For a very good guide to all sorts of dog training processes and dog behavior challenges, I use and recommend Clickertraining ...that link goes to the description of this terrific ebook you download immediately, wherever you are! -- Rosana

Recently I wrote about our good experiences with our Rottweiler Lola and a Gentle Leader headcollar. Here is some more information about this useful training tool.

About the Gentle Leader

The Gentle Leader was developed back in the 1980s or so by Dr. R.K. Anderson a veterinarian and Professor and Director Emeritus of the Animal Behavior Clinic at the University of Minnesota and Ruth E. Foster, Past President of the National Association of Dog Obedience Instructors.

At that time it was also called the Promise Headcollar, and you could only get one from a veterinarian who would fit it correctly. We had one back then for our Rhodesian Ridgeback, Cider, who pulled like a sled dog, and we liked it. If memory serves, it was more heavily made than today’s Gentle Leaders.

The principle behind how a Gentle Leader works is sometimes summarized as “It’s like a halter for a horse.” To expand on that, the Gentle Leader’s concept allows the person to control where the dog’s head goes, and where the head goes the body follows along! You do not have to use force or to be strong to use it. It helps a lot with dogs who jump up and lunge or pull.

You really DO have to fit and use it correctly, which is probably why it comes with  detailed instructions. Here’s a webpage where Jean Donaldson, Ian Dunbar, and other positive-method trainers have short videos about all aspects of dog training and behavior management, including how to use the Gentle Leader:   http://abrionline.org/videos.php

* One of the programs, “Loose Leash Walking Tips” is an interview with R.K. Anderson, whom I mentioned above as one of the inventors of the Gentle Leader.
* “Tips for Handling a Dog-Reactive Dog” with Jean Donaldson and Ian Dunbar, is also on the topic, and there are more.

Here’s the quote from Ian Dunbar that predisposed me to get one:

“I have found the Gentle Leader to be extremely effective in dealing with a variety of problems. Specifically, it is invaluable for dogs which pull on leashes and for dogs which lunge at other dogs or people. The Gentle Leader provides a quick and easy-to-use, humane option for concerned owners.” –Dr. Ian Dunbar, renowned animal behaviorist and veterinarian, Berkeley, CA

Where to Get a Gentle Leader?

As I mentioned, I got mine from Sitstay. Click on the Promotion Code DOGLOVER and save 10% on your next order. This link takes you to their homepage, then just click on Collars, Harnesses and Gentle Leader is one of the choices. On each Gentle Leader page, they have some very useful comments about Gentle Leaders. Plus they carry them in all sizes and a gazillion colors.

Dogwise doesn’t carry them. I went to Amazon to get a link from there, only to discover that Sitstay fills the order, so you may as well go right to Sitstay anyway. (I do like to support small businesses, specially ones as well run as this one and when the prices are about the same.)

And here’s a link, with a picture of a Gentle Leader, from Only Natural Pet Store, where I sometimes also get supplies:

Premier Gentle Leader Headcollar Red, Large End leash-pulling forever! No more tug-of-wars, jerking or being dragged down the street. Help control your dog’s unwanted behavior and make going for a walk fun again!

Is there any stress in your life? Ha! Who doesn’t have any? Besides the work, family, relationship, health, and money stresses you may have, there is also the matter of what’s on the news. Don’t worry, I won’t get going on that… this is a blog about dogs and dog training!

But I have been thinking lately about how all these stresses can affect the quality of our relationships with our dogs.  Many people don’t have time – or emotional energy — to contemplate a dog behavior problem, figure out what to do, and to take the kind of repeated action that may be needed before the dog will reliably adopt a new behavior.

So what to do?

Back when we got our dogs, we were thinking about the fun we would have with them, the love we would exchange with them, and the pleasure of having them in our families. When an adult dog poops repeatedly in the house, when any dog pulls on the leash like a maniac,  when [fill in your own challenges here], well then… our stress levels rise. We weren’t hoping for this.

Here are three ideas to help lower your stress, and maybe not just around dog issues:

1. Management: People talk a lot about dog training but not nearly as much about managing dog issues. For example, the post I wrote recently about using a Gentle Leader to walk our Rottweiler describes a management strategy. Confining dogs who aren’t fully house trained is another management strategy. It’s easy to get into a mindset that management is inferior to training, but hey, given everything else going on in our lives, I think management is really valuable and I’m going to think about it more in future articles on dog training.

2. Training: Seek methods that work for you, that are fun for you and the dog, and that are relatively simple to work into your life. Put dog training sessions on the calendar if that helps you.  (I do sometimes.) Don’t expect yourself to do everything in the next week.

3. Appreciation: Appreciate all the ways your dog does enhance your life. Tell him or her out loud, give hugs and kisses, whatever. Appreciation gets me through a lot of rough spots; for years, my husband and I have had the habit, late in the evening, of asking each other what we appreciate about the day, or what was best for us. Believe me, there are days when it’s hard to find anything. There was a day recently when the very best was when my Rottie Lola came up to me at my computer, put her head in my lap, shoved my arm causing me to let go of the mouse, and gazed soulfully into my eyes.

Speaking of appreciation, I appreciate the various bits of positive feedback I get from readers:

• Recently,  a woman from a shelter in Virginia asked permission to print out my page on choosing a dog from a shelter, to use with her shelter volunteers.
• A couple of people who get my weekly newsletter sent me nice thank-you notes.
• There’s been quite a lot of action lately on my blog page about housetraining adult dogs who already have bad habits, with people describing their difficulties and asking for advice. Some of these I do worry about, as not being housebroken can mean a one-way trip out the door in many cases. So I was really happy yesterday when someone came back and posted about the success she had had!

Blogging can be a bit lonely, since you don’t know who you’re talking to, and these comments sure help my stress levels!

This article is excerpted from the free ebook I wrote, Seven Steps to Clicker Training Success with Your Dog. The link takes you to where you can get a copy by signing up for my weekly email newsletter. (It just takes a jiffy, and you can always unsubscribe.) The ebook covers every aspect of getting a good start with clicker training dogs.

In any dog training, you want the communication with the dog to be clear. What is it that you want him to do? His response typically consists of him doing what you are training for, offering another behavior you have previously trained for, getting distracted, or being confused.

What you want to do in your communication with him is to let him know when he does exactly what you want him to. This is where the clicker is so great. It’s a sharp distinct sound and when you click at the exact moment that your dog’s body contacts the ground if you are teaching the down, then the dog knows what you want.

(Well, the dog knows what you want once he understands what the clicker means. See Step One if he hasn’t got that yet.)

So you need to learn how to click at the exact moment. For some people, it’s easier than others. If you have good hand-eye coordination you are ahead of the rest of us. I don’t, so I have practiced without a dog to get better. Believe me, if I can do it, you certainly can! …

How watching TV can make you better at clicker training

You can also practice using your clicker with a television and a remote.  I like to use the mute signal because it is almost instantaneous, and I tell the people in the ads “Quiet!” For starters, if there happens to be an ad that you are familiar with, then you can choose to click when certain things happen. Another time I like to practice is when watching tennis or other sports, where I can pretty much predict how people will move their bodies.

Whatever television shows and ads you watch, I’m sure you can come up with some creative ways to practice hitting  the clicker right when you want to. Do be sure the dog isn’t going to hear you, though. You want him to think of the clicker as something you do with him.

Click (your mouse, not your clicker) here to get the ebook: Seven Steps to Clicker Training Success with Your Dog