How To Get Your Dog To STOP

Pulling And Start Walking

How To Walk Your Dog And Influence Behavior

By Eric R. Letendre

Copyright © 2014 by Eric R. Letendre All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the

use of brief quotations in a book review.

Chapter 1 - Leash Walking Problems GONE In 7 Days

I was once trying to show off for some babes at a park. I was working with a husky and was teaching him to walk on leash. I forgot to bring a six foot leash and only had a 15-foot long line. Not paying close enough attention to the husky, trying to see if the girls were watching my amazing dog training skills, the dog had walked behind me. Part of the leash was wrapped around my ankle and just as I was trying to hop over the leash, the husky decided to step on the gas and run after another dog. About ten feet away from me the leash went tight and the part that was wrapped around my ankle lifted me about three feet off the ground and I landed flat on my back. Now I had the girls’ attention. I quickly got the husky back under control, went back to my truck and drove away with my pride hurting more than my back. Lesson learned. Soooo, I know what a dog can do when she decides to go from zero to sixty when you’re holding the other end of the leash. So let’s get started… The very first step is simple. So simple it is often overlooked. You see, the first step is to: NOT MOVE! The first step is to get control before you start moving. Most people wrap the leash around their wrist, walk out the door and spend the next 20 minutes hanging on for dear life as their dog drags them around. Put your dog on leash, walk outside and stop. If there is tension in the leash, do NOT make forward movement. Forward movement is a reward to your dog. Your dog is thinking, “Woo hoo, we’re making progress. I’m going to pull harder.”

Stand in one place and when your dog puts tension in the leash, simply pull back and put slack into the leash. Keep repeating this until there is no tension in the leash between you and your dog. The real secret to leash walking is making sure that there is zero tension in the leash. When your dog feels tension he will naturally resist and pull away from you. So the trick is to practice standing in one spot and get control before you start moving. Once you accomplish this you can take the next steps which we’ll cover in this book.

Chapter 2 - How Miley Cyrus Can Help You Teach Leash Walking The subject of Miley Cyrus makes me smile. Many of my friends can’t stand her and think a lot of what she does is just low-class and are outraged by her behavior and would never allow their kids to go see one of her concerts. They really don’t like how she recently spanked a backup dancer on stage, smooched Katy Perry and used a giant replica of her tongue to slide down on stage. I smile because I know why she is doing this. You see, Miley does all of these outrageous behaviors for one reason: ATTENTION! Miley Cyrus is reported on, gets more tweets, pictures, Facebook posts, newspaper stories and media coverage than all of her fellow singers combined. And that is what you need to remember when you are training your dog to walk on leash. Remember the last chapter on control? When it comes to leash walking, the first step is to get your dog under control. The next step is to get your dog’s attention. You need to get attention any time you are doing obedience. Most of the time we are trying to get the dog to perform a command before we get attention. The best way to get attention is to say your dog’s name and then reward him. Keep repeating this until your dog looks at you when you say his name.

So the first two steps are control and attention. Once you have established those, you can start walking with your dog. I know this sounds pretty basic but it’s true. You need to have your dog under your control and then you need to get your dog’s attention. Try giving your dog a command when she is jumping on you with a shoe in her mouth. You’ll probably get poor results. But once you get your dog to calm, once you get attention, you can start to do leash walking or any other obedience command.

