The Walk Starts Inside

One of the biggest complaints pawrents have this time of year is that their dog is a handful when walking. It makes a lot of sense, considering a lot of us are exiting hibernation and getting out there to enjoy the sunshine and better temperatures - so we haven't been walking a lot (and practicing walking skills) and there are a lot more other people and dogs out there to contend with. I've written a couple of other posts about walks and, specifically, tactics and things to consider while on a walk with your dog (Puppy Walking Skills and A Walk in the Park); this blog post, though, focuses on "before" the walk - or what we think is before the walk! I encourage us, as the title of this post alludes to, to consider that your dog's walk starts inside the house!

There are a variety of things you might consider ahead of getting out on a walk that can help your dog's skills on the actual walk:

• Practice your walking skills indoors before ever even taking them on the road! Indoors, your dog has very few distractions and they'll have a chance to get really familiar with the strategies and skills you'd like to employ when you're on an actual walk. (Note: You can practice on or off leash inside!)

• If you have the space, practice walking skills around the "hot spots" in the house - toward the door you'd usually exit for a walk, through doorways and transition areas, in figure-8s around furniture or props, etc.

• Work to develop a habit of calm around your dog's walking gear; for example, practice putting the harness and leash on calmly while sitting on the couch, create a pedestal or station out of your dog's mat, bed, or blanket a bit away from the door, and progress to practicing by the door you usually exit for a walk. It's hard to get your dog back for working on the walk if they're losing their brain before you even head out!

• Once your dog's gear is on, practice approaching the door calmly - instead of the jumping (at the door or you) and mouthing (the leash and your sleeves, etc.) your dog might currently be practicing!

• Practicing a Wait (with Release Cue) to exit the door for your walk can add some intentionality to the start of the walk, starting the two of you out on a thoughtful note - rather than drunk on excitement and "freedom"!

• If the transition of indoors to outdoors is a tough one for your dog and they seem to forget that you're at the other end of the leash, it's a good idea to go in and out of that doorway a few times; this gives you both more chances to practice a calm Wait and help cut the extreme excitement of going outside and out on a walk!

• Especially if your dog is a bit of a menace for the first part of the walk, you can practice going up and down the driveway, the sidewalk in front of your apartment building, the parking garage, etc. Practicing close to the home can make it easier for you to dip back inside if your dog is struggling with other dogs/people and one shows up unexpectedly! Once you've had a bit of time to work the sillies out, you could head out on your walk to practice what you're looking to see!

• Alternatively, your "walk" might just be this close to home version - up and down the driveway or the block to lessen the over-the-top excitement of the the neighborhood and keeping a safe place for practice in place (again, especially if your dog is struggling with some reactive behavior, having a place you can escape to easily can be really helpful if a situation your dog won't quite be able to handle presents itself)!

This can all feel like a lot, but keep in mind that these are all just potential strategies to employ with your dog - you definitely don't need to try all of it or tray all of it at once! Just like we want to set your dog up for success, set yourself up for success and introduce bite-sized pieces to both yourself and your dog a little at a time! As always, if you're struggling and need some assistance, reach out - we'd be so happy to help you and your doggo!