National Walk your Dog Month!

By: Misti Fry, M.S.

February is National Walk Your Dog Month. What better way to show your dog how much you love them than to teach them to walk politely on a leash so you can take them with you on adventures. If your dog can walk politely on a leash, you can have so many adventures. There are numerous dog-friendly stores and parks where you can take your dog and help them with proper socialization. 

The proper equipment can make teaching your dog easier and set you both up for success. Halters and head collars can provide you with more leverage and alter the type of pressure your dog feels. I enjoy teaching leash walking using a combination of releasing pressure and positive reinforcement.

Many dogs can walk politely on a leash in a dog training class or at home, but when they go out in public, it all falls apart. Real-world training and gradually increasing the level of distractions can make training more enjoyable and less frustrating. If we add real-world distractions that are too hard for our dogs, we get frustrated, and our dogs don’t learn anything because they are too distracted by the environment.