I took BOTH dogs to the park with my daughter this evening.  I got home from work and it was a nice evening so we decided to go to the park.  Havent had the dogs there in a very long time...had yucky weather.  I've been working with my dogs at home on come and stay.  They are doing very well.  Well, I need to work on leash training now.  I know Nora has said in the past that I need to work with them one at a time because it is too difficult to work with both dogs together.  I just feel bad when i take one dog and leave the other.  But I suppose I have to.  They are both terrible on the leash and it drives me crazy.  Im trying to untangle the leash from around their legs, pulling them back to me when we stop and they pull hard on the leash.  Jack jumping over Lacey.  You should see us getting out of the car.  Its chaos.  They are jumping over each other to get out and I am fighting to keep hold of leashes.  Im sure its actually quite comical.

Its funny.....at home Lacey is the obedient one.  She will sit when I say, stay when I say, come when i say, go to bed, get down.  But when we go somewhere on leash....watch out.  I told her to sit when we were at the park and she looks at me like "whatever....make me."  I will push on her butt and she still wont do what I say.  Jack will actually listen to me better.  I will admit....I forgot to bring the treats.  BIG mistake. Food is the ultimate motivator for my dogs.  But now I have a goal...leash training.  I am going to pursue this diligently.  I want to go in to public with my well behaved dogs.  I do have a plan of action for this.  I will start with the leash training here at home (yes, on different surfaces....gravel, grass, dirt) one on one....not both together.  Then we can graduate to public training.   wish me luck!!!

I got my lab 4 months ago and my rattie just last week. I am pretty sure neither of them have been trained on a leash. The lab was mostly an off-leash guy with his previous owner.

I've simply kept them close to me and started walking - briskly. I don't let them weave, pull, go in front, pee, sniff (usually halfway through the walk we will take a short pee/sniff break). Moose is doing great after 3 months. Paisley is pretty good after a week. I give short quick corrections (ie quick tug) to the side if she fixates on something (say a dog coming toward us, squirrel, etc). We have our moments of rattie gladiator dog when another dog is coming at us eagerly (moose our lab did too). I am sure we will get through that. Paisley also will not sit on leash. I stop at crosswalks and push her little behind down gently, she's starting to get it. She sits before and after the walk now when she didn't before. I still have to push her behind down on the walk but she stays in the sit now until I move forward when she didn't before.

When we get started, they do not get leashes and collars until they are calm. They have to sit quietly. They do not go out the door in front of me (that starts us off right). I don't give treats. The reward is breakfast (after the walk) and affection!

I think it would be hard (to have 2 newbies at once) if I hadn't worked with Moose the last 3 months. I've got him pretty well figured out so adding Paisley has not been hard because she is the biggest focus on the walk until she "gets it" all the way and he is a good role model for her.

My goal is to add my neighbor's poodle back in and walk 3 dogs.

Good luck - and remember it does not have to be complicated. Keep the leashes short and their noses up. You might try walking one and then the other then doing a short bit with both after they are tired. I bet it takes you less time than you think to be walking them together.

thank goodness 4 this site...this is my next obstacle as well, so the info is so helpful!!  Also, I feel the pain of feeling bad doing it one at a time  My husband has nick named me "drill sargent julie"  b/c we are in the midst of re-potty training our 2nd (Ally), and now it's going to be leashes...I am trying so hard to "stay strong & stick to my guns!!!"

Last week I took a foster with us shopping.  He's a big rattie (24 pounds) and I don't think he's ever been walked on a leash.  He pulls like a sled dog!  I was walking him with a harness since he can slip out of a collar faster than you can blink. 

Store #1...he pulled and pulled constantly.  I was attempting to train him to walk nicely and sit when I stopped.  He was so highly distracted, he barely noticed me on the other end of the leash, much less my voice talking to him.  By the time we left the store, my hands were red from yanking leash and my arm was sore.

I was thinking it was hopeless, until I remembered the Martingale collar I had in the trunk for doggie transports.  When we stopped at the next store, I told the others to go ahead in the store to shop while I walked Hoss outside.  I slipped on the Martingale, placed it directly behind his hears (at the top of his neck) and started walking.  It was like a totally different dog at the other end of the leash!!  No more pulling.  He held his head high and walked right with me the majority of the time...with a loose leash..  After a couple of rounds of the sidewalk, we entered the store...and he continued to walk nicely.  He even was more attentive when I told him to sit.

It was a miraculous turn-around!

