TH E TO P 5 D O G O W N ER S M A K E

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Darlene Blair
5 years ago
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1 T H E C O L L A R E D SC H O L A R TH E TO P 5 MISTAKES D O G O W N ER S M A K E when walkingtheir dogs

2 RECLA IM YO U R W A LK Do you ever find yourself st aring at t hose dog ow ners w ho seem t o have it all t oget her? You know t he t ype... The ones w ho have a lat t e in one hand, t heir dog's leash in t he ot her, and t heir dog is com plet ely relax ed, saunt ering along at t heir side. Then, you t hink sheepishly about your ow n dog, w ho is dragging you every w hich w ay on w alks. Who quit e frankly dow nright em barrasses you w hen you are in public. Have you t ried t he t ools? The harnesses, t he collars, t he halt is and t he fancy leashes? Anyt hing t hat could give you just a lit t le reprieve and som e sem blance of cont rol on your w alks? And have you ever felt hopeless, defeat ed and dow nright frust rat ed w it h your dog w ho seem s t o go select ively deaf w hen you are anyw here but hom e? I t doesn ' t h av e t o be t h at w ay. Learn t he t op 5 m ist akes dog ow ners m ake t hat regularly oblit erat e t heir w alks, and learn w hat you need t o do t o avoid t hem. It's time to reclaim your dog walks. THE COLLARED SCHOLAR RECLAIM YOUR WALK

3 M ISTA K E # 1 1. H AV IN G U N REA LISTIC EX PECTATIO N S Answ er t his... The first t im e you t ook your dog for a w alk...w hat did you do t o prepare? What did you do t o show him w hat t he leash w as all about? And w hat did you do t o t each him t o accept t he leash? For m ost people, t he answ er is a sheepish " Not M uch". In fact, m ore oft en t han not, w e sim ply slap t he leash on our dog and head out t he front door. We ex pect t hem t o know how t o react and w hat t o do, w it hout every really show ing t hem. And m eanw hile, all your dog sees is a long rope t hat holds t hem back. A t ool t hat rest rains t hem and keeps t hem from get t ing w hat t hey w ant. Or, if your dog is a lit t le t im id, a t ool t hat st ops t hem from escaping w hen t hings get scary. It 's no w onder leash w alks aren't going t o plan. For m ost of us, w e never spent t im e set t ing t he right ex pect at ions. Teaching our dog how t o w alk w it h us, and t o calm ly accept t he leash before hit t ing t he pavem ent for a long w alk! IT'S N EV ER TO O LATE It 's never t oo lat e t o set ex pect at ions. Spend t im e t eaching your dog t o accept t he leash and w alk w it h you at hom e, in a com fort able and dist ract ion free set t ing. Grab t heir favorit e t reat and rew ard t hem for being relax ed on t he leash before heading out t o a busy area w here t hings w ill com pet e for your dog's at t ent ion. THE COLLARED SCHOLAR RECLAIM YOUR WALK

M ISTA K E # 2 2. LETTIN G YO U R D O G GET TO O EXCITED I get it. It can be so fun t o see your dog filled w it h ex cit em ent, burst ing at t he seam s because he get s t o go for his w alk.

4 M ISTA K E # 2 2. LETTIN G YO U R D O G GET TO O EXCITED I get it. It can be so fun t o see your dog filled w it h ex cit em ent, burst ing at t he seam s because he get s t o go for his w alk. I m ean, you love your dog. And you w ant him t o be happy. And w hen you grab t hat leash and he st art s bouncing up and dow n, you know you've hit t he happiness jackpot. But t hink about t his... If you w ant your dog t o be calm and relax ed on t heir w alk, how does get t ing t hem all riled up before hit t ing t he pavem ent accom plish t hat goal? It doesn't. In fact, it set s t he w rong t one before you even st ep foot out your front door. By get t ing your dog ex cit ed for t heir w alk, you are in essence set t ing t hem up t o fail. CH A N GE IT U P! Your dog loves her w alks. There's no doubt about it. And your dog w ill love her w alks just as m uch if you dit ch t he pre-w alk go-nut s rit ual. In fact, I'd vent ure t o say she'll love t hem even m ore. To get st art ed, sim ply change up your pre-w alk rout ine. No m ore " Wanna go for a w alk?" in your highest pit ched t one. And if your dog get s ex cit ed w hen you grab your leash, m ake it a point t o grab it a dozen ( or t w o! ) t im es t hroughout t he course of t he day. Walk around w it h it. And t hen put it dow n. Pret t y soon t hat leash w on't be hardly as ex cit ing. You can do t he sam e w it h any ot her t riggers t hat get your dog am ped before your w alk. Put t ing on your shoes? Put t hem on several t im es t hroughout t he day. Picking up your keys?... You get t he idea.

