No progress with leash.......

[CherylHampton]

Hi again, and thanks for your earlier quick response. I imagine you stay quite busy with us folks finding our way in the canine kingdom😊 I had asked for tips on getting Shiloh to accept his leash without nipping and biting when I try to put it on.I read another post with a similar issue but with Shiloh I don't think he has a problem with being touched on his neck area as he allows me to pet him and touch him all over. He even rolls into his back if I say "belly rub".  BUT if he sees his leash(he got a collar AR 6wks at tolerates it fine) be wants to grab it and not let go, and if I do get it attached its the same. He will b or it in his mouth and run back and forth in front of me we don't get far. Now. Is it imperative that a dog walk behind you and can they be safely handled if walking in front? Shiloh will be a large dog and growing so fast. He also wants to sit on my feet and lean into my shins chewing on my shoes if I walk near him. This pup has a great disposition and is quite chilled out and loves being petted after a long play session.(yep tried the leash when he was calmer) no go. I really want to do right by him but he's caused me to fall once and luckily I didn't land on him or break anything( I generally do). I'm ready and willing to try whatever is necessary to get a little progress made. Thanks again for all your support.

 

[Adrienne]

It's always a pleasure trying to help out! It sounds like Shiloh simply dislikes the leash more than the having his neck touched. It could also be that, more than disliking the leash, he wants to play tug with it.

Of the prior behavior modification protocol I have suggested (and I imagine you have tried) can you giving me exact details of what happened? I am re-posting it below. Please let me know what happened when you tried it. What treats you have used  and how many trials you did. What exactly seemed to go wrong? What step have you struggled with?  This way we can do some deeper troubleshooting. Every pup is different so we may need a more individualized plan, like we may need to split things in smaller steps. 

You can try wearing durable gloves such as welders gloves if you are struggling with his sharp teeth when putting on the leash, although we want to prevent any biting in the first place. Another option, if you want to keep his mouth away from your hands, is  putting some peanut butter on a long metal spoon to lick and distract him as you attach the leash with your other hand. You can then progress to placing the peanut butter on one hand while you attach with the other hand. Praise him when he licks your hand as licking is much better than biting!

There are also other options not requiring snapping on the leash directly, but I think it's important for a young pup to get used to this. He's very young so much easier now than later on. If we can create positive associations with it, I think it's the best approach! If he's playing with the leash, a chain leash can help decrease this behavior.

I don't aim to having a dog walking behind, walking next to us is my goal. With puppies we need to be patient, they have lots of energy and want to play with the leash and explore things that capture their attention. We want to make a loose leash our accelerator and a tense leash our brakes. So when he pulls ahead, stop and entice him to come back to you so the leash is slack again. 

Puppies also want to chew anything that's around. If he chews your shoes when you sit, offer a valuable chew toy to focus on instead. A stuffed Kong, Kong Wobbler or Buster Cube can help save your sanity when pups are in the major puppy chewing phase.  You can also redirect to an empty water bottle. Most puppies cannot resist the crinkling sounds produced by chewing on these. Always monitor your puppy when chewing these if your puppy tend to ingest things. To make the bottle even more interesting, fill it up with a portion of your puppy's daily ratio of kibble so your puppy will keep busy trying to roll the kibble out. Here's the game:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/high-school/the-bottle-game/

Side note: leather shoes are particularly appealing to puppies! And so are shoes with shoe strings! Some dog owners reduce the temptations by wearing tall rubber boots (like Wellington boots) which aren't very appealing to crocodile pups.

 

 

Attaching the  Leash

Start by creating positive associations with the leash. Hide it behind your back and then present it, feeding your puppy treats when he looks at it and sniffs it and then once he's done inspecting it, place it behind your back and no more treats.

Next, start getting your pup used to the sound of the clasp. Keep the leash behind your back, then make the snapping sound of the clasp and feed a treat. Clasp sound/treat, clasp sound/ treat, clasp sound/treat.

Next, proceed to attaching the leash, give a treat as you attach it, then unclip it and at the same time give another treat. Rinse and repeat. The leash snapped/unsnapped to the collar should become a cue that a treat is coming.

Next, further raise criteria. Snap the leash on, feed the treat, walk a few steps ahead and call your dog to you, give treats when he reaches you. Try to avoid pulling your dog harshly on the leash considering that this will create negative associations with its use.

Teach your pup to give into the leash pressure rather than resist it. Sit on the couch and if he moves away, gently put pressure on the leash and show him a treat so that he learns to give in to the pressure. Praise and reward for giving in to pressure.

Start walking your pup on leash. If your pup lags behind or pulls in another direction, coax him to catch up and keep walking by showing a treat. The moment the leash becomes loose when he catches up, praise and reward with the treat.