Shiloh says he will leash walk with this....

[CherylHampton]

Just wanted to post something I tried with Shiloh and it helped a lot. Still not there yet  UT working on it. To get I'm to follow by my side I was trying to use the holding treats down far enough to get him to follow but he was still jumping. So I tried the peanut butter on a long handle stop jumping even though it was at his level. I then took a long handled spoon spread a thin layer of peanutbutter on it then rolled it in h kibble taken out of his daily allowance. This helped because while he was occupied  chewing the kibble he didnt jump and seemed to enjoy the combination. It may not sound like much but we got 20 steps before he grabbed the leash and rolled like a croc! This has been such a challenge so I'm thankful for ANYTHING that's not losing ground. I've been trying to follow the program as much as possible and he learns so quickly however I'm wondering if I'm not "over treating" as he will bound up to me and start nudging my hands gently, when he realizes they're empty he is not happy lol! Will post for suggestions later but for now we have a walk to take. Thanks for all the support !!!

[Adrienne]

I usually use the long spoon trick for small dogs and puppies when dog owners struggle to bend down to deliver treats. The only few problems with this, is that you'll have to keep on smearing things on it, and after some time, you'll eventually have to stop using it at some point, and when you do that, the leash will likely become again too salient and tempting to bite. 

There are few more tips in the below link here along with a video on how I do some foundation heelwork exercises (initially without the leash) by tossing treats.

If you start without the leash initially and walk fast and are careful to never toss the treat when he's actively jumping, after some time, your pup should come to understand that jumping is inefficient and a waste of energy.  Do this several times, as he drains off energy and understands the concept "If I want the treat, I need to walk nearby my owner without jumping", things should start sinking in. 

Once you get that pat down, you can then look for more precision, and therefore move to hand feeding the treats when your dog is next to you. If your dog is about to jump as you hand feed, up goes your arm. If your dog doesn't jump, you deliver the treat. If you are super consistent and never-ever deliver the treat when he's jumping up, the jumping should start to gradually diminish and get out from the equation.

We can them try the same exercise with the leash, however, we need to take some precautions of jumping to grab the leash will come back into the equation. We can do this in several ways

1) distracting him in a timely manner and keeping his mind off the leash or,

2) making the leash less enticing to bite 

So with distracting,  you'll aim to toss treats on the ground before he has a chance to grab the leash. This way, you'll be reinforcing the behavior of not carrying the leash in the mouth, therefore creating a replacement behavior. You pup can't be focusing on grabbing the falling treats and grabbing the leash at the same time since his mouth is already occupied by chewing kibble. 

With making the leash less enticing to bite, you can use a metal chain leash (which most pups do not like to chew and is the easiest fix) or temporarily you can slide a 5-foot piece of narrow-gauge, lightweight PVC pipe over your leash (although impractical). I know some people spray taste deterrents like Granny's Bite apple or Bitter Yuck on leashes to make it taste bad, but some dogs even like the taste of this stuff and it can be hard to remove from our hands if we happen to touch it. 

With time and consistency, once your puppy is a little more mature and you can take him on longer more enriching walks (with your vet's consent, once he has finished his vaccination) you should see a reduction in wanting to chew the leash as your puppy may start getting more interested in his surroundings and at the same time he may have gained better impulse control.  Many pups outgrow chewing leashes just as they outgrow chasing their tails. However, if we keep on allowing them to, the behavior may establish and put roots. 

The nudging behavior should not establish if you never hand feed him food contingent on nudging. Remember the golden rule: behaviors that are reinforced repeat and strengthen, behaviors that are not reinforced should weaken and extinguish. So never-ever give any reinforcement (food) when he nudges your hands (unless you specifically asked him to hand target). This may be just a temporary behavior that he is trying.  Sort of like "let's see if I kick the vending machine if it will release a free treat. Nope, didn't work! I guess will need to insert the coins next time!"

 

 

[CherylHampton]

I realize this wasn't the best approach, but so far its all that's gotten his attention away from the leash !omg enough to take even a few steps. We've only done it twice the second time with the chain leash. Its a bit shorter but still allows for loose leash walking. I can't walk very fast and wish I could as my young nephew was able to get him to move quicker. I. Going to enlist his help in a week or so just needed something to get us started. My next challenge will be getting his attention away from my cane that I use on occasion. He still prefers my feet to anything else though, but he's a little better. Thanks for additional info will continue to absorb as much as possible and put it into action.

[CherylHampton]

Lol yep that's Shiloh! I can see him standing in front of a vending machine doing just that lol! I don't reward him every time he nudges only when I ask him too. He's done pretty good on the leave it just hope it sticks. Oh he expresses his displeasure when he nudges to an empty hand with a bark he doesn't bark often but I know what he was saying😊

[Adrienne]

Yup, he fits the picture perfectly! And the barking when he nudges and doesn't get anything? That's likely an extinction burst! It's sort of like kids that when they don't get candy at the store and they start whining. And when they see whining doesn't work, they'll escalate to crying and screaming and putting up a tantrum (extinction burst). If we stick to our plan and don't give them candy when they ask for it, they'll learn to stop pushing it and the behavior will eventually extinguish, but if we give in though and buy it-even just that one time-, they'll always try to ask for candy because we have reinforced persistence.