How can I correct my dog's leash problem?

Question

My dog is a terrier/sheltie mix and tends to be very hyper. Whenever we go out for a walk he will jump up and try to grab more of the leash while we're walking. This is making our daily walks very unenjoyable.

How can I correct this problem?

Answer 1

Hehe my seven year old sheltie did that too! What simportant is to give your dog a small amount of leash to hold in his mouth, that way he still has the leash, but you still have control

Answer 2

Instead of punishing him for this behavior, you could try using 2 leashes and when he grabs one, drop it and use the other. You could try stopping and waiting for him to drop it before continuing your walk (his reward for dropping the leash is the continuation of the walk). You could reward him for not grabbing the leash. You could ask for a sit/stay or anything else he knows well that is incompatible with grabbing the leash. Basically he doesn't inherently know this is 'wrong' or undesirable. Changing his behavior is also dependent on why he's doing it - is it just for fun? Is he worried about something?

Always reward him appropriately for doing what you do want. Ignoring unwanted behavior is usually the best way to decrease it.

Answer 3

I think they're are two things that you can be doing.  The first is to get a clicker from Pet-Smart of wherever.  Wait until he's walking properly and click and give him a treat.  Do it every time he's walking the way he's supposed to walk and click, give him a treat.  Just take a pocketful of his kibble or you can boil some chicken and keep it in a bag in your pocket when you're out for a walk.  

Secondly, you can take a small squirt gun and squirt him when he jumps up OR a brief "Ah" when he jumps.  Don't say no because you've probably been saying that all along and it's not working.  Just a sharp, "Ah ah".  He's continued to do this because it's like a game and he gets attention when he does it.  If you move him off the leash with your hand, he thinks he's being petted.  

If you're consistent he'll make the connection, pretty quickly.

Answer 4

There is no reason for the dog to hold any part of the leash in his mouth while walking him.  What most people do is try to pull the leash out of their dog's mouth - this is wrong.  Instead, give the leash a quick pop INTO the dog's mouth.  This will normally make him spit out the leash.  You may need to make the pops somewhat hard the first couple of times for him to understand what you want.  When he spits the leash out, tell him what a good boy he is.  Make sure you do not reward him with food for spitting out the leash.  This will quickly teach him that he can grab the lead, then spit it out for a food reward.

If he walks for a short distance with the leash out of his mouth, you can reward him with a treat or verbal praise.  

One thing that may also help is to wear your dog out slightly before going for a walk.  Throw him the ball a few times or play with him to wear off a little of the "hyper" energy.