One of the things I admire most at the park is watching dogs that walk calmly right beside their owners. Another dog passing by? It doesn’t bother them. A group of energetic kids approaching? The dog barely seems to notice.
My dog and I used to be the total opposite. I was the one struggling to keep my dog calm during walks, using all my strength to hold her back whenever someone came near.
But a few years ago, I finally discovered some loose leash walking tips that actually helped. After researching and studying everything I could find on the topic, I found methods that worked. In this article, we’ll explore why dogs pull on the leash, techniques to stop leash pulling, and why consistency is crucial. Here’s how I managed to get my dog to stop pulling on the leash.
Why Dogs Pull on the Leash
Before we get into the methods to stop your dog from pulling, let’s first understand why dogs pull in the first place. Like many other behaviors, knowing the reason behind leash pulling—and how we might be accidentally encouraging it—will make managing the behavior easier.
Simply put, pulling on the leash is normal canine behavior. Is it ideal? No, but it’s natural for them. Pulling allows them to get where they want to go at their own speed.
Your dog isn’t pulling to be dominant; they do it because it works. In other words, if you’re behind your dog during walks and they pull while you keep moving forward, you’re teaching them to pull even more. That pulling is rewarded because it keeps them progressing toward their destination.
I won’t sugarcoat it—if your dog has always pulled on the leash, breaking that habit will be tough. Since they’re used to moving forward while pulling, that behavior has been reinforced, and a dog’s natural instinct is to resist restraint. But with enough consistency, you can break that habit over time by showing your dog that walking beside you is far more rewarding.
Not All Methods Work for Every Dog
The first thing to remember when teaching your dog to stop pulling is that not every method works for every dog (this applies to dog training in general). I’ve tried numerous loose leash walking methods, and I often felt like a failure when one didn’t work. So if you’ve read about loose leash walking before without seeing results, know you’re not alone.
A lot of dog training is about finding what motivates your dog and building on that. For my dog Laika, I stuck with methods that offered strong incentives—ones that included plenty of tasty treats and toys as motivation.
You might have heard of the “be a tree” tip. Here’s how it works: when your dog starts pulling, you stop and stand still. The idea is that your dog will learn pulling leads to a paused walk, so they’ll stop pulling.
Do you know what happened when I tried that with my excitable dog, who was already used to pulling? She pulled even harder to get where she wanted and got frustrated when I wouldn’t move.
If you’re patient enough, this method might work for you, but it didn’t work well for my dog. I tried for months, standing still every few feet by the side of the road, waiting for her to calm down. But it never happened. At best, she’d stay at the end of the leash looking ahead; sometimes she’d pause briefly, but as soon as we started moving again, she’d go back to pulling.
“Being a tree” didn’t work for my dog—partly because of her excitability, but mostly because for years, pulling had been rewarded since she still got to her destination.
Also, keep in mind that if you suddenly stop every time your dog pulls, they have no idea why. As far as they know, you might just be doing something strange and asking them to wait. That’s why using treats (method 4) is much more effective; luring them with a treat shows them exactly what you want, instead of hoping they figure it out on their own.
This isn’t to say “be a tree” never works; I’ve seen it work for some dogs. It just didn’t work for mine, and it might not be the best choice if your dog has been pulling for a long time.
When training your dog to walk nicely on the leash, remember one thing—not all methods work perfectly for every dog. Don’t get discouraged if a single method doesn’t work. Part of dog training is figuring out what motivates your dog and building on that.
1. Pick One Walking Method and Stick With It
The first tip for teaching your dog not to pull is to choose one walking method and be consistent. You need to teach your dog what behavior is acceptable during walks, so deciding how you want your dog to walk and sticking to that goal is the fastest way to succeed.
Do you want your dog to walk on your right side, left side, or a few steps behind? Choose your preference and stay consistent. If you want them to stick to your right side, make sure everyone who walks them follows that plan. Sticking to one method will help your dog understand exactly what’s expected during walks and make training smoother.
2. Start in a Non-Exciting Area
When teaching your dog to walk nicely on a leash, you want to avoid setting them up to fail. So when trying to teach calm, nice walking, it’s important to use a non-exciting area for training—not a park full of squirrels to chase. Pick a quiet time of day to practice walking down the street, go for an evening walk during dinner when most people are indoors, or visit a park during off-peak hours.
If you take your dog to a crowded park before they have good leash manners and proper impulse control, they’ll likely be too excited and stimulated to pay attention or learn anything. They’ll be distracted by all the sounds, smells, and sights—and of course, squirrels. Don’t set your dog up to fail like that. Start by teaching them to walk nicely in a calm area and build from there.
3. The Cheater Method: Using a Front Clip Harness
My favorite method for teaching a dog not to pull is what I call the cheater method—using a front clip harness. The best part about front clip harnesses is they’re easy to use; the hardest part is figuring out how to put them on the first few times.
I have no regrets about getting a front clip harness years ago—in fact, it’s one tool I wish I’d had from the start. I’ve never seen a piece of equipment have such an immediate impact on walks. Using a front clip harness is one of my favorite dog walking tips for that reason; it’s a simple way to help “reset” your dog’s leash manners if you haven’t been using one.
Using different gear works especially well for dogs already used to pulling with a traditional collar and leash. Instead of pulling from the back of their neck, they’re suddenly pulling from the front. From the moment you start using the new harness, praise your dog when they walk nicely. They’ll start to associate the harness with loose leash walking.
This is the same method used by many police K9s. They wear different collars or harnesses depending on the task. A simple collar change puts them in a different mindset, and they know exactly what’s expected.
Before using the harness, I’d been using a traditional leash and collar, and Laika was used to pulling. She’d start pulling as soon as we left the house, but once I switched to the front clip harness, that changed. She wasn’t used to the harness or the front-clipped leash—so I took advantage of that adjustment period to teach her good walking manners. It didn’t take long for her to catch on, and since then, our walks have been much more enjoyable.
4. Non-Cheater Method: Load Up On Treats
If you don’t want to buy a new harness, that’s fine—you can still encourage your dog to walk nicely by using plenty of treats.
Whatever method you use to stop leash pulling, the most important thing is to keep your dog motivated—that’s why treats are so helpful. To encourage nice walking, you need to show them that good things happen when they behave, and the easiest way is with tasty treats.
To start teaching loose leash manners, go to a quiet place for a walk and bring lots of treats. Use treats in your hand to guide your dog to walk straight, then switch things up by giving a treat when you change directions. Over time, your dog will learn to watch where you’re going and follow.
It sounds simple, and technically it is, but it takes a lot of repetition if your dog has been pulling for years. Breaking that habit is hard, but with consistency, your dog will learn that staying by your side is expected.
So when you start teaching your dog to walk on a leash, remember to use treats (or toys if your dog is more play-motivated) to encourage them to follow you. This will show them that walking without pulling leads to good things, and over time, they’ll start repeating that behavior on their own.
Please share with your friends 🙂
