When I first started training Odin I saw people using everything from prong collars to harnesses. They all had the same effect, inconsistent results. People would become frustrated and often switch between different control devices in the same one hour training session. The simplest tool such as a slip lead has a way it is to be intended to be used. People just didn’t bother to figure it out. All tools require training. For training to be effective it must be recent, relevant, realistic, and repeatable. The thing that seemed to work the best was the slip lead. But the problem was that half the time people put them on backwards and placed the leather slider/keeper behind the ear.
The reason dogs pull on the leash is anatomical and physiological, not psychological. The first part has to do with the placement on the lead whether it is on a collar or harness. They are attached to the center line meaning the lead travels down the dog’s spine or in the case of a slip lead, prong collar, martingale collar or choker they spin to that position. As soon as backward tension is put on a dog or a human they instinctively pull against it. This means they are also looking away. The exact opposite of what you are trying to accomplish which is getting them to focus on you. Wherever the head goes the body follows. With collars this means that pressure is being applied to the dogs throat/windpipe/trachea. The dog feels as though they are in a trap and do everything they can in an attempt to break free. This is what is going on when you see the dogs up on their hind legs pulling so hard they are choking and gagging. They are fixated at going forward. The instinctual human stress response to this is to bend the arm holding the leash. This brings the angle higher and increases the tension on the dog which makes them pull harder. This stress cycle continues with the human and the dog until one gives it, and it is seldom the dog. Most dogs end up not getting walked at all unless they are going to the vet or groomer. That also spirals out of control.
The first thing you have to understand is the angle of the lead in relation to the dog. The Immediate Correction Lead is placed up behind the ears, with the adjuster slid up under the right jaw bone of the dog until you can just get about two fingers under the lead. This does several things, first it applies constant pressure to the sides of the dogs neck. This mimics what puppies feel when Mom picks them up while they are fussing. Many clients have remarked at how their dog becomes instantly calmer just by putting the lead on. I compare this to giving someone with Autism a weighted blanket. It provides a feeling of well being. Dogs like constant consistent pressure. The placement of the adjuster ensures that as long as the handler keeps their arm relaxed and not bent the dog will feel all corrections on the side of their neck which is muscular instead of their throat. We never pull the lead up, we pop it straight back with a relaxed arm. Both the placement of the lead and the angle of the correction protect the dog’s throat.
In the beginning we used a regular 6 foot leather military dog handler’s lead. The issue was that when walking the dog in the heel position there was about four feet of extra lead. There was one of two things to do with it, You could either bunch it into your hand and hold it in a fist which led to them bending their arm at the first hint of stress. As previously mentioned this changed the angle of the lead and choked the dog. The other option was to double the lead and loop it though your finger is in a relaxed state. I have never seen anyone do this without being shown how to do it first, meaning it is not intuitive. It also only works comfortably with a ¾ inch wide leather lead. Once again attempting to remove variables we started to just use the Traffic Lead. As a rule we handle the dog using only the left middle finger. If you are saying to yourself that it is impossible to control your dog using just one finger, it means that your mindset is to use strength to control your dog and it is that belief that leads to uncontrollable dogs. Technique beats strength.
Reading this you may also think, “wow, he put this much thought into putting a leash on a dog and walking it” The answer is yes, because the lead is the physical connection to your dog that we use to develop the mental connection. It is impossible to correct a dog on a tight leash. For that reason any tension on the leash is avoided. When a dog is on a loose lead it is a mental connection between them and the handler. When the lead is removed the connection remains. If the connection is a tight lead, when the lead is removed, so is the connection.