Dog Training - Dog Language

Training Your Dog Off Leash

You can start by playing a simple follow-the-leader game the very first day that your puppy is home. Follow him around and tell him what a good puppy he is. Follow him, let him explore and sniff around, making sure it is safe and within his boundaries. After about one week, he will happily walk and follow or walk and be followed on a leash. Every time you take him outdoors, encourage him to follow you the same way you did at home. If you bend down, extend your arms to the side, and use your sweetest voice, he will gladly unstuck himself and run right to you.

When training your dog off-leash, remain in a protected area for at least the first month of training. You can begin to work your dog in the park. Use both the short and long lines so that when you take the drop line off, the dog is still wearing something. After he is working well on drop line, take it off and remind him immediately to heel. If he lags or moves out to the side, make a sharp correction with the tab and then praise him. Work only for a few minutes so that at the time you quit he is still working well. Do not push him into errors. Instead, build the time he will stay with you and obey you smartly without his leash and in this exciting, new environment.

Continue to work on all previous commands and all new safety commands with the regular leash, the drop line, the tab, alternating in no particular pattern. As you work, test your safety devices off leash with the fence bolted. Try the "Drop" on recall, the emergency down, the serious "Come," "No," and "Wait." However, do not work your dog to death or make him into a game.

After months and months of training your dog off-leash in a fenced area, in the park, with the drop line, and with the tab, you have now mastered your dog and his behavior. When you are really confident and you are sure that your dog is sharp and obedient on all the safety commands, begin to try "Stays" and "Comes" from a distance in the park, first with the long line dragging and then with just the tab.

If he is attentive and obedient now, you may begin to work him on the street. Start with a heel exercise while holding onto the leash tab. Drop the tab and heel him for half a block. Before you get near the corner, stop, have him sit, then praise him. Pick up the tab and heel him home. Build his confidence with each session. If you love the idea of taking a quiet stroll with your off-leash dog on a busy city street, you are well on your way toward that goal. You have to keep working with the tab on your dog's collar and your full attention on him. Soon, this kind of practice and pleasure will become second nature to both of you.

Remember to stop your puppy whenever he mouths or bites on his leash. Firmly say "No" and take the leash out of his mouth without playing tug-of-war. If he persists, repeat the word "No" followed by a firm but gentle tug upward with the leash to free it from his mouth. The handler should always be thinking ahead and anticipating what the dog might do next. It is a skill easily acquired if one becomes disciplined enough to pay constant attention to the dog. Without good timing, training degenerates into a question of strength.

Below are some final points to keep in mind about training your dog off-leash:

1. Your dog does not have to be off leash every minute of an off-leash walk. If you meet a friend, see a great store window or find some other tempting distraction, snap the leash on your dog until you can once more give him your full attention.

2. Always keep a leash with you, even when you plan to keep it off the dog.

3. Once in a while, remind your dog that you are the leader of the pack. The best nonviolent way to do this is with the long "Down" (one-half hour).

4. Never expect great concentration from your dog when he is all pent up and needing exercise. Always give him a good run before off-leash street work.

5. When seeking fine control, don't forget to play some games and have some laughs.

6. When training and behavior starts to look messy, don't be afraid to go back to square one and tighten everything up again, on leash.

Article by Kelly Marshall from Oh

Article Source: http://www.articledirectorylive.com

If you would like to get rid of the problem of dog training then just simply visit our site dog obedience training.There are lots of people who visit our site and get rid of this problem.

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated