i was just wadering if anyone has any suggestions on helping dash go a little smoother when i walk him on a leash. i guess alot of it will just take some time getting him used to it. i know my digger was a handful at first sometimes and as time passed he just got used to it and would causually stroll along.with the only distraction being a darting squiral or rabbit. dash will go for a few steps ok then just kinda gets kinda excited and pulls so hard he sounds like hes choking himself. what suggestions can anyone give to get him past that part. so he can walk a bit more relaxed. we are working real hard together to learn each other and we make little break throughs at a time. so i know its gonna be a matter of just working with him. but just wanted some pointers on getting there.

There are several techniques you can use. Here are some thoughts.

-One, make sure he realizes who is in control. He needs to be settled and calm before you put the leash on him. If he is excited you can just turn your back and avoid eye contact until he calms down.

-Make sure you are the first one out the door, don't let him lead out. This will help set the tone for the walk. Use a 4-6ft leash, NO RETRACTABLES! They are very hard to control the dog with and if he yanks it out of your hand, he'll get freaked by the handle chasing him down the road. You might go to a retractable if you want once he is reliable on the leash if you want.

-Make sure the collar is around the GH's ears. If its down near the shoulders they are too strong to be handled correctly.

-Do not let the dog get in front of you, you cannot properly correct the dog from behind.

-You want to control them with quick snaps of the lead...NOT PULLS...but snaps. The snaps aren't meant to hurt, but basically serves like a human tapping someone saying "hey this way" When you do snap the lead make sure to give a command. If he's sniffing and shoudln't be, then say "leave it", if you just want to walk, then say "this way" or "heel" or whatever. Snapping also can unbalance the dog a bit and make him easier to control. That is why you can't let him in front. If you snap with him ahead of you, you are pulling against his base and strength.

-Change direction often with whatever heel command you use. This will keep the GH on their toes, and make them pay attention to you to see where you're going.

-If he does start pulling, and a snap doesn't work, then stop and stay put until he is in a calm state of mind. His reward for behaving is to continue the walk...no behaving...no walking.

-Always keep a loose lead. I tight lead tells the dog you are nervous and tense, which will make the dog tense. Plus you can't snap the lead if its tense.

-You need to lead the walk, you decide when he pees and poops. I usually allow Cash to do his business at first, then we start walking with me in control. But make sure you start the walk in control.

-Leading the walk: As you walk, make sure you walk with purpose, your head up and shoulders back and leash loose. Trust me, this makes a big difference. Try to even ignore you have a dog on the lead. Commands should be calm and firm. Try to never yell, that will just increase the tension and make things worse.

-Distractions (rabbits, squirrels, etc): You have to be very villigent and try to see things that will excite your GH before he does (not always possible), if your GH gets jumpy, barking, etc, then its too late for a correction, you need to just change direction calmly and disengage him from the stimulous. If he is showing interest (ears up, statuing, etc) use a snap correction with a leave it command. Oh and the leave it command should be started all the time, i.e. at home with food, trash, whatever you don't want him to get into. Once they know the leave it command inside, they'll be more likely to follow it outside.

I know these sound a bit strict, but once he gets the message (after a few months), you can loosen the rules a bit. For example, Cash is allowed in front occassionally but he knows to wait when I tell him and he never pulls. I have also started a "free" command which means when I want to let him control the walk, I say free and give him the leash. But again, I can regain control because he was trained the first time.

There is also a technique I have used on some really hard headed GHs but its difficult to discribe. You take the leash (attached to the collar) and wrap it around his torso and under its self so the handle is just above his waist. If he pulls it will tighten around his waist and be uncomfortable. Again you should keep the leash loose when he walks correctly. This is a technique that is better shown, if you know anyone that has tried it.

I guess I have gotten a little long winded, but I hope some of these techniques help. Again just make sure he understands who is in charge. Does he behave the same way no matter who is walking him? If he behaves differently then its definitely a leadership issue.

I hope this helps, please feel free to contact me if you have questions.

Keith n'Cash

thanks, that all makes sense, i never thought about some of that. i will start working on it with dash. i guess it may help as well to work on it in our back yard which is fenced so its a more controlled environment that he's comfortable and more likely to listen. dash is very stubborn and hard headed so he takes s bit more effort. but after reading your post and as i learn more as we go i can see why he seems frustrated sometimes tring to figure out when im gonna take the lead and control. but once he figures it out he settles. we've been working on some of his inside manners and i think they are starting to come around. thanks for all the suggestions i'll keep you posted on our progress.

