So I've adopted my dog a year ago. He was 5, dog reactive and initially quite a lot to manage. After quite a bit of work I've gotten him to a point where he'll meet other dogs off leash at the park and be fine with it. He's always a bit cautious but once he's had his sniff and sees the dog is nice he'll move on... On the leash not much has changed. He doesn't lunge at just the sound of a dog anymore, and if he sees one far enough his excitement will build up slower than before, but crossing path with another dog without a scene never happens despite all the work I do to work on that, but it's another topic.
Anyway, through the last year, I've been also trying to get him to not pull on the leash. When I got him he was pulling constantly, literally... The leash was never loose. Over the times I've developed strategies that more or less worked to get him closer to me on walks. Popping the leash a bit every time my leash hand goes behind me, so he gets constant reminders that the limit is where he is, stoping having him come back to me and starting over, U Turns... Now a year later, he's still always at the limit of the leash. It's not as bad as before, and when he's tired he'll stay next to me, but unlike we've biked for an hour right before, he'll be at the limit, always.
I've tried harsher ways, prong collar (he got used to it, of course), I've tried yanking him, he'll come back to me, and as soon as I walk he'll go to the end of the leash. I've tried positive only, the 300 pecks method, we've been up to 35 steps more or less consistently for a while, but if I'm not religiously leash training him, he's back to pulling constantly...
I honestly don't know what to do anymore, it's like he just doesn't get it that being next to me is good and being too far ahead is bad, no matter how I try to get him to wrap is head around that. I feel like I've given every method I've heard of a good run, doing it every day for at least a week if not a month... It has improved a bit, but overall walking him is still a pain... It's like he's just doing his thing while I'm behind him trying to see incoming dogs before he does to avoid a scene...
I really don't know what to do... Maybe he'll just never understand that his positioning matters ? Maybe he doesn't get that when there's pressure on the leash from behind he's supposed to slow down or stop (he understands leash pressure on the sides)... Maybe I've been doing everything wrong... I don't know but any advice would be welcome, I'm just frustrated, it's the year anniversary of his adoption and I don't see myself making much progress in the upcoming years and it's frustrating !
Edit : here's a video of one of the many methods I've tried :
he does okay in this very quiet place but he's constantly looking for the foid. As soon as we step outside he just choses to focus on me or to go where he pleases... As if the training was a gape he's not playing anymore and my back and forth is unrelated and just random and annoying...
Edit 2 : I went out and shot a couple of videos this morning here they are :
and
. This was right after a 45 minutes bike ride so he was pretty low energy. I try not to cue him back into a heel position so he was going fairly slowly.
Anyway, through the last year, I've been also trying to get him to not pull on the leash. When I got him he was pulling constantly, literally... The leash was never loose. Over the times I've developed strategies that more or less worked to get him closer to me on walks. Popping the leash a bit every time my leash hand goes behind me, so he gets constant reminders that the limit is where he is, stoping having him come back to me and starting over, U Turns... Now a year later, he's still always at the limit of the leash. It's not as bad as before, and when he's tired he'll stay next to me, but unlike we've biked for an hour right before, he'll be at the limit, always.
I've tried harsher ways, prong collar (he got used to it, of course), I've tried yanking him, he'll come back to me, and as soon as I walk he'll go to the end of the leash. I've tried positive only, the 300 pecks method, we've been up to 35 steps more or less consistently for a while, but if I'm not religiously leash training him, he's back to pulling constantly...
I honestly don't know what to do anymore, it's like he just doesn't get it that being next to me is good and being too far ahead is bad, no matter how I try to get him to wrap is head around that. I feel like I've given every method I've heard of a good run, doing it every day for at least a week if not a month... It has improved a bit, but overall walking him is still a pain... It's like he's just doing his thing while I'm behind him trying to see incoming dogs before he does to avoid a scene...
I really don't know what to do... Maybe he'll just never understand that his positioning matters ? Maybe he doesn't get that when there's pressure on the leash from behind he's supposed to slow down or stop (he understands leash pressure on the sides)... Maybe I've been doing everything wrong... I don't know but any advice would be welcome, I'm just frustrated, it's the year anniversary of his adoption and I don't see myself making much progress in the upcoming years and it's frustrating !
Edit : here's a video of one of the many methods I've tried :
Edit 2 : I went out and shot a couple of videos this morning here they are :