Quote: steve strom

One small point probably not important with Lucy. I'd use free instead of ok. I've said OK at the wrong time and had Andy pee on someone.

HA HA HA! I use OK as well. I always have Quinn down while we discuss what just happened while training and what we are going to do next. If I say "OK" Quinn will jump up and launch himself to rip the toy, whip, what ever out of our hands.

And now our puppies benefit from our little mistakes with Andy and Quinn. Right??? Lol.

Right !!

 Quote: jo harker

Thanks. Although, since I have never used a prong, that seems like a lot of corrections. Not criticizing, just wondering if you do that much correcting or if it just sounds like it?

I follow the three step theory. If a command isn't followed I say "no, command-x" and give the dog a chance to comply. If the dog refuses this I give a light pop on the leash, say level 3 from the Theory of Corrections. If that doesn't work it's willful disobedience and we go up to a level 7 or 8. I try not to correct too much because it start to negatively effect the dog and it also starts to be of little consequence. Both of my dogs are hard headed and require a firm hand, Lucy probably not so much.

Duke has a leash pulling problem, which is why he's already on a prong. I keep him in a heel by not giving him enough leash to get his shoulder in front of my leg. He'll take up any amount of slack until his hips are in front of me, then the slack can literally drag on the ground. I might be mistaken, but I see this is a form of dominance so behind my leg he goes. I try to break the walk up into quarters, letting him have some free time at each quarter. We stop, he sits, I have him down, then I tell him to "take a break". That lets him get up and run around for a few minutes and/or about 50 yards. I carry a piece of, I think, 1.5" diameter PVC pipe as my walking stick / stray dog protection and I'll have him fetch that a few times to burn some energy. He doesn't get to play with it, he just gets praise for bringing it to me. Then, I say "come here" and he comes back to sit by my left leg...I'm working on changing that to "come around". We get our positioning ready and go with "let's go". I also have him stop and sit at all intersections, partially for safety reasons and partially to reinforce that it's my walk and not his. It's also a great spot to do a little marker work.

So the problem is pulling? What else?

"Willful disobedience" is very often "doesn't quite get the command yet because of proofing insufficiency."

JMHO.

Yeah, that probably came out wrong. It isn't like "sit, SIT, SIT!!!" or anything. It's under circumstances where I know the dogs know what I'm asking of them. So it's also not something that happens often, just during testy moments.

 Quote: Scott Garrett

Duke has a leash pulling problem, which is why he's already on a prong. I keep him in a heel by not giving him enough leash to get his shoulder in front of my leg. He'll take up any amount of slack until his hips are in front of me, then the slack can literally drag on the ground. I might be mistaken, but I see this is a form of dominance so behind my leg he goes.

I know this is a bit of an old post but I'm new to the boards and have been browsing to read some information on prong work. I used a prong on my JRT and plan to do so with my new Aussie pup (I've got a HS quick-release prong for her), but I want to read and ask questions to so that I can avoid some of the mistakes that I may have made back when I first used it on my JRT.

My question is kind of a general question for walking any dog who is learning to follow you and not to lead, how do you keep him from continuously pulling on the leash when he's back at the position with his shoulder behind your leg? Or is the prong the only tool that will keep him from doing that at this point in time?

You teach the dog that you are unpredictable and prone to changes in direction at a moments notice. Consistancy and practice will teach the dog that the only way to avoid correcting ITSELF, is to stay at your knee and walk WITH you.

What Alyssa, said. It's a self correction thing where the dog has to learn how to pay attention. Being erratic didn't really work well with him, but the consistency of keeping him on a short leash and in the same spot is paying off. It's been 11 days since I made that reply and I have slack on the leash about 90% of the time, now. Walks are now fun for both of us.

 Quote: jasmine dillon

 Quote: scott garrett

Duke has a leash pulling problem, which is why he's already on a prong. I keep him in a heel by not giving him enough leash to get his shoulder in front of my leg. He'll take up any amount of slack until his hips are in front of me, then the slack can literally drag on the ground. I might be mistaken, but I see this is a form of dominance so behind my leg he goes.

I know this is a bit of an old post but I'm new to the boards and have been browsing to read some information on prong work. I used a prong on my JRT and plan to do so with my new Aussie pup (I've got a HS quick-release prong for her), but I want to read and ask questions to so that I can avoid some of the mistakes that I may have made back when I first used it on my JRT.

My question is kind of a general question for walking any dog who is learning to follow you and not to lead, how do you keep him from continuously pulling on the leash when he's back at the position with his shoulder behind your leg? Or is the prong the only tool that will keep him from doing that at this point in time?

I may have done this all wrong, and if it is "bad" wrong, hopefully, one of the experienced handlers will chime in here.

Also, I am not training a working dog, just a small house companion, but, when I was first taking her for walks, I would keep her on a short leash and hold my hand just at the back of me (behind my hip) so she had to stay behind me. I don't have her to heel or anything like that. I just wanted a nice walk. Also, sometimes, we walk for her enjoyment and I take her on a long lead and let her goof off. After a few times, she knows the difference.