THREE SECRETS FOR A BETTER WALK
Walking the dog is a quintessential part of owning your beloved Fido, and it is also the single thing that a vast percentage of dog owners come to trainers for. Pulling, lunging, zigzagging, and in general being a hot mess all can really kill the vibe of an otherwise enjoyable activity. In addition, these issues often are what owners cite as the reason they are unable to give their dog the exercise they need! So, if you are dreading walking your dog, here are three secrets for better walks with your dog.
1. Walk each dog with undivided attention
Multi-dog households often walk their dogs together as a group, saving time at the expense of their owner’s shoulder. It is harder to train a dog to walk well on a leash, ignore triggers, or follow directions when their human’s attention is split. In addition, two dogs can create extra problems by allowing one dog to learn the bad habits of the other, such as barking at other dogs or anxiously scanning the horizon line, or sacrificing both dog’s ideal walk speed for a compromise.
When I brought a second dog into my home, it was abundantly clear that what was a great walk for one was as enjoyable as a punishment for the other. My 10 year old dog wants to sniff every blade of grass, take familiar roads, roll in the grass, and in general take her time enjoying being outside. My 1 year old dog wants to cover ground as fast as possible, pee on all the vertical surfaces he can, jump on stumps and logs, and track old squirrel scents around in circles. Neither of their interests overlap and their ideal walks are only achievable alone. Plus being alone allows me to train my 1 year old dog without worrying about my 10 year old dog getting in the way!
For you single dog homes out there, this task is simpler and does not double your daily walks. It mainly means to put your phone on silent and put it in your back pocket, keep your headphones quiet enough to be aware of your surroundings, and pay attention to your dog.
2. Walk “there and back again”
In most people’s ideal walk scenario, they are walking what is called a “four corners” walk. This means they are walking a complete circle, square, rectangle, etc… where they never walk the same road twice and have fresh scenery the whole time. This is very stimulating for dogs, and can make focusing on training even harder than it is already. For nervous, anxious, or reactive dogs it can also increase the stress experienced by the unknown of the outside world.
Instead I recommend taking “there and back” walks with dogs in training or dogs with stress related behavior. This simply means walking in one direction, making turns as needed, and then stopping and walking the exact same path home. The exact same side of the street, the exact same smells, the exact same scenery.
I always find I do my best training walks on the way back, and my dog gets five times the number of chances to be rewarded for his good leash manners!
3. Take breaks
When a walk is in constant motion, it escalates your dog thanks to a constant stream of “go-go-go”. They learn very fast that the world outside of their front door is one of full throttle excitement and movement. Setting aside 5 minutes of your walk, even broken into smaller bits, can help break up this escalation and provide time to reward calm behaviors and make room for “deep breaths”.
One option is taking a seat and rewarding all calm behavior your dog offers. Another is playing scent-based games in a patch of grass or dirt. You can even practice easy cues! The ways you can take breaks in the middle of your walk are too numerous to list, but all of them are great ways to help expand your dog’s toolbox of skills he can bring to the walk besides constant forward motion.
These three walking secrets are only a few of the great ways you can help your dog take better walks! If over the next few weeks you try any of them, please let me know!