Hokiebuck, can I send you Miss Maggie-Mae for a month or so. I think she is more hard headed than a greyhound.

Quote:

You take the leash (attached to the collar) and wrap it around his torso and under its self so the handle is just above his waist.

This technique does work well. I asked my vet about the head halters and no pull harnesses and she laughed and let me show you a really inexpensive no pull harness and she wrapped Maggie this way. But as Keith has said, it takes patience and practice. Two of my not so strong points.

Hey!
what was the name of that bungie cord leash
that Lee Livingood was recommending at
BBH last year?
Did anyone buy one?
It looked interesting.

i can see im gonna need some tutoring on this one. i didnt realize it till i read this but he pulls from the get go and i am not able to get a loose lead with him. i would have to see the harness type description you described last, once i see it it will probably make sense but right now its just not registering.

i was able to get him to calm down befor the leash went on by turning awy form him so that was progress. we havent had enough time yet to make a change but that was at least a start. so what is the best way to get him to where hes slowed enough to use the tecniqes you describe. i have to learn with him on this one.

Ok...this is the part that will take a ton of patience. Don't go anywhere, or take one step until he is calmly waiting for you to walk. Once he does that, say "heel" or "this way" or whatever and start your walk. The split second he tries to speed ahead, change direction with a quick snap of the leash. If he doesn't even give you enough time for that, then just stop and don't allow him to walk at all until he is calm. This and everything else really does start in the home. So making sure he is calm before you go out the door is key.

Does he sit on command? If so (and a lot of GHs don't like to sit) then I would use that with a treat or praise, and have him do that to get his leash on. Then again make sure you are the first on out the door.

Oh and another thought...if you have a place that is very familiar to him...ie backyard...so he doesn't get too excited about sniffing and exploring, I would do most of the training there so you have less distractions.

"So making sure he is calm before you go out the door is key. "

I could wait days for Cheewa and Joy to calm down before we go out the door. They get so excited they bounce up and down if I even look like I am getting a leash out.
And its not like they never go anywhere. We are out doing meet and greets and pet therapy one or two times a week.
They just love to go and do.

I know my old neighbors must have thought I was crazy when I first got Lindey. She would pull and I would stop and stand there and wait for her to let off her leash, sometimes it took us 20 min. to get down the driveway!!! Great advice Keith and Cash, i have 3 I walk at the same time and everyone once in a while Lindey still thinks she's in charge, and she gets a "snap". Nubie on the other hand is a pain in the behind when it comes to other dogs in our neighborhood. He absolutely loses it when he sees other dogs, barks, lunges snarls, I'm usually yanking him all over the place while apologizing profusely to the other pet owners, he's quite embarrassing! When he sees them coming he goes into his "hunting mode", and I'm snapping him and throwing him off balance, no luck, I usually have to walk on by them with his head mashed against my leg. Any advice for Nubie??

Here are some thoughts...

-One thing: You will have to walk/train Nubie by itself for a while so you can concentrate on one dog.

Prey drive is something that will take ALOT of patience to work out, but at least on leash you should be able to reduce it to a manageable level. The key is to reinforce your status ALL the time. What happens on your walk is a direct reflection of how the pack is in the home or in the backyard, etc. You can expect your GH to obey you outside if they don't obey you inside. Or to expect to listen to you as the leader, if you baby them or allow them to rule the house. (I am not implying you are doing this...just speaking from what I have seen with other owners)

Is the dog trained in any way? Does it know "leave it", "down", anything? If so I would try to reinforce your status as the leader by enforcing rules inside the home, that will make them more likely to listen to you outside. Also a little NILF training wouldn't hurt. NILF is "Nothing in Life is Free" basically you always make the dog work for whatever it gets, whether they have to sit for a treat, or wait before allowing them to eat dinner, whatever, it helps establish you as the leader.

Ok...now some tips:

Here is a post from a woman in the UK from

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on the "watch me" command. This is useful when you want to take your GH's attention off of something and onto you.

To do this you need to teach the "watch me" technique....find out what her very favourite treats are, maybe cheese or chicken in very small pieces (about the size of your little fingernail as you will need to give lots of treats) Start doing this at home where there are fewer distractions. Hold a treat up in front of your face to get your dogs attention and say "watch me" or "Look"....when she looks you in the eye praise her and give her a treat keep doing this until she looks at you as soon as you say the command....then just hold the treat in your hand and give the command, when she looks at your face and not your hand where the treat is praise and reward her. Keep practising this at home and when she is really getting the hang of it start doing it somewhere with more distractions like in the garden or just in the street. While you are teaching this you obviously will still have to be taking her for walks so try to avoid meetings with other dogs (difficult, I know) and when you do come across them just walk in the opposite direction or cross the street, anything to give you some distance from the dog, if she reacts don't tell her off or try to calm her just talk in an upbeat, happy voice and move her away from the other dog. If you meet another dog and she stays calm then use the watch me command and praise her loads with treats.

