the dog by your side before starting on your walk again. As with any new skill, this will take time and patience for your dog to pick up on!
Another helpful item in conjunction with training if you wish, is to use a harness where you can clip the leash to the front near your Berne Doodle’s chest. He or she won’t like the feeling of the harness pulling off to the side and this will deter the behavior of pulling on the leash. Use this walking method for about 2 weeks to a month and then transition the leash clip from the front to the back of the harness. The pulling should have subsided significantly.
The ultimate goal is for your puppy to walk at your pace, by your side. If he or she does lead, it should only be slightly such that the leash is not taught and has some slack.
Final Thoughts
With Cooper, the combination (training while clipping the leash to the front of his harness) really curbed the leash pulling. We were relieved to break him of the habit because it was so ingrained in his routine and we knew the potential consequences if we didn’t break him of the habit. His walks are so much easier now. He listens better, gets lots of treats and exercises and it gives us peace of mind that he’ll listen to commands.
So pulling on the leash has some negative consequences that can cause injury to you and your puppy. The sooner you start training your puppy and using a harness with a hook on the front, the better off and happier both you and your furry friend will be.
