Letting your dog off the lead for the first time

While this might seem a simple concept to a seasoned dog owner, it’s not always the case for those that are new to owning a pet. A dog is a big responsibility and for a dog owner who is still learning how to look after their dog it can be a daunting experience – especially if the dog is easily excitable or quite large. However, letting your dog off your lead can be a fun and exciting experience provided that you know what you are doing. Here are some steps to follow.

First of all you need to acclimatise your dog to the situation by getting them used to going for walks on the lead and all it entails. As you explore the streets, trails and parks your dog will be experiencing a whole variety of sights, sounds and smells and their attention will likely wander. They might also be intimidated by other dogs and the loud noises such as car sirens, so you need to prepare them.

In order to get them ready for the great outdoors you will need to slowly introduce them to some of the things that they will experience. You’ll need to teach them how to sit and stay for when they need to cross roads and they’ll need to know how to behave properly around other dogs that they might encounter.

Begin by taking them for walks in your garden and encouraging them to ‘sit’ and ‘stay’ and remember to reward them when they do something well. You should also practice recall, and consider introducing them to other dogs in an enclosed space so that they have some experience when encountering another dog on the street or in the park.

Once you and your dog are feeling more confident and comfortable together you can try this experiment outside of the house – provided that they have had their vaccinations. Look for somewhere quiet, without traffic like a small quiet park or woodland area. You might also want to choose a time of day such as very early morning or after dinner in the evening when it may be a quiet and there are less distractions (i.e. other dogs). It might also be wise to have them on an extender lead rather than letting them off completely. If they aren’t as well trained as you think they are then you may end up chasing them into the sunset!

The key to enjoyable walks is to make sure that you train your dog well right from the beginning. This means teaching them to come when called from the time they are a puppy. If you leave it until they are a few months old or a teenager than it can become more difficult – but not impossible – to train them to come to you rather than chase the cat or squirrel they’ve seen in the corner of their eye.

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