Teaching not to pull

[GeraltOfRivia]

I am using my new relaxed "have nowhere else to be" walks with my boy to work hard on nice walking non lead.

He's a 1 year old Dalmatian and very strong.

At home we're practicing in short bursts at rewarding him when "checking in" with me (what our puppy train says for when they look at you)

On walks I've also been rewarding him checking in and I've been doing the process of stopping still when he pulls and there is tension on the lead then standing like a dummy until he loosens.

So far, he's got the hang of what he needs to do. Unless it's something really exciting like another dog/squirrel he'll take two steps back when we stop and wait to start again. When it IS exiting he knows what to do but can't yet control himself enough to do it. Also, when he takes his steps back and we start up again it's often only seconds before he stops.

I feel like it's progress but so bloody slow. I guess I just want to know if anyone has had success in teaching this way or if there's anything else I can add to the mix to support him learning.

Sorry. Terribly rude of me. Here he is on his birthday, handsome as anything.

Ohhhh look at him - so handsome of course you just let him pull

Only kidding.You are doing the right thing with rewarding focus I would up this a bit and just reward when he is near you not always on focus, so he could be looking at the bird to chase but actually stays close toyou.

Loads of ways to so this
Reward circle -reward near you
sit on the floor throw treats away from you when he returns to you he gets more treats throw treats out again. This usually becomes a fast chase and return games and the dogs love it.

Teach him to play with a tuggy, the game has to be played close to you.

Drunk walking is good to -have a lose lead and do not walk in a straight line walk in a zigzag take steps backward and reward when the lead islose and the dog is close to you.

I dont like the stop when they pull ahead as it can cause frustration in the dog (so they pull ahead more and frustration in the owner)

Do get the walking perfect in a calm place,so in the garden, in a quiet road before you can expect your dog to walk calmly at the beginning of the walk. At the beginning of the walk up the treats keep the distance short and reward like mad.

If you are consistent it will get better.

I would be using a Y fronted harness with a d ring and have a double ended lead attached to front and back of harness

What ever happens he is sooooo handsome

Thanks @jinxpixie I'll try those games in our garden. We have the time!

We have a y harness and double ended lead already but good to know we're on the right track there.

He's fab and doing so well with so much. He's still just a big baby really though ❤️

I have no advice as my dog is two and still pulls, but he is bloody gorgeous!

Personally I’ve found the best tool to be a dogmatic headcollar.

One lead on the headcollar, one to the standard collar.
When dog is walking to heel I use the flat collar, lots of praise. The second there’s tension I stop and stand until the lead goes slack. Repeat every single time.
If my dog is being daft which does happen I switch to the dogmatic end of the lead which gives her a reminder to behave, then straight back to the flat collar.

It’s working quite well!