How Can I Stop My Dog From Biting the Leash?
Prevent a Puppy from Chewing and Tugging Leashes During Walks
Jan 3, 2009
"Help! My puppy keeps biting the leash!" - It's a common complaint among puppy owners and owners of adolescent dogs.
A behavior that's most commonly seen in puppies and young adult dogs, leash chewing, biting and tugging can be a frustrating problem for dog owners, making dog walking an unpleasant power struggle that can end in tragedy if a damaged leash snaps at the wrong moment.
Fortunately, there are several techniques that dog owners can use to train a dog to stop biting and chewing on the leash during walks.
Why Is My Dog Biting and Chewing the Leash?
The first step to training a puppy to stop biting the leash involves understanding why this behavior occurs. There are several basic causes of leash biting in dogs and in most cases, a dog will bite the leash for more than one reason.
- Teething
- Boredom
- Playfulness
- Attention-Getting
- Boundary Testing
- Dominance
Puppies most commonly bite the leash as a result of teething, boredom, playfulness or as a way to get attention.
Meanwhile adolescent dogs and even a few adult dogs will bite or chew the leash as a way to test boundaries concerning dominance or as a way to exhibit dominance (which makes sense when once considers that a leash-trained dog should perceive the leash as an extension of the dog walker's hand.)
How Can I Stop My Dog From Biting the Leash?
There are several fairly simple ways to stop a dog from biting and chewing the leash during walks.
- Use a chain leash with leather handle. The vast majority of dogs will stop biting the leash if the dog walker switches to a chain lead; it's simply not a nice sensation for the dog to bite or chew the metal. In most cases, this will stop the leash biting behavior. And even if the dog continues to bite the leash, the dog will remain safe since he cannot damage the metal links in the same way that he could damage a nylon leash. Once the dog's habit of chewing the leash is broken for a period of several months, dog walkers can usually switch back to nylon leads without any problems.
- Apply bitter apple or hot sauce to a nylon leash. The dog must associate biting or chewing the leash with a negative experience or unpleasant sensation. Bitter apple spray or hot sauce will prevent most dogs from chewing or biting the leash. But a dog owner who tries this must bring along a dog water bottle to relieve the taste from the dog's mouth!
- Sit for a "time out" with the dog. If leash biting is associated with excitement and the urge to play, it's most effective to do a "time out" during the walk to calm the dog. Place the dog's body between the lower