10 Ways you can turn your dog’s walk into a training session

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If you’re a typical dog owner, you walk your dog at least twice a day. Since January is National Training Your Dog Month and National Walk Your Dog Month, why not combine the two? You can actually accomplish three things at once – pottying, exercise, and training – with just a little preparation and imagination. The following are ways you can turn your walks into training sessions:

#1 – Leash Manners

Okay, this one is obvious. Use your walk to teach your dog good leash manners. Aside from rewarding him when he’s in the right position, start using a cue such as “go sniff,” when you are releasing your dog from your side to go potty. This way, your dog starts learning that he has to stay with you until you give permission.

#2 – Eye Contact

Ever seen those obedience dogs that seem to never take their eyes of their person? This is achieved by rewarding your dog heavily when they offer that behavior. Your walk is an easy time to reward your dog whenever he looks up at you to “check in.” At first, do it as soon as he looks, then build-up duration by delaying the reward for longer eye contact as your dog progresses.

#3 – Moving Obedience

There is no reason why you can’t teach obedience while walking! Practice sits and/or downs at crosswalks or driveway intersections, and randomly throughout the walk.

#4 – Mat Work

Another thing you can do on a walk is mat work. Carry a mat with you and stop periodically to work on mat stays. This is great for dogs that get nervous or excited in the world. The K9FITbed from LilyPAWSis a nice choice because it rolls up and has a handle, making it easy to carry.

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#5 –Greetings

Walks are a great time to practice appropriate greetings! Instead of letting your rambunctious dog maul whoever comes up to you, kindly tell the people your dog is in training and he needs to sit politely before they say hi.

#6 – Leave-it

The outdoors also provides ample opportunities to practice leave-it. Whether it’s something on the ground, a bird, or even another dog, you can easily practice this while walking.

#7 – Stay

Bring a long line with you on your walk through the park and you can work on stays. Just take a few moments to stop and work on distance and duration. If you do this every day, just think what an amazing stay your dog will have!

#8 – Recalls

The long line can also be used to practice recalls while on your walk at the park. Give your dog their “go sniff” cue, let them have some freedom for a bit, and then call them back. The long line allows you to go get them should they ignore you.

#9 – Look At That

Have a nervous or fearful dog? Or maybe a puppy just learning about the world? Use your walks to do some operant conditioning by pairing things that may scare your dog with a reward. This way, they will be less scared of it in the future. For example, if your dog is normally afraid of cars, start far enough away that he is not reacting and give him a treat every time he looks at a car. This way, he will begin to associate cars with good things, making them less scary.

#10 – Pack Walk

A pack walk is a great way to work on your dog being able to focus around other dogs and people. It also makes your walks more fun, since you have friends with you! So get a group together and start walking!

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