Choke collars, gentle leads, the new invisible collar and all the variations are all training tools. They are meant to teach your dog how to first walk on leash and ultimately how to walk off leash. However, these tools need to be used correctly in order to accomplish these goals. Here are some tips on using these tools.
When using a training collar, make sure the collar is as far forward on his or her neck as possible. Next choke up on the leash. You want your dog walking on your right side, (unless you are left handed, then you want them on your left side) with their front leg even with your leg. You want to give the command "walk" or "heel" - whatever you prefer, but always use the same word. If someone else in your household walks the dog too, make sure you all use the same words and techniques. Nothing is more confusing to a dog or more detrimental to their training than inconsistency.
The moment your dog pulls, you need to give a correction. Here's where you let the training collar do its work. A quick sideways pull (not hard, the collar will do the work, but quickly) and a simultaneous negative noise from you. Don't use your dog's name or the word "no", just a firm "SSHHH" or "AAAHH". When your dog pulls, they have gone into an excitable state and they are no longer paying attention to you, the immediate physical and verbal correction re-focuses their attention back to you. Now try it again. Give them the walk command. With pups and younger dogs, this will take great patience on your part because you may have to give this correction dozens of times (exactly the same way) and you may only get 50 feet. If they are really having trouble paying attention and are getting too excited, use the "sit" command and let them calm down a bit. Once they have calmed down, you begin the walk on your terms, just begin the walk. Older dogs will generally learn quite quickly, two to four sessions and they will be obeying the "walk" command. For puppies, no training session should last more than 20 to 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, it's play time. Take the collar off and let your dog do something they enjoy. Leash training is an absolute necessity. It is critical for the safety of your dog and it will make your life, and your relationship with your dog much more enjoyable.
If you're a client and you're having problems with leash training, please call me or email me. I can probably work in a time to walk with you and train you (grin) on how to work with your dog on leash.
Now you might be thinking, why not use my dog's name or the word no when giving a correction. You never use the dog's name, because their name should always be associated with pleasant things, like praise, affection and food. You don't use the word no, because they have not done anything wrong, you are giving a correction only to help them focus on you and pay attention to the command you have given.
