The Game Time Team had a fantastic and educational session focused on dog walking with Donovan of Fidelio Dog Works last week. It rained on us, but that didn’t slow us down. ????☔???? We learned about the Balanced Dog Training Method and how to implement Fidelio’s training methods in our daily dog walks.
For a dogs training to have long term success it’s imperative to be consistent and to practice daily. As the phrase goes, “if you don’t use it – you lose it”. For our dog walking clients, we want to have the tools in our pocket to maintain and practice what the dog has learned from their professional training.
A few key points from our lesson:
- Walk the dog with purpose and intension
- The attention of the dog should always be on us, the walker – if they get distracted make a 180-degree turn. You want them to think “where did my dog walker go”?
- If the dog stops to smell and we turn our body towards the dog – that’s the dog controlling and leading the walk – not us. Don’t turn towards the dog, instead remain facing forward, put tension on the leash or do a quick correction and start walking
- Sometimes you can turn ‘into’ the dog which will help guide and get their attention
- Quick ‘tug + release’ is a correction
- A loose leash is a reward
- Attention and praise is a reward – and given when the dog does something correctly without needing prompting
- Harnesses make it difficult to communicate with the dog via the leash correction, if possible, use a collar
I recommend dog training to all clients – no matter the age of the dog. A trained dog understands you and your commands and they know their boundaries. This makes for a more confident and balanced dog. Big picture – you are a reliable pack leader and everybody is on the same page and happy. Win-win!! Happy dog walking and training!!
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