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Dog Leash Training – The Golden Rule
Leash Training – Part 2
The majority of dog owners address the issue of leash training only once it becomes a problem. In the beginning, when walking their dog, they initially think it’s “cute” that a puppy pulls away the entire walk to the park because, they think, that the dog “just can’t wait to play with its ball”. But once this pattern of pulling in ingrained, it take patience to retrain.
No matter what equipment and training method you choose, experts will tell you to abide by one golden rule when leash training: any pulling by the dog means all forward motion ceases.
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As soon as your puppy or dog puts tension on the leash, you stop – every time! Ah, but rather than just stand there and make this a battle of wills, we humans outsmart our clever dogs and convince them that putting slack in the leash really works on their favor. Therefore, leash training will include treats, praise and other positive payoffs.
Add A Clicker To The Leash Training Mix
Help your dog learn that it’s a good idea to stay close to you, that good things happen when you’re nearby. To achieve this goal, we suggest that you use a clicker, which is a small, handheld device that makes a “click” sound when pressed.
The click marks the desired behavior the second it occurs and is immediately followed by a treat. A clicker is a good way to cut through the environment clutter that is a part of most leash walks, and helps your dog to focus on you and what it’s doing to get “paid”.
The clicker helps teach your dog to ignore tempting distractions because you become more interesting to your dog than anything else.
Not surprisingly, a young pup that has never had a chance to develop the habit of pulling is the easiest to teach. First, gather up your training tools and snap the leash on the buckle collar. Start walking and talking to the puppy in a happy, friendly voice. As he turns to look at you and the leash goes slack, CLICK!
This interaction teaches your dog that you are, indeed, an integral part of being walked.
Note: Frequent clicks and treats while walking will help teach your dog that the big payoff usually happens within a one-foot radius around you. When leash training, most pups will begin to stick around in hopes of another reward.
Dog Leash Training – Start With The Correct Collar
Leash Training
One of the best leash training methods created today does so that encourages the dog to develop awareness of its owner. To begin, you should use a sturdy, flat or rolled buckle collar made of leather or nylon.
Although popular among obedience trainers, slip collars – which tighten and release in response to tension – are not necessarily a good choice for teaching leash manners. Most dogs are overly excitable on the leash and often pull heedlessly against this type of collar, sometimes resulting in damage to the trachea. Though appropriate in the right hands, this collar is best left to those experienced in its use.
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For the determined dog that already has a habit of pulling, the “headcollar” is the most effective training tool. This relatively recent innovation loops around the top of the dog’s neck and muzzle. The loops are attached by an additional strap on each side of the head and one below the muzzle. The leash attaches to the headhalter, the concept is based on the simple physical rule that where the head goes, the rest of the animal must follow.
The headcollar turns the dog toward the walker whenever tension is applied as it simultaneously tightens around the muzzle and back of the head, encouraging the dog to move in the direction of its owner to release the pressure.
Specifically designed to offer a gentle alternative to other collars, initial hands-on leash training instruction from a trainer who is familiar with its use is still a good idea in order to have the proper fit and more effective method.
For the standard size breed that is around six months or older, a prong, or pinch collar, may work best – and also for the adult dog that naturally pulls. Made to constrict in response to applied tension, then instantly expand again when tautness is released, this metal collar has large prongs that turn inward around the dog’s neck, creating what could be described as a blunted, teeth-like effect.
As with the headcollar, correct fit and size are important and are best judged by a trainer well educated in proper prong-collar usage. One that is too tight pinches the dog continually, which is counterproductive to training and cruel to the dog. One that is too loose loses its effectiveness.
A properly fitted prong collar should sit high on the dog’s neck, just below the ears. You should be able to slip your fingers underneath the collar when pressure is not applied, but it should not be so loose that it slips down around the trachea.
Despite its somewhat formidable appearance, the correct use of a prong collar simply gives the dog cause to stop and take notice of its owner. The prongs only pinch if pressure is applied, such as when the dog pulls. The pinch is in direct relationship to the amount of pressure applied.
The more pressure that is applied, the harder the pinch will be. Prong collars work well for leash training because the dog controls how much pressure it puts on its collar, and therefore, controls the amount of pinch it receives. This type of leash training allows the animal to avoid the pinch by maintaining slack in the lead.
Establishing A Positive Behavioral Training For Your Dalmatian
The key to having a good relationship with a Dalmatian, whether he is a member of the family as an older dog or comes as a puppy from a litter, is in the amount of attention and affection with which you establish boundaries of behavior. They are eagerly responsive to attention, games, praise and positive training. However, they have a sharp memory for negative or harshly corrective actions. They will respond much more readily to rewards for approximating desired behavior than being forced into the position or posture you wish them to assume.
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The difference between holding out a reward until they sit versus pushing down on their hindquarters while pulling up on their lead and commanding them to “sit!” lies in two critical areas. They will more readily and consistently respond to a “sit” command taught through play learning, and they will not start calculating how they can avoid you or avoid sitting, or get back at you for the “pushy” approach. No dog is happily responsive to abusive training practices, but the Dalmatian has a peculiarly sharp memory for affronts. If they have had a bad experience learning how to sit, they are almost certain to resist other obedience lessons which take on the same manipulative tone.
