How to Leash Train Your New Puppy

Taking your puppy for a walk can be a lot of work before they are properly trained. Expect walks to involve a lot of starting, stopping, and pulling at the beginning. New puppies need to be taught how to walk with a leash. Leash training allows you both to enjoy your daily strolls instead of fighting for control. Remember, a small puppy pulling on a leash may not be too hard for you to handle but if they are not taught properly when they are still little it may become very difficult to control once your pup is fully grown. Check out our advice for how to leash train your new puppy!

Introduce the Leash

Before attempting a long walk in public get your puppy used to walking with a leash on them at home. At first your puppy may not walk at all or try to chew on the leash because it is something new they are not used to. Encourage your dog to walk around the house with the leash on by taking the lead. Try to always keep the leash situated at the back of their collar behind their head so they can not chew it. Keep the leash on them throughout the day as you walk around the house until they get comfortable with it.

Consistent Commands

When you begin to take your puppy on walks outside of the house it is important to pick one specific command you will use. You will consistently only want to use this command when training. You want to teach your pup to stay by your side while walking and not pull you in all different directions. In order to do this choose a command like, “Heal” and say this whenever they begin to stray. If you use a combination of commands like, “heal”, “stay”, and “stop” this will confuse your puppy about what you are asking them to do.  If your puppy stays by your side after you say the command then you can reward your puppy.

Avoid Pulling

If your puppy is not listening to your commands and is pulling you in a different direction avoid pulling and yanking them back to you. Instead, stop walking and stay in your place until your puppy stops pulling and comes back to you. Once your puppy is relaxed and ready to listen, begin again. This teaches them that in order to walk and continue forward they must be by your side and not pulling.

Reward

Rewards are a great way to leash train your new puppy. It is important to reward every good walking behavior your puppy displays. This is your way of communicating to them that this is an action they should repeat. When you start to train your puppy on their leash reward them for following your lead. For example, if you stop walking and they also stop walking give them a treat. If you start walking forward and they follow alongside you, give them a treat. Similarly, if your puppy does not demonstrate good behavior do not reward them or praise them.