07/17/2026
Leia is the most happy-go-lucky dog ever! She is still quite young (1 year old!) and is currently working on managing her excitement, loose leash walking and general leash manners (like not running off the sidewalk 😅).
In our first couple of sessions, I attempted to dive straight into doing loose leash walking drills with her. Although she was making small steps in progress, I quickly realized that this girl just needed to let some beans out.
I obviously want to build these skills with her, but I’m also trying to keep in mind how we can make this process as fun as possible for her. And of course, not make it a frustrating experience either.
So I told her parents, I’m going to switch it up! Let’s pop her in the car, and drive her to an open area a few mins away so she can run that initial energy off, and then let’s do that more challenging leash work. And what a world of a difference that made!
This isn’t a permanent plan, but while she’s learning more skills, this will help her reduce the rehearsal of pulling on the leash and getting frustrated with the practice.
She’s much happier with this routine and I can see she’s learning better with each walk.
Who wants to see more of Leia’s progress? 🤓
dog training | loose leash walking | teen dog | adolescent dog | port coquitlam | tricities