Chapter 3 - The Art Of Loose Leash Walking

My daughter Scarlett is getting close. She is getting real close to walking and it reminds me of someone learning to train their dog to stop pulling on leash. It’s painful. Scarlett is getting much better, but she’s had her share of falls and bumps in the process of learning to balance and make forward progress on two feet. I’ve seen plenty of people get bumps and bruises as they have tried to train their dogs to walk on leash. In my opinion, it is one of the most difficult commands to teach. The dog wants to go, so he pulls and because he makes forward progress, it becomes a reward for the dog. The other problem is that opposition reflex kicks in and walking becomes almost impossible with some dogs. So here is my next piece of advice. FIRST: Exercise - a tired dog will not pull as hard as a dog that has been sitting around the house all day waiting for you to come home. SECOND: Here’s where the “art” part comes in. The secret to walking a dog on a loose leash is making sure that the leash is loose. I know, sounds sorta like a Zen riddle. How do I keep the leash loose if the dog is already pulling? I did say it was an art. The trick I have used for years is to simply turn around walk in the opposite direction that the

dog is walking. This forces the dog to pay attention to where I am walking and it prevents the leash from ever getting tight. The leash remains loose. Believe me, I agree with you, it is easier said than done and does take practice, but you can do it. So what you want to do is anticipate when your dog is going to pull before she actually does. As you are walking, you can see your dog starting to pull away from you. Before there is too much tension in the leash, you simply let out the leash, turn and walk in the other direction. As you go in the other direction, once your dog reaches the end of the leash he will turn around and find you walking away. Your dog will learn that staying close to you is the place to be. It takes some practice but I have some videos that can help you at www.LeashWalkingSecrets.com

Chapter 4 - Five Steps To Better Leash Walking

I’ve been watching a friend's dog for a few days. She’s a beautiful Australian Shepherd and walks well on leash. Like I said earlier, leash walking, in my humble but accurate opinion, is one of the most difficult commands to teach. Your dog has to learn how to slow down and walk at a slower speed, he has to pay attention to your direction and resist the urge to go where she wants to. So here are five steps to help you out: 1. It can’t be said enough, give your dog some exercise before you go for a walk. A dog that has been inside all day is going to pull like crazy because of pent up energy. A quick game of tug or fetch can make your walk a whole lot more enjoyable. 2. Get control over your dog BEFORE you start walking. Plant your feet and get your dog to relax a little. Once there is some slack in the leash, you can begin moving. It’s well worth the extra minute or two before you leave the driveway. 3. Teach your dog attention. Your dog does not have to pay perfect attention to you as you walk but she should look at you when you say her name. 4. Change directions often. This is extremely simple but one of the most effective ways to get your dog to walk with you. Whenever I take the leash of a dog that is a puller, I quickly walk five to ten steps and then reverse direction. I walk another five to ten steps and reverse again. Your dog will start paying attention to you.

5. Relax - leash walking tends to make people instantly tense which will result in frustration. The frustration will result in more pulling. Anyway, if your dog pulls on leash, the above five steps will help you. And guess what? It takes some practice but you can get your dog to walk without pulling you down the street. If you’re having a lot of trouble in the beginning, one really good collar to use as you are training your dog to walk on leash is a gentle leader head collar. The gentle leader works by controlling your dog’s head. Wherever the head goes the body will follow. The gentle leader has a loop that slips over your dog’s nose and the leash is attached underneath the chin. As your dog pulls, her head will turn keeping her at your side without too much struggle. I will share with you that the gentle leader can be difficult to use at first with some dogs. Some dogs HATE the gentle leader and will resist you when you put it on. This is common and it can take a little time for your dog to get used to it.

Chapter 5 - Loose Leash Walking Made Easy My Dad made me nuts when I was a kid. He’s a great guy and everything but he is the kind of guy that loves to argue. You know the type, you say it’s black he says it’s white. You say left, he says right. I could never win a game of basketball against him either. If I won he would declare that it was not an “official” game. What a guy. Typical Northeastern New England Yankee! Luckily, I became a dog trainer and learned how to deal with guys like my Dad and it is also another secret to loose leash walking. Once you learn and apply this secret, your life will become much easier. No more endless arguments with people and no more pulling from your

