Love your dog but every walk has become a nightmare? Being pulled this way and that way, as if your dog barely realizes you’re there? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Dogs pulling on the leash is one of the most common problems pet owners report.

That being said, it’s also easily fixed with just a little bit of effort on your part. Follow our simple directions on how to get your dog to stop pulling on the leash you’ll read about below, and soon those headache-inducing walks will be a thing of the past!

Keep reading below for our article “Dog Pulling on Leash!”

How to Stop Your Dog from Pulling on the Leash

Follow these leash training tips and walks will be a pleasure in no time.

Calm Them Before

Take time to settle your dog down before heading out on your walk. Once they know it’s coming and you’ve got them on their leash, your dog is no doubt going to be a seemingly uncontrollable ball of energy.

But if you’re going to make progress, the first step is to make sure they calm down before you head out. Speak in a relaxed, calm tone and pause outside your door (or while still inside) until your dog gets the message to settle down.

Once they seem relaxed, start to head out but begin the process if they start getting overexcited again.

Change Direction

As you’re getting ready to start your walk, pay special attention to what direction your dog is wanting to go towards. If they start to head to the left, then you should step to the right. If they head right, then you should step left.

Your dog needs to understand that you will be deciding the direction of the walk. By doing this right as you’re about to go, your dog should begin to understand that they need to stay by your side and allow you to lead.

It may take some time with stubborn or overly excited dogs, but by doing this method as soon as they go in a direction that you haven’t led them towards, they will always wind up behind you. Before long, they should get the idea and you can begin the walk.

No Pull Dog Harness

A dog harness that clips in the front can be very effective at stopping your dog from pulling on their leash.

If your dog decides they want to get out front and pull, ignoring your direction, then they will get the unpleasant feeling of the leash dragging across their face. It won’t hurt them at all, but it will not be enjoyable.

Wearing a no pull harness (sometimes called a front clip dog harness) should be a big help in getting your pup by your side and following your lead.

Show You’re in Charge

It’s important to remember that on top of the excitement and promise of new smells, a big part of why your dog pulls on their leash is that they are viewing themselves as the one that is charge. The leader of the pack, so to speak.

And their pulling clearly illustrates this. After all, where would you expect to find the pack leader? Out in front, of course. So when you’ve allowed your dog to view themselves as the leader, behavior issues like this will be inevitable and numerous.

How do you show your dog that you call the shots — that you, and you alone, are the pack leader? You make it absolutely clear to them that you will be the one making the decisions, and it’s okay for them to look to you for guidance.

Once this is accomplished, your leash pulling issues will be over and correcting other behavior problems will be quick and simple. I tried many times to write out how to be your dog’s pack leader before deciding it was better to just link the video series that explains it.

Doggy Dan is one of the world’s leading dog obedience trainers and he has an excellent video series that will show you how to successfully loose leash train your dog and stop all other misbehavior using his very easy to follow methods.

In the first video, Dan will reveal to you why the two most common methods of dog training only doom you to failure. You can watch the video now by clicking here. Follow the methods he teaches in his videos and you’ll never again have to worry about your dog misbehaving again!

Why Dogs Pull on the Leash

It won’t surprise you to learn that a huge reason why your dog is pulling on the leash is because there’s simply something exciting to investigate or smell, and they’ve gotta get there right this moment! No smell can be left unsniffed.

This also causes them to seek out a much different path than we would choose. While on a walk by ourselves, we’ll likely follow along a straight path, going with the trail (or sidewalk) wherever it curves. Dogs, however, will quickly zig zag back and forth.

These not-so-alike ideas on how to best get around lead to you getting pulled to and fro while your dog does their investigations. This is another time where the pace at which your dog wants to go can lead to problems.

You’ve probably noticed that our natural pace is just much slower than that of a dog’s. While your pup will trot along, even a quick walking speed from yourself will not keep up — resulting in them attempting to pull you along.

Finally, sometimes it’s just a matter of your dog having fear issues, and they’re eager to get back home to safety as soon as possible. Learn how to address this in our article on how to give your fearful dog confidence.

Now that you know what you need to do, all that’s left is to start putting these tips into practice! Soon enough, the non-stop pulling will be a thing of the past and you’ll look forward to walks just as much as your dog. Thank you for reading our article “Dog Pulling on Leash!”