Leash Biting?

[zd262]

Hi! We are just starting leash training with "follow me" commands to introduce responding to leash pressure. Lots of leash biting here that takes away from any training aspect. Any advice on cutting down on leash biting? Tug is 4 months old Cute as can be of course and overall has been a pretty good pup.

[barry581]

THat's pretty normal. You may want to start training "leave it" too, that's worked for me in the past.

[smartrock]

All my labs have been leash biters, although Barry certainly has more lab experience than I so if he says it's normal, it must be so. I switched to leather leashes with our first lab after he bit right through one of his leashes and thought it was a great game when I tried to catch him. I also would stop walking and try to get him to learn the command "drop it" or "drop the leash" and give him a treat when he dropped the leash. It's learning a command just like any other command. Lark and Henry were much less determined leash biters.

I tend to use the commands "drop it" and "leave it" as separate commands although I'm sure you could just pick one. "Drop it" is for when they have that smelly, rotting bird already in their mouth, "leave it" is when I manage to see they're about to pick it up. Lark was the queen of finding rotting stuff and secretly carrying it in her mouth, hoping for a chance to stop and enjoy eating it. I was usually yelling "drop it!!!" and trying to pry her mouth open without having to touch the offending item. Poor Larky. With the leash, if I see they're about to grab it, it's "leave it", when they have it in their mouth, it's "drop it".