dog. You see, it all boils down to two words: OPPOSITION REFLEX Ever notice that when you pull back on the leash your dog actually pulls harder? That’s a reflex. As you apply pressure, your dog applies counter pressure. Most people have a hard time walking their dogs because they are trying too hard. The trick is to make sure there is no pressure in the leash. Once the pressure is gone, you can get your dog to walk with you instead of fighting the entire walk. Now... ...before you think I am two bricks shy of a full load, I know that your dog is pulling the second you put the leash on. I know that you can’t walk two steps without your dog bolting to the end of the leash. That is why I stated earlier that loose leash walking does NOT start with walking. You first have to get control before you start walking. Remember plant your feet. No forward progress until you have control and the leash is slack. Even if it means you spend an extra five minutes in your driveway. One of the most important terms you can learn for leash walking and obedience in general is opposition reflex. Ever try to push your dog into a down or sit? Once you start to apply pressure, you’ll see that your dog applies counter-pressure. The harder you push, the more she resists. That is why you never want to use force when it comes to training. Force always breeds resistance. Think about when someone tries to force you to do something. You probably resist and your opposition reflex kicks in. The only way anyone can get you to do anything is by getting you to want to do it. Sure, someone could hold a gun to your head, but you will resist and escape the first chance you get. On the other hand, if I can get you to want to do something, the resistance melts away. This is the reason I harp on making sure there is no tension or force when you are training

your dog. The less force you use the better results you’ll get. Onward….

Chapter 6 - Are You Using The Right Leash To Walk Your Dog?

Leash walking can be difficult, embarrassing and sometimes painful. If you’ve ever been dragged down the street by a dog, you know what I’m talking about. What most people don’t know is that the type of leash you use is important. Not only the type but also the length. You see, I’ve seen many dog owners try to teach their dogs to walk on leash with fishing pole leashes - also known as the flexi-leash. This is the worst leash on the planet for teaching loose leash walking. Next is the short leash. I’ve seen plenty of people use a short, three to four foot leash to gain control. Wrong again. The right leash to use… ….is a six foot, leather leash. Let me splain why. First, leather is very easy on the hands if you have a strong dog. Second, you need six feet to properly get control of your dog because the secret to leash walking is making sure there is ZERO tension between you and your dog. As you now know, when your dog feels pressure in the leash, he will pull away from you. You know that opposition reflex has kicked in. The more pressure you apply, the harder your dog will pull away from you. Once your dog starts to pull away from you, forget about yanking a choke chain or forcing your dog to stay with you because the training then becomes difficult and is not much fun.

All you really need to do is change direction when your dog pulls. So let’s go into this with a little more detail. If your dog is on your left side you want to hold the loop of the leash in your right hand. Your left hand will slide down and hold the leash closer to your dog’s collar. If your dog pulls, your left hand will go out in front of you and you’ll be using your left hand to hold your dog back. If you are pulling back on the leash with your left hand you want to let go and immediately put your left hand under your right hand. Your two hands will be together holding onto the leash. At the same time you turn towards your right shoulder and walk away from your dog. Your dog is going in one direction and you are going the opposite way. Your dog will turn around and see you walking away and catch up to you. If your dog starts to pull again, repeat the process. Doing this exercise will make sure that there is never any tension in the leash and your dog will learn to stick close to you.

Chapter 7 - Why Your Dog Pulls On Leash - And What You Can Do About It Around Distractions

Boy comes home with all F’s on his report card. He shows his dad the report card and then asks: “Well dad, what do you think it is? Genetics or environment?” Funny joke with a lot of truth to it. The boy holds the father accountable for his poor results. Training a dog can be tough because the results are up to us and one of the most difficult commands is leash walking. Most dogs pull because they constantly get rewarded for it. Think about it for a second. Your dog is on leash and sees a telephone pole he wants to sniff and pee on. He starts to pull to get to the pole. We hang on and pull back on the leash but the dog eventually gets to the pole. Your dog has just been rewarded. It was unintentional but it was still a reward. So your job training your dog is to be aware of intentional AND unintentional rewards.