Usually a harness does nothing to inhibit pulling.  In fact, the way some are made, they actually encourage pulling. 

Good luck on training!  I know it's frustrating to be dragged on a walk.

Debbie

I have more info for you but can't post right now - will post in a bit - gotta run an errand (to pet store LOL)! For now, get "Be the Pack Leader" by Cesar Millan and read the chapter on how to walk a dog... it works!! More later...

A dog pulls on his(or her) leash because it usually ends up being a rewarding experience. He pulls, and he gets to the car. He pulls and he gets to greet that other dog in class. He pulls and the neighbor lady across the street tells him how lovely he is, even though he is now not JUST pulling but is also climbing up the front of her with his muddy dog paws, to which she replies, "it's ok, I don't mind!" (haha) Remember that what gets rewarded gets repeated!

When the dog is about to apply ANY tension to the leash at all ....STOP. When the dog turns to see what happened to you, praise for his attention ....and encourage the dog back into heel position next to you - if necessary, take a few steps backward. As long as the dog is in the magic spot next to your leg, continue praising, give food rewards, make it the best possible place in the world to be. If he loses concentration and is about to put any tension on the leash at all, stop without warning and repeat the above sequence.

Simply STOP every single time you note that the dog is about to put the slightest tension on the leash and the pulling will go away. (Yeah, right.) No, honest - It really, really works. The truth is, that if you tire your dog out first with a good game of fetch and then take him for a walk in a quiet non-distracting place every day this week with only ONE goal: to walk without tension and you absolutely refuse to take a single forward step when you feel tension on the leash, he will discover that pulling is "broken" and that the tension is a cue to slacken the lead. You will see the lightbulb go on when he realizes this. If you are consistent and don't give up, he will learn it. He will have good days and bad, but if you are diligent he will figure it out. 

Edited to add:  It is as much an ingrained habit to you as it is your dog. He cues you to take that step by putting tension on the leash and you dutifully obey. He has trained you to respond and you are fluent in the art of following his lead. You do it without thinking. He pulls without thinking.

since I GOT 4! TO WALK AT A TIME !I got the very fine chain choke collar what has nylon cord weived into it it works very well for the pulling thing and they can get the little head's out like the regular collars cash and polo wiggle there little heads right out!!!color coaded leaches keep um strait too! or I use the SPLITTER,but I think its easyer with the 4 colors leads...now I wish I could feel safe walking them...I do go right down the middle of the street though now chances to stop and pee !

well I started them TANDUM when there were VERY small everybody got holk'd to Caesar cause he is tiney -SLOW!-and very sturdey! so we just did 2 tandum for a while caesar n Shamus are close to the same speed,Cash and Polo together are matched well too! I taught them very young off lead too,which i can't even do here..its just too dangerious!I miss my ol' lake- front trails in Carolina for that! its just all cement sidewalks and streets her in Ca. not much fun...I'll tell ya it gets the neighbor dogs in a TISSY! watching them go by!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words...check this link out for the collar, plus a description of it. http://www.sitstay.com/dog/supplies/servlet/product_10001_10001_39037_-1_Premier+Collar,+Large,+1+inch_13272_13975_ (remove spaces if any)

The large loop goes over the dog's head.  The smaller loop tightens when the dog pulls, gving great control and reducing the risk of dog "backing out" and escaping.  Unlike many 'choke' collars, the martingale loosens immediately when the the dog stops pulling.

Debbie

wow! I wish i had of seen those when I was looking! that way you only have to have 1 collar!!! instead of 2!!! and its cheeper than the chain one too! thanks for that! I may get one for shamus cause he has outgrown his collar AGAIN! he has NO NECK! where talking FULL -BACK here!

I don't know if I would leave it on in the house or play (like a regular collar), it really behaves like a choke so I would kind of keep that in mind when they are wearing it.

Up until two weeks ago, I rarely kept Murphy (RT about 8 months old) on a lead.  Now, when I let him out of his crate or into the house, I use his leash (and yea, I use a choke collar but I'm gentle with him).  I enjoy being with him SOOO much more!  The "accidents" in ther house just don't occur when he's on a lead and nothing gets chewed up (that shouldn't be).

I really was making things more frustrating for him and for me by NOT using his leash.  Now, he's on a lead most fo the time and he's pretty well behaved and has gotten several commands down pat.  He knows where he belongs is next to me and seems pretty cool with it.

I am now a big fan of leashes.