Practice – Building Muscle Memory

Whether it be kicking the smoking habit, losing a few pounds, or teaching your dog not to pull, the fewer times we relapse to an old behavior the faster our new good habits become permanent! 

Great news! I will only ask you to practice two to three times per day for no more than thirty minutes. And since it is termed, most people find twice per day is totally do-able.

But, since old habits need to be replaced with new ones, it is important to prevent your dog from doing old behaviors at all!  And this makes perfect sense when you think from your dogs point of view where he will become confused wondering why it is sometimes okay to pull and lead you and other times it is not. This keeps the old behavior alive as a “maybe I will get to…”

So for the time being, every walk (covering ground) should be training walks.  You can give your dog “free” time on leash for potty breaks or some sniffing around, but it should be your idea using the “release” word to give permission.  Feel free to run your dog around in free time or play with him, but if you are unable to train, it is preferred you don’t go for a leash walk while trailing along behind him or allowing him to pull.

Remember: Repetition and consistent routines are the keys to your success!