Here is how you can teach your dog to walk on leash - without pulling - around distractions. Let’s say you have a friend that is going to help you by providing a controlled distraction. Your friend is going to bounce a ball about 50 feet away from you. As your friend is bouncing the ball, you start to walk towards him with your dog on leash. Your dog will get distracted by the bouncing ball and start to pull. The big mistake would be allowing your dog to pull you to the ball and getting it. If your dog pulls you and gets the ball, your dog has been rewarded and will pull harder the next time he wants something. Your job is to get your dog to walk to your friend on a loose leash without pulling. You will accomplish this by following the directions I explained in an earlier chapter. The second your dog starts to pull towards the ball, you reverse directions and go the other way. Once you have your dog under control, you turn and walk towards your friend again. The second he starts to pull, reverse directions. Within a few tries you’ll be able to walk towards your friend on a slack, loose leash. When you can reach your friend and there is zero tension in the leash, that is when you would allow your dog to get the ball. So instead of pulling and getting the reward. Your dog learns to walk on a loose leash and get the reward. This is a very effective way to train your dog around distractions.

Chapter 8 - How To Banish Pulling On Leash

For years I joked about Labrador Retrievers in my obedience classes. I would always ask: “How can you pick out a lab owner in a room full of dog owners?” Answer: The lab owner is the one with the black eyes and arms in a cast. Labs are not the only dogs that pull on leash. Every breed of dog pulls, but labs are experts because they are so happy with forward movement. You can see it in their faces: “We’re going somewhere? AWESOME, Let’s go!” The four wheels (or paws) kick in and the human on the other end of the leash hangs on for dear life. The dog sees a leaf on the ground, or a telephone pole, or a fire hydrant and he pulls with everything he’s got.

Once he pulls (behavior) and he gets to where he wants to go, like the fire hydrant (reward), the behavior will happen over and over again. It’s simple, the dog is constantly rewarded for pulling. In the last chapter we talked about having a friend help with a bouncing ball as the distraction. Once you have mastered the controlled distraction with your friend, it is time to take it to the streets and start using real life distractions. Your dog is going to be naturally interested in a lot of things you come across like leaves, trees, fire hydrants, kids, squirrels, etc. All will distract your dog. This is a perfect time to train your dog in real life situations. When you see that your dog wants something, make sure you are in control of your dog. If your dog wants to sniff the telephone pole, make sure your dog walks up on a loose leash. No tension. We don’t want to unintentionally reward the dog for pulling.

Chapter 9 - Other Ways To Exercise Besides Walking

I get questions all the time and this is a common one: “Eric, I really love my dog and want to bring her for walks but she drags me down the street and I can barely control her. Sorry, but I am getting sick of being dragged down the street every day. Is there anything I can do?” I completely understand. Also - you are NOT alone. Many dog owners face this same problem. Most dogs will pull on leash and the bigger the dog, the harder the pull. Here’s what I suggest: Forget about most of what you’ve been told about leash walking. Most of the leash walking instructions are complicated or inflict pain on the dog by using collars with spikes or chains. Try this instead:

The first step is to forget about walking. You did read that correctly. For the next few weeks, think of other ways to exercise your dog. Fetch, tug games, playing with other dogs, etc. One of the biggest reasons dogs pull on leash is that they have too much pent up energy. All of that energy will result in a dog that will pull as hard as she can. Try doing some aerobic exercise with your dog before going for a walk If your dog likes to retrieve, go out in the backyard have have her chase a ball for ten minutes. If your dog likes to play tug, do that for 10 to 15 minutes. Here are 41 other ways to exercise your dog:

