Leash tension is something I see a lot and it gives your dog mixed or confusing messages. Often people add leash tension when walking and they don’t realize that they are even doing it, usually a habit from trying to hold a dog in place. Leash tension means you are holding your dog back, you are doing all the work. A quick pop on the leash to get focus back and rewarding the returned focus will teach your dog more than you trying to hold them in a position.
There is nothing wrong with using pressure where warranted as a means of, for example, communicating a sit, but if tension is held after the sit has been performed, then we are being unfair and sending the wrong message. If we pull up on the leash while asking the dog to down, or vice versa, we are completely mixing signals and being very confusing and unfair to our dogs. Our dogs are trying hard to understand us, but often we don’t make sense because of these mixed signals or unfair pressure.
So take note of your leash. Don’t drag and pull or try and hold in a position, rather communicate fairly by giving your dog a chance to perform first, rewarding if they do, and helping with directional pressure or a light pop where needed if they don’t. Don’t maintain tension. Dogs can build up a tolerance for leash tension as well, and it will make your job that much harder.
Think of it like this, if your alarm goes off in the morning, and you get up, you would want to shut that alarm off if you did the right thing by getting up, wouldn’t you? What if that alarm never turned off? What if it kept going and going even if you got up, dressed, brushed your teeth and were ready to go? What if that alarm followed you everywhere without stopping? Do you see how unfair and absolutely annoying that would be? You may even build a tolerance for it causing the alarm to become background noise so you don’t even really hear it anymore. That is leash tension. 😊
Happy training!!
Smart Dogs Canine Training Milton 