Walking a dog off-leash can bring many benefits. Many dogs greatly enjoy the freedom of being off-leash to run and sniff whatever they want.
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However, not every owner feels confident taking their dog off-leash during walks, especially if the pup doesn’t have good recall skills, meaning they don’t return to their owners when called.
With this in mind, dog trainer and behavioral consultant Amelia Steele, better known online as Amelia the Dog Trainer, offered five important tips in a recent post on her Instagram profile. Check it out!
1. Engagement starts with leadership
“One of the quickest and most reliable ways to build engagement for off-leash skills is to focus on good engagement in leadership,” Steele explained in the post, adding that leadership training is just as important as fun engagement games.
2. Always reward good choices
When you are outside with your dog, they will find the environment rewarding, so make sure to reward your pup for making good choices. “I always reward my dog for good choices off-leash, and it doesn’t have to be [with] treats,” she said.
“It can be play, praise, or whatever your dog values!” the expert added. Essentially, you want to ensure that paying attention to you is valuable for your pup through positive reinforcement.
3. Create value in yourself
“Your dog needs to see you as a source of great things […]. It’s important to take time to work with your dog doing something they love, whether it’s breed-specific enrichment or just playing with a tug toy,” the trainer explained.
4. Active supervision is always necessary
While it’s important for your dog to have solid memory and enjoy engaging with you, we need to actively supervise our pups while they are off-leash.
Even if your dog is the friendliest pup you know, some people may be allergic or afraid of dogs, and some other dogs you meet along the way may be reactive.
5. Don’t poison your cue
“Choose a verbal cue or a sound like a whistle that you know you won’t use in other contexts,” Steele advised. “This cue should only mean good things and should only be introduced in a situation where your dog is prepared to succeed.”
Before using a cue, make sure your dog will respond to it. If they aren’t ready for that, use another way to manage your dog’s behavior in the meantime.
If you use the recall signal while your dog is having fun and likely won’t respond, you risk poisoning the signal and making them start to ignore it, which is extremely counterproductive in this process.
This content was created with the help of AI