● Memory retrieve ● 2 person recalls ● Treasure hunt ● Service dog gofer ● Hide and seek ● Leg weaves ● Weaving with ski poles ● Agility ● Digging for objects ● Herding indestructible ball ● Chase remote control car ● Chase object on fishing pole ● Chase light ● Chase racquetball bounceback ● Chase remote control airplane ● Chase hose with water ● Chase ball ● Lure coursing ● Swimming free ● Swim next to canoe ● Swimming relay race with bumpers ● Water Kong retrieve ● Jumping over picnic benches ● Skateboarding ● Flyball ● Frisbee ● Mt. Bike ● Run through powder snow ● Run through sand dunes ● Sled dog ● Treadmill ● Run a race track

● Jog with dog ● Rollerblade ● Backpacking ● Carting ● Skijor ● Run hills ● Walk/run stairs ● Throw ball downstairs ● Throw ball upstairs

A dog that has had some exercise will be much easier to walk on leash. Spend some time exercising your dog before you go for a walk. As your dog gets older and a little more mature, this gets easier and your dog will not need as much exercise.

Chapter 10 - To Leash Or Not To Leash - That Is The Question

Ever read any Shakespeare? Probably one of his most famous lines is from Hamlet. Hamlet is thinking about cashing in by committing suicide when he says this famous line: “To be or not to be, that is the question.” Hamlet was trying to figure out if he should live or die. So let’s step away from the ledge and talk about something less serious - like dog training. In particular, leashes. When it comes to training equipment, the leash is very important. But, a leash can cause a lot of problems. Once your dog is on leash, she will automatically pull because of opposition reflex. Your dog may become defensive because of fight and flight. With a leash on, your dog CAN’T flee so she may switch to fight mode even though she does not want to. Leashes can change your dog’s body language which could give the wrong signal to another dog. Two dogs walk up to each other and the owners pull back on the leashes. This can mess up the natural signals dogs give to each other to communicate which could cause aggression in one or both dogs.

Dogs can sense when the the person holding the leash is nervous, unskilled or angry. Am I anti-leash, you ask? Negative. In fact, you have to use leashes. A leash and leash training are 100% absolutely necessary for today’s dog. My point is that leash training is something that you have to focus on. Since dogs spend so much times on leash, it can be extremely unpleasant if your dog is bad on leash. So the modern dog owner has to develop good leash skills. He has to learn how to use one with his dog. He needs to know the right type, length, how to hold it, how to control his dog and how to walk without the dog pulling like a pack of huskies in the Iditarod. And guess what? I’m going to share what you need to know about which leash is best. I have recommended for years that leather leashes are the way to go. The reason I like leather so much is that it is very easy on your hands as opposed to nylon or other materials. I also always use a six foot leash. That is really the perfect length regardless of your dog’s size. Six feet will give you enough room to work with your dog without getting wrapped up in it. It is also the right length to do leash walking and other obedience exercise. Flexi-leads are great for standing in one spot and letting your dog run around but they are not good for leash training.

Chapter 11 - The One Word That Can Turn You Into A Super Dog Trainer

I was teaching a class last week and I shared with the dog owners the one word that would greatly improve their dog training skills. See, I can walk into a group of dog owners with unruly dogs, take any one of them and within a few minutes, start getting results. This amazes the dog owners. “Look, he just took the worst dog in the class and now has him walking on leash and listening to him,” I often hear. Really, any good dog trainer can do the same because they know this one word. The word is…

...ANTICIPATION! You see, the one thing that I (and any good dog trainer) can do is anticipate what your dog is going to do next. It’s really not hard because dogs give signals about what they are planning on doing. Take walking on leash. Most people react to the pulling. Dog pulls and then the owner reacts to the pulling. I anticipate that the dog is going to pull and act before he does. When you learn how to do this, your dog will quickly figure out that you know what you’re doing and start responding to you much better. Its pretty cool when you learn how to do this and I can show you how. I have a course that has step-by-step videos showing you how to do this and much more. You can check out the course at http://leashwalkingsecrets.com

