Pulling on leash

[Gempress]

Zeus knows not to pull on the leash, and walks like an angel by himself. Voodoo doesn't pull either.

But put the two together, and I feel like I'm trying to hold back a train. Zeus will dig his feet in and pull like crazy. Same with Voodoo. It's like they get so excited when together. I taught them how to act while alone, but I can't figure out how to teach them how to walk together.

Right now, I don't really feel comfortable walking them. I don't have enough control. Any ideas on how I can regain their attention? They know "don't pull when alone". But how do I teach them "don't pull when together?"

BTW, I don't want to walk them seperately. I know there are times when I will take them both out in public, and I want them to learn how to act when together. I've taught them how to "sit" and "stay" in sync, but I'm not sure how to address the leash pulling issue. This is my first experience with multiple dogs.

Any ideas?

[LabBreeder]

possibly a head halter for both when you're walking them together? until they get used to the idea that pulling is not what's needed. i use one on Tira cause she used to pull my arms out of socket...she'd get excited, want to play, etc. We got a "Halti" head halter and if she tries to lunge forward or pull hard her head gets turned to the side by the halter. it doesn't hurt...and once they get the idea not to pull you can take it off and have the same results (9 times out of 10 for us so far).

[Roxy's CD]

I know exactly what your talking about... my trainer says and I thought to that it's a fight for who gets to be in the front...

I also totally understand your sentiments about walking them separately, it's just not feasible for me... Big bag of treats! lol...You'll go through a lot the first couple times, who evers closest to me gets a treat, and boy do I sound crazy on my walks too "Hades, Roxy who wants a treatsie!!!"

Sometimes I'll just turn around and walk the other way, but they get tangled a lot...:(

I know some people don't like the idea of corrective collars, but it worked wonders for my girl and I've seen a major improvement the past 3 weeks with my little guy. Short, quick, not too rough corrections, and I usually try to time their corrections together if I can this way one doesn't get yanked back while the other gets to stay a bit ahead...

[~Tucker&Me~]

I have found Gentle Leaders to be MUCH nicer looking, and less irritating for the dog then Halti's.

~Tucker

[poodlesmom]

You can try something I have had good luck with on my two. When we are going somewhere where I know they are going to become really excited for the first 10-15 minutes or so I use a coupler. With this they are kept together and hooked to one leash. If they really get pulling it is quite easy to just grab on to the coupler to quickly regain control. They will generally calm down after a while and I can then put them back onto their separate leashes. You can usually get one at any pet supply store.

[smkie]

My friend Kelly taught me this and i used it with Victor. I have never tried anything that worked this well and wish like heck i would have known it twenty years ago.
She is a big fan of passive training, letting the dog figure out that what he is doing isn't working instead of a constant correction. In many ways i agree with her for that was the way my old boss trained as well.

Her method is everytime the dog begins to pull you about face and go the other way. You get a bit dizzy but the dog figures out amazingly quick that by pulling he/she is getting no where at all and the attention then turns to the handler where you want it to be to see where you are going to go. It took all of one lesson with Vic who started out as a terrible puller. Now i can hold my leash with one finger and walks are a joy. Once in a while he will get excited but one turn around is all it takes for a reminder. Kelly has two coonhounds, one sharpeii mix and now a big black shepard named Jack that she has trained via this method and they are as nice to walk as Victor is.

I truly don't see why this wouldn't work with two dogs as well. I have a little connector for both my dogs when i walk them in pairs. It is meant for smaller dogs and is only about a foot and a half long so Mary has to match up with Vic there really isn't any choice in the matter.

[Zoom]

The about face can be done with two, but you have to be pretty coordinated with the leashes. I'm in the middle of teaching mine the same thing, except that I've taught Sawyer what 'side' means so that he'll heel on my right and Aubrey on my left. I can't use the connecter with any hope of them walking nicely on it yet.

Practice, practice practice. You've had Voodoo all of what, a week? Two at the most? He's still figuring all this out and Zeus too!

[Roxy's CD]

^ I can't use the coupler yet either! It's so weird, because their heeling nicely together about 75% of the time, but as soon as a I put the coupler on They start pulling against each other...weird...

[opokki]

Could you have a friend or family member walk one of the dogs next to you while you walk the other? You could then work on each dog separately but both dogs will be present and you will not have to try control both of them at the same time. Maybe you can get them used to walking with each other that way.

[Bailey+Ralph]

I bought a Halti for Bailey..........it works wonders.
Also since having it i can take him on short walks without it and he doesn't pull half as much as he did before :)

[Doberluv]

The about face can be done with two, but you have to be pretty coordinated with the leashes

Yup...it's kinda like when you swing dance and the guy twirls you under his arm. Your arms go up and around your head. LOL. But actually, you can make a wide about face and just keep them where they are in relation to you. Go back and re-trace the same boring path with the same boring smells.

I walk 3 dogs, my big guy on my left and my two smaller ones on the right. If one pulls, I stop and the ones who aren't pulling tell the one who is to knock it off. LOL. Not really. But anyhow, they all have to stop. There's just no other way. And like it was said, treats for the ones who walk nicely and often. You can start out practicing in a very low distraction area like your yard and make it like a training thing. Get them in that "mode" for now. You can also ask for sits and downs from both of them and then start walking again. It's not easy, but if you don't take a single step ever when one or both are pulling, they'll catch on and just be sure to reward frequently when they take a few good steps next to you.

[LabBreeder]

I have found Gentle Leaders to be MUCH nicer looking, and less irritating for the dog then Halti's.

~Tucker


what's the difference in the two? got any websites that have pictures? :)

[LabBreeder]

btw Tucker...i just found a site with gentle leaders
http://www.sitstay.com/store/equip/collars2.shtml?gclid=COm7uffcpYUCFQE2Pgod5DXnvg
and it looks exactly like the Halti i have for Tira, but ours is black. is this the same thing you were talking about...or just something with the same name? :)
the only difference is the piece going down near the back of the mouth...they both work the same. oh well, to each his own

[Doberluv]

These devices don't train your dog. I think you'd be happier training the dogs to respect your rules. Not only will they walk better, but they learn HOW to learn better and they learn to follow you as their leader, not by force or avoidance, but because they're a social animal who needs a leader to teach them. JMO