The object of the "watch me" command is to take her focus off of the other dog and onto you so that she learns that you are in control of the situation and that she does not need to worry so much, by giving her the treats when she is calm around other dogs she will start to learn that meeting other dogs means that good things happen, by ignoring her inappropraite behaviour (if and when it occurs) and moving her away from the situation she will learn once again that you are in control and that her aggression does not work in making the other dogs go away (for some reason if you move the aggressive dog away they don't seem to think that they made that happen, they are just happy that the object of their fear is further away and their anxiety decreases)

When she is really good at "watch me" you can start to guage how close you can get to other dogs before she reacts, don't get too close too soon, you will soon be able to judge her "comfort zone" and work within it and in time you should be able to get a little closer. Remember, if she reacts aggressively you have gone to far too soon, but don't worry, just walk away and give her a little more space next time.

I used this technique with my Grey Sadi and it took around a year to see real progress, so I am not saying this is a quick fix, of course it depends on the dog and you may find that your girl picks it up quicker (or not)....remember that she will also pick up on any anxiety that you have about her aggression so you have to try very hard to always be upbeat and happy, smile and talk to her all the time, that way you will not be able to hold your breath (which is what we humans tend to do when we get stressed).

I hope some of this helps!

Hokiebuck,

Thanks for all the greyt tips!! I am very fortunate that Bullet has excellent behavior despite the fact that I spoil him rotten!! I know I am very lucky in that he is my first greyhound and I know that others that will come after him (oh yes..for sure!) may be more challenging. My husband always gives me the business b/c Bullet goes out the door first (Yes, I know ---a big no no---we've read the Cesar Millan book). He has SPOILED ME with being as good as he is---so I do thank you for the reminder of what being a good "pack leader" should be! I can give the love all day, but the discipline could use some work!

hey Hokiebuck, dash and i had our first full walking class tonight. we had had a spat earlier in the afternoon so he had been in time out for a bit and i thought now that he was a bit calmed down would be a good time to work with him.
i did as you said and got him settled before the leash went on and then i was first out the door with him. i must admit that one suprised me. the whole start was completly different.
we were in the back yard so the only distraction was my neighbor's grilling steak(distraction to me as well) but we worked around it.

we stood until he stopped pulling and then we walked. with several stops and some time standing we finnally got to where we could walk. i even had him to stop and stay when i said. he did fairly well i must say. he started to get a bit stubborn on me and stopped wanting to go at all. but we worked past that as well. its still gonna take alot more work with him but for this to be the first time with more guidance i think we did good. thanks for the suggestions. with continued work i think it will start to be natural to him and me as well. after we had gotten to follow stay we were almost done for the evening and i had him on stay for a couple minutes and unhooked the leash without him knowing and he stayed. after we were done he was rewarded well with his toy and we played till he ran out of steam. thanks again.

Hey Keith

Great info, as usual thanks for all of your wisdom. Maddie walks great on the leash and I am lucky for that. When Mom and dad were down they both walked her and could not believe how great she walked on a leash. I had to remind them to show her who the pack leader was though and that it was not her. Now if I could get her to stop barking, and they say greyhounds don't bark and catching bunnies, we would be in great shape.

Diggerspeed good work with dash, just remember it takes patience and repetition and advise from Keith and Cash and everyone else on the board

I was just re reading this as now I have a leash puller in the house - Foster Cal- Foster Cal is not small dog safe as we learned on our walk this morning and he pulled hard, but I was able to control him.

Cal has walked with Maddie and without Maddie and he does not seem to get the hint (just yet) when he walks with Maddie that this is the way that you are supposed to walk. Calm and easy next to me. Must learn this grasshoppa. So back to square one we go. It has been a while since I have had a male dog and forgot how strong they are (The last male I had I was a teenager) but Maddie knows who the boss is- and Cal has gotten the hint on several occassions in the house on who is boss (hint- person who pays mortgage) Honestly Cal is very smart and learned the stairs very quickly and learnedhow to jump up into the back of the SUV the 2nd day he was here- in fact he jumped up into the passenger seat yesterday over the console and sat down in the driver seat of the Blazer. He is quite the ham, and it is hard to get mad at him.