Chapter 12 - How To STOP Your Dog From Pulling On Leash Did you read the book "Marley and Me"? It was a great book about a journalist who gets his first dog as an adult. Very successful book that was made into a movie a few years back. I loved the part where they took Marley to an obedience class. Marley quickly made anyone who grabbed his leash look foolish. He dragged both of his owners around the class until finally the instructor took the leash and was almost pulled off her feet. I won't ruin what happened next but it is a great read and I highly suggest it. After reading about the obedience class, I went to Facebook and posted: "The fastest way to STOP your dog from pulling on leash is to STOP pulling on the leash." This confused many and I wanted to clear up what I meant. One of the best things to do is to spend some time teaching your dog that you want your

dog to walk at your side. You see, dogs have no idea that they are supposed to walk next to us. They have to be taught this and in the beginning, you can do it with some treats to get the best results. I like to use hot dogs because dogs love them and you can cut them up into small, tiny pieces. So with your dog on your left side, you want to hold some treats in your left hand. Your left hand is going to guide your dog and help teach your dog to stay at your side. It is important that you DON’T use your right hand when your dog is on your left side. If you use your right hand when your dog is on your left side, your dog will learn to walk in front of you. Your left hand can keep your dog in perfect position as you are teaching your dog where you want them to walk. When you practice with the treats, you want to see if your dog will follow the treat for short periods of time. If you wait too long to give the treat, your dog will give up and stop following. You need to think of it as a game. You want to keep your dog in the game, following the treat as you walk. When your dog can walk 10 feet following the treat, walk 15 feet before giving the treat. Then walk 5 feet and give your dog the treat. This will keep your dog interested in the treats and in the game. Practice a few times a day until your dog learns to stay at your side. The problems will crop up when you go for a walk with your dog down the street. Dogs get easily distracted and will lose interest in the treats. This is when you would use the other techniques discussed in this book.

Chapter 13 - Zen And The Reactive Dog

Ever notice that we do a lot of thinking in the month of January? We think about last year, we think about the coming year. We set goals, we make resolutions, promises and hope for a great New Year. All good things to do but it is also important to become a little more Zen during this time of the year. I am far from a Zen master but I do know that many describe Zen as to become fully aware, here and now. Which brings me to this lesson which deals with reactive dogs. Many dogs go completely bananas when they see another dog, animal, bike, car or person. When this happens enough times, the owner leaves the present and focuses on the future.

Before she puts the leash on, the owner is thinking about how her dog is going to react if she sees another dog. She thinks about what she can do. She hopes that she can control the situation and avoid injuries. She often pictures many bad things happening before she even steps out the door. The walk starts off bad before the first step is even taken. Dealing with a reactive dog requires the owner to pay attention to his actions. He has to make sure that he is not doing anything to make the reactive behavior worse. Here is a simple technique that I use when working with a reactive dog. Let’s say the dog goes berserk when he sees another dog. I take a leash and secure it to a tree or fence. I then put the reactive dog on the leash and ask the owner to stand next to the dog. The owner is no longer holding onto the leash. At this point, I have another dog approach and I watch the reactive dog. As soon as the reactive dog starts to bark I ask the owner to walk away. Remember, the dog is attached to a leash that is secured to a tree or fence. As the owner walks away, I keep watching the response of the reactive dog. Eight out of ten times, the reactive dog will quickly lose steam and forget about the other dog. This tells me that the reactive dog is responding in such a way because of the relationship and actions of the owner. This is why I talk about unintentional reinforcement all the time. By securing the dog this way, it allows us to focus on the moment which could not happen with the owner holding onto the leash. Very Zen like if you ask me. Anyway,a lot of the times, we accidentally reinforce the wrong behavior. It is very common and easy to do. I’ve even done it accidentally and I am a highly trained, skilled, dog training and behavior specialist. So step one to dealing with a reactive dog is paying attention to YOUR behavior. If you have a reactive dog, a dog that goes bananas when she sees another dog, you need to set up a controlled situation like I described above. You need to firmly secure your dog to a leash that is back tied to something sturdy. Once your dog is on leash, you have a helper with another dog approach. When the helper approaches and your dog reacts, walk away from your dog.

