2 Easy Tips On How To Leash Train A Puppy

Bringing home a puppy is one of the most amazing experiences that a pet parent can have. Their first boop, their first bark, their first snore—every little thing is adorable and Insta-worthy! One important aspect of puppyhood is puppy training—getting your puppy to be comfortable in their new environment and setting boundaries. This includes leash training and collar training.

More often than not, pet parents start the process wrong and then wonder, “Why is my dog pulling so hard? How to get my puppy to stop biting the leash?”. But there’s an easy way to leash train a puppy before you take them outdoors and once you do that, you’ll notice that the pulling has reduced considerably.

Learn from Shirin Merchant, a pioneer in the field of canine behavior and dog training in India as she demonstrates leash training and collar training.

How To Introduce Your Puppy To To A Collar & Leash

To recap, you can introduce your puppy to leash training and collar training by following two super-easy steps, especially at home! But before we get into them, here are some essential things to keep in mind before you start each training session! 

1. Be mentally present:
   Ensure that you and your dog are in a positive mood to learn and have fun. Pay attention to every detail and remember to be patient! 
   
   
2. Keep rewards handy:
   A reward can be anything from your dog’s favourite dog treats or dog biscuits. Break the treat/biscuit into tiny pieces so they’re easy to digest. If they are hard to chew, you can soak them in water to soften them up. 

STEP 1: Want to introduce your puppy to leash training and collar training? Here’s how you can begin!

• Start by taking a simple dog collar, and putting it on your puppy and taking it off. Your puppy might scratch themselves at first, not being used to the collar, which is completely normal.
  
  
• When you’re putting the dog collar on them, distract them using dog treats. You can also play a game with your puppy or give them a meal while doing so. As soon as the session is over, take the collar off and put it away. Put the collar on only when there’s something fun and exciting happening around your puppy.
  
  
• Repeat this exercise for 3-4 days and you’ll soon notice that as soon as you pick up the dog collar, your puppy starts to wag their tail, as they’ve associated it with fun situations.
  

• Leash training shouldn’t be long sessions but 6-7 minutes of short, fun sessions. Clip the dog leash onto your pup’s collar (keep it loose), hold some dog treats or dog food to their nose and walk up & down in your home (7-8 steps). 
  
  
• The idea is to not let your puppy notice that they have a leash on or fight it off. Let them be distracted by their favourite treats/food and slowly get used to the leash hanging off their neck. Take off the leash once done. 
  
  
• Repeat this exercise for 10 days and you’ll soon notice that your pup doesn’t mind the leash.

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