I'm about ready to give up. I have tried everything short of a prong collar and my dog refuses to stop pulling on leash when we walk. A walk is suppose to be fun for both of us but it is he that gets the pleasure from a walk. You can reward, correct, or put a razor wire collar on him and he will still pull the leash. When he sees another dog being walked he goes crazy and I mean crazy, twisting jumping in the air and pulling, it unbearable. Any help out there?

 Quote: peter campbell

I have tried everything short of a prong collar and my dog refuses to stop pulling on leash when we walk.

What is wrong with a prong collar?

IMO, you need this:

http://leerburg.com/302.htm

I can't remember any other post about this, so if you have already answered these questions, please forgive me.

How is he in the house with the leash on?

What about in the backyard? Front yard?

I would make sure we were doing well with a "loose leash" in those places before taking the show on the road if I were having problems.

How far away are these dogs when he reacts? Would he react this way to a dog that was 100 yards away?

As Michael says, I would start fixing it where there are no distractions.

So ... for the general pulling, I'd start indoors, marking and rewarding for good walk. Then the yard. Then a quiet street with no dogs. You get the picture.

As Melissa says, this is a good video:
http://leerburg.com/302.htm

And here's something to start reading right this minute :
http://leerburg.com/markers.htm

 Quote: Michael_Wise

... ... How far away are these dogs when he reacts? Would he react this way to a dog that was 100 yards away?

My very question. (I didn't want to lose these important questions by my post after them.)

My 6 yr. old pet female GSD goes balistic when she sees the neighbor dog. When she sees me walking the boarding dogs she whines like a baby, running and barking all thru the house, ripping down blinds and acting like a real idiot. I put her remote collar on and use the pager feature and this pretty much keeps her in line. Most times I just have to put the collar on and not even activate it . If I am out walking and she starts to pull I will make an abrupt left turn while slightly bumping her with my body. You could also try stopping and being perfectly still, not moving until she calms down. She is wearing a prong collar when we go for our walks.

If I recall on Ed Frawley's basic OB video he has a segment on leash pulling that is helpful

I will have to try in the house then yard then a street . He reacts to other dogs on a leash up to 75 yards away. oddly enough when my son brings over his Chihuahua my dog plays with him although he plays rather roughly. When I have brought him closer to other dogs on a leash he acts like he wants to kill them. He also has endless energy.

There are two answers I'd give to this question, as a completely non-professional dog trainer.

If this were MY dog (or I was speaking to someone who really wants to TRAIN a dog, has a passion for the dog's learning process, and has patience) I'd encourage the owner to build intense focus in the dog through play. I'd have the owner teach the dog to bite a tug, play interactively, and ultimately learn a "release" to bite, and an "out" which would have a dog with a level of drive I'd expect from a GSD out, but still focus on the tug until it was out of sight for a while. Once you build this focus you should be able to encourage your dog to focus on you easily. This is my preferred method.

Otherwise, if I was trying to help someone who was at their wits' end, or someone with very little patience, I'd tell them to put the dog in a prong and swiftly change direction when the dog forged ahead. This would "fix the problem" in about 10 minutes. 5 with a quick learner. You'll end up with a dog that doesn't forge. But you wouldn't win any SchH obedience.

I think which method you choose will depend on what you want out of your relationship with your dog. I've used both methods, and would use either again in certain situations. Good luck.

(My response spawns from the fact that a patient process of desensitization as recommended above may be ideal, but it's probably the least appealing method for a frustrated dog owner.)