how to use a leash

Happy Friday from us at deltacanine.net! Today will be discussing proper leash management when working and training your dog.

I noticed I’ve been lazy of late, so I thought I’d touch on this subject to pass on the importance of staying vigilant as a handler. I reviewed some video footage of my agility training with Scout from a couple days ago and noticed I wasn’t managing the lead properly. In the video you can see clearly the lead is a tangled mess and also has way too much slack in it. Combined, the two equal ineffective corrections and poor communication between dog and handler.

Managing your lead 101

So what does it mean to manage your lead? (Lead also means leash) Managing your lead means taking out enough slack that should you need to apply a correction, theres no wasted movement in utilizing one. At the same time, it also means there is enough play in the lead so your dog can make their own decisions. At no time should the lead be taught. Now the tricky part is managing the slack in your hand. The live part of the lead should always be at the bottom of your hand leading straight to your dog. If you have the lead coming out the top of your hand, you will get a torquing action on your wrist as you apply a correction, making it less effective and inefficient.

While we picture a leather lead below, another important thing to remember when utilizing a double-snap lead is to firmly grasp the metal end not connected to your dog. In the event that you forget to hold on to the ring and unused snap, a firm correction to your dog will also give you quite the trophy on your knuckle. Trust me, been there, done that. I’m quite fond of these types of leads because of their versatility but feel the nylon doesn’t respond as well as leather. I look forward to finding a double-snap in leather to have the best of both worlds!