Remember, your dog is secured to the leash. You need to walk far enough away from your dog so that there are no feelings of security that come from you. Most reactive dogs become the way they are because the get a sense of security from their owners. The owners will also unintentionally reinforce the reactive behavior - not good. By being able to walk away from your dog, you’ll see a noticeable change in your dog. Once your dog calms, you’ll be able to reinforce that calm behavior.

Chapter 14 - Laws Of “Dog Training” Success

Napoleon Hill wrote a book back in the 1930’s called the Laws of Success. In it, he shares 17 principles for success. Number ten is an interesting one. You see, principle Ten is Accurate Thinking and Mr. Hill states: “Accurate thinkers permit no one to do their thinking for them. Gather information and listen to the opinions of others, but reserve for yourself the privilege of making decisions.” This is some great advice for dog trainers because much of the information they teach is opinion based. For example: A trainer that uses electronic collars will say that the dog does not suffer from any negative side effects. NOT true. A trainer that hates electronic collars will tell you that you should never use them and that they don’t work. Also, NOT true. Then you have a dog trainer like me (hehe) that knows there are negative side effects when you use an electronic collar. But, I also know that an electronic collar can save your dog’s life. I try and never let my personal feelings, emotions or the opinions of others make my decisions. I try to always try to use Accurate Thinking. And share it with you so you get the best results. In an earlier chapter, I talked about anticipation and how to use it to teach your dog to walk on leash without pulling. The technique I use is often criticized by other trainers but I’ll take the Pepsi challenge that it is the most effective way to teach loose leash walking.

That’s a bold statement, I know, but I have step-by-step videos showing exactly how this is done. They are on my website http://leashwalkingsecrets.com Before we finish up with this book, I want to share with you a very simple solution to a very common problem. Have you ever been walking along with your dog and another dog is off leash? You yell over to the dog’s owner and ask them to leash their dog only to be ignored. Many dog owners will yell back: “My dog’s friendly.” Here is the easiest, fastest, most sure fire way guaranteed to get the other dog owner to put their dog back on leash.

I Don’t Want To Go On A Rant Here, But I Hate When Dog Owners Do This

I don’t want to go on a rant here but... ...I really hate when dog owners do this. Let me back up a second. I have a little 8lb. dog, Martini, that I bring walking everyday on a bike path behind my house. It’s a great place to go walking and there are a lot of fields where you can let your dog off-leash to run. I was walking past one of these fields with Martini when I heard someone yelling. I couldn’t make out what they were saying at first. Then faintly I heard, “Don’t woooorrrrrrry, heeeeeeees frieeeennnnndly.” “Don’t worry he’s friendly.” What the heck was she talking about I said to myself? Then out of nowhere, a HUGE lab mix tackled Martini. The dog did not want to hurt Martini but he was playing way too rough with her and freaking her out. Now, what you have to understand at this point is that I have had this happen more than once. No amount of pleading, begging or asking will get most people to get their dog away from another dog or person. If I had asked her to get her dog away from Martini, she would keep telling me how friendly he was and how he just wanted to play. Maybe you have had the same thing happen to you. So, I didn’t ask her to get her dog BUT… I said twelve words and within 15 seconds she ran to her dog, put him on leash and quickly walked away.

What were those twelve words? I’ll share them with you in just a sec, but I want to make one thing very clear. I am all for letting dogs off leash to play and run. It’s great for your dog mentally and physically, BUT you always, always have to have control over your dog. Your dog should have an excellent recall (come when called) command for the safety of your dog and others. Now that we are clear about this, here is what I said to her: “My dog is just getting over Parvo and may still be contagious.” Works like a charm. Thanks for reading my book on leash walking. I had fun writing it and I hope it greatly helps you train your dog to walk politely on a loose leash. All the best, Eric Letendre