5 M ISTA K E # 3 3. GIV IN G TH EM GO O D STU FF, FO R BA D STU FF I hat e t o break it t o you, but your dog pulls on lead because...it w orks! They get good st uff for pulling. And t hat good st uff far out w eighs t he m ild discom fort of pulling against t heir collar or harness. Think about it, if your dog w ant s t o GO...he pulls and...you go! If your dog w ant s t o greet anot her dog, he pulls and get s t here. If your dog w ant s t o sniff a t ree... Or greet a st ranger... Or do anyt hing on w alks...he pulls, and you follow. U SE IT TO YO U R A D VA N TA GE! If you know w hat your dog w ant s in any given m om ent, you can use t hat know ledge t o your advant age. All you have t o do is STOP giving your dog w hat he w ant s for pulling, and st art giving it t o him w hen he's w alking nicely. Want to sniff that tree? If you pull, w e'll st op m oving ent irely. But if t here is slack on t he leash, I'll let you check it out! Want to go forward? Pulling isn't going t o get you t here. Becom e a m ast er of know ing w hat your dog is aft er in any given m om ent, and use it t o reinforce t he behavior you like! Not t he behavior you don't.

6 M ISTA K E # 4 4. IN TERA CTIN G W ITH O TH ER D O GS Oft en t im es dog ow ners w ant t heir dog t o be able t o say " Hi! " t o pot ent ial doggy playm at es as t hey pass. But doing on leash int eract ions can put your dog in a t ough spot. Leashes can m ake your dog feel t rapped, and can increase t he likelihood of a bad react ion or ex perience. Not only t hat, if you let your dog int eract w it h ot her dogs on leash regularly, your dog w ill becom e very int erest ed in ot her dogs, and w ill oft ent im es st art pulling t o get t o t hem. D RO P TH E LEA D Your dog w alk is t im e for YOU t o spend t im e w it h your dog. It 's t im e for t he t w o of you t o bond. So avoid int roducing your dog t o ot her dogs w hile she is on lead. Inst ead, for social dogs, reserve doggy playt im e for spaces w here your dog can be off lead, or w here you can safely drop your lead. And keep t he leash w alk as a t im e for you t o spend one on one w it h your dog. Not only w ill t his help you reclaim your dog w alks, but it w ill also help your dog t o feel m ore secure w hen she m eet s new pot ent ial doggy playm at es.

7 M ISTA K E # 5 5. H O LD IN G TH E LEA SH TIGH T When our dog m isbehaves on w alks, and w e w ant t o get cont rol, it 's nat ural inst inct t o hold t he leash t ight. We'll hold our dog close t o us, keeping t he leash snug t o prevent t hem from pulling or dragging us t o t he ground. The problem w it h t his idea is t hat it act ivat es som et hing called " Opposit ion Reflex ", or t he reflex t o pull. Plainly st at ed, if you pull against your dog, t hey w ill reflex ively pull back against you. So doing so t ends only t o m ake m at t ers w orse. CU T H IM SO M E SLA CK Whenever possible t ry hard t o m aint ain slack in your lead. And rat her t han holding your dog close t o you, spend t im e t eaching him how t o w alk nicely at your side. Grab a st ash of your dogs favorit e t reat s and pract ice at hom e, before even leaving your house. Walk your dog around your yard and spend t im e rew arding him w hen he isn't pulling. If your dog pulls, st op m oving and st and st ill. Act like a t ree and don't say anyt hing. As soon as your dog gives int o t he leash and st ops pulling, give him a t reat and st art w alking again. By rew arding your dog w hen t he leash is slack, and by pract icing at hom e w it hout dist ract ions com pet ing for your dog's at t ent ion, you'll set your dog ( and yourself! ) up for success.

8 RECLA IM YO U R W A LK S Walking your dog should never be a chore. It should be a w ay for you t o unw ind aft er a long day. It should be a t im e for you t o bond w it h your best friend, t o get ex ercise t oget her, and t o spend qualit y t im e w it h one anot her. It's time to reclaim your walks. K EY TA K EAW AYS: - Spend t im e pract icing at hom e, before t aking your dog out int o new environm ent s. It w ill be m uch easier for you t o int roduce good leash m anners w hen t here isn't so m uch com pet ing for your dog's at t ent ion. - Don't let your dog get good st uff for pulling. If your dog st art s t o pull, just act like a t ree, st ay st ill and w ait for him t o st op before m oving forw ard or let t ing him access w hat ever rew ard in t he environm ent he's aft er. - Take your t im e. Don't get frust rat ed. Wit h a lit t le pat ience, and by celebrat ing and rew arding your dog's good behavior w hen it 's offered, you CAN reclaim your dog w alks!

9 T H E C O L L A R E D SC H O L A R Reclaim Your Walk in our 6 Week Online Loose Leash Walking Course info@collar ed-scholar.com * w w w.collar ed-scholar.com

The Ind ian Mynah b ird is no t fro m Vanuat u. It w as b ro ug ht here fro m overseas and is now causing lo t s o f p ro b lem s.

The Ind ian Mynah b ird is no t fro m Vanuat u. It w as b ro ug ht here fro m overseas and is now causing lo t s o f p ro b lem s. Mynah b ird s p ush out nat ive b ird s, com p et ing for food and p laces