Many people think that a Dalmatian has nervous temperaments, excessive energy and are hyper. This generalization is unfair to the breed, because good temperament has been a specific focus of breeders for the last twenty years. There is little question that in any planned breeding program, you can select for bad temperament just as you can select for good temperament. Parentage, pedigrees and the variety of genetic possibilities force breeders to contend with that possibility. It is one of the conscious considerations in every breeding decision.
There is no question that a Dalmatian get excited when someone comes on the property or to the door. They want to be the first one there to check out the visitor. Proper training will take care of any barking or control problems in this area, but guests who are greeted in this manner, especially those who have heard that Dalmatians are “hyper,” could easily confirm what they have heard by the excitement they first see. Hopefully, they will stay long enough to see the excited greeting followed by the normal pattern, which usually includes acceptance followed by settling back down for a snooze under the table.
If Dalmatian puppies have been raised in a calm environment with their mother; if they have been touched, petted and handled regularly by the breeder; if they have been properly vaccinated and wormed; if they have been weaned to a good quality puppy food; if they were taken from their litter by their new owner no earlier than seven weeks of age; and if they were introduced to their new home life with kindness and thoughtfulness, then chances are good that you will not see any behavior abnormalities in your Dalmatian.
Inside The Mind Of A Dalmatian
Although a Dalmatian loves to ride in the car to just about anywhere, they’re not back-seat dogs in any other sense of the word. Their inner world contains wonders around every corner and no dangers that are quicker, tougher or smarter than they are. A Dalmatian is not a “porch dog” that sits and looks at a guest or visitor until some unknown cue prompts it to get up and investigate or greet. They are instantly curious about nearly everything and won’t hesitate to go see what’s up.
The Dalmatian breed standard calls for poise and alertness, and a stable, outgoing, and dignified temperament. You should understand that this translates into a dog that does not go wagging up to any stranger and lick them up one side and down the other. This means that when a Dalmatian meets strangers, he usually prefers to go up to them at his own pace, investigating fairly thoroughly before becoming the wagging, silly bouncing friend.
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Many people are so taken with the dog’s looks and bright expression that they forget introductions and manners. They’ll rush up to the dog, arms and hands extended, bending down, with body language that says to the dog, “I want to grab you and pet you and touch you.” The Dalmatian understands the body language to say “I want to grab you and hold you in one place and prevent you from moving around me and checking me out while I check you out.”
Throughout early history, the Dalmatian was bred to take control of the streets and make judgments on whether things were safe or not for the horses and masters. You can’t make judgments while you’re being held in one spot and examined. This isn’t to say that the Dalmatian’s instincts should dictate your routines, or that he can’t be trained to be appropriately sociable; however, they are more likely to meet someone by going through the steps of investigation and judgment before acting like a wagging fool.
What if they don’t like someone after investigation? Sometimes this happens, and most of the time it’s for reasons the owners can’t comprehend. When this occurs, it’s rarely an aggressive scene. The Dalmatian’s reaction is more likely to be one of avoidance, perhaps a quiet grumble or groaning and a move to the next room, from which he can keep an eye on things until the stranger leaves. Your first impression as an owner is to feel like scolding your dog for unsociable behavior the judgment of a Dalmatian has always turned out to have an element of soundness.
The Paisley Breed Of Dalmatian
The Paisley Dalmatian is owned by Dave and Sue MacMillan who are located at St. Paul, Minnesota. When Paisley Peterbilt completed his championship in March of 1985, he became the 50th conformation champion owned or bred at Paisley. And during that same month, Paisley’s QindaBritt became the 30th obedience Dalmatian to have earned a C.D. degree.
Although she was actually their fourth Dalmatian and third champion, champion Melody Up-Up and Away, more familiarly known as “Pooka,” is credited with being the true foundation of the Paisley breeding program, probably because she is to be found in the background of all but one champion carrying the Paisley name. All of the younger dogs are line-bred on this remarkable dog, some of them having as many as five crossed to her in their pedigrees.
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Pooka was a liver colored Dalmatian and a multi-Group winner. Her show credits include having been a Top Ten Dalmatian, and she was Best of Opposite Sex at the Dalmatian Club of America Specialty in 1974. But despite these accomplishments, it was in the whelping box that her most notable successes were achieved, such as becoming the dam of 15 champions, second in this number only to her half sister, Champion Melody Sweet, C.D. who exceeded
her number by only one, making a total of 16 champions. Adding to her success as a producer is the fact that Pooka’s offspring seem to be following in her pawmarks in this regard, and a number of them are providing foundation for other highly successful Dalmatian kennels.
Paisley is basically a combination of Melody and Watseka lines with the addition of some Long Last and Coachman. Each of these lines has its strong points, and Sue is finding that the combination is giving them the look that they prefer. At the time their breeding program was started, Sue and Dave felt that there was no line that really possessed the combination of characteristics that they wanted in their Dalmatians, and they saw no point in line-breeding just for the sake of doing so.
Thus they started out by doing judicious outcrosses attempting to pick up the features they felt they needed to add. Although initially they received considerable criticism for pursuing this course rather than the more conservative line-breeding, these outcrosses laid the groundwork by bringing in those qualities they had felt they wanted to improve upon, and thus incorporating them into the developing Paisley Dalmatian lines