Let’s talk about dog training with distractions and loose leash walking. With my maltipoo dog, Dawson, being prone to react by barking at other dogs while on leash and within close proximity, many of our walks are not on neighborhood streets. On this path we are pretty sure to not see any dogs BUT we do see geese frequently. And Dawson’s first instinct is to chase them if given the chance. How am I working on our being able to walk by the geese with a loose leash? With a dog pattern game I call SEARCH. You’ll learn more below.
I have been working on his being able to pass them without conflict or leash pressure.
I have created a pattern game that I use in other situations as well. When I say SEARCH, he knows to look for the ground as I am going to toss a treat in a direction. He loves this game as he loves the chase and search aspect, part of his natural genetics. We practice it a lot in different settings to build value for the game. Often when out on walk, if he checks in with me, I will mark that with the SEARCH game.
With the geese, my timing must be spot on to catch the moment that he locks onto them. I mark that by saying, SEARCH, and then toss a treat in the other direction – not far, just around us. Then I will do that again and again, as needed.
Often after a few reps of this game, he can walk past them very relaxed. And there have been times we have walked past them being very close.
You will see in the video that Dawson was able to stop and stalk visually, and then turn away which was awesome!
Admittedly there have been some times when I missed my timing and he has started to chase. But once I get him back into the game he quickly disengages from the geese.
