Off Leash Starts On leash
Freedom comes from structure.
Being off leash has to be the number one thing people want out of dog training. For me, off leash is the very final stage of training. Having enough trust and respect in your relationship to be off leash comes from all the work beforehand on leash. If you are not 100% confident in your dogs ability to walk on a loose leash and hold an out boundary/place calmly around distractions, they should not be off leash (outside of a safe fenced in area). Every time they successfully blow you off, it reinforces the behavior.
The best way to work towards off leash is by nailing the foundations. The three main drills of Tenderfoot Training; the close boundary, walking on a loose leash, and an out boundary are the first steps towards gaining enough trust and respect to then start practicing recall. Start with short distance, 6ft leash, expand from there until you are practicing with a 20- 30 ft lead. There is a distance to your relationship with your dog, meaning they might listen great at 10ft but once they hit 20ft they are no longer listening so this is why we gradually increase our distance when practicing recall. If they are not listening well, shorten the distance.
There are specific ways we practice recall but the most important part is nailing the foundations where we work on our dogs ability to pay attention to us, boundaries and establishing calmness in all scenarios. Do not move too quickly and expect your dog to suddenly listen off leash, use the reinforcement of a leash or long lead. To get to off leash you must conquer on leash first! Be Well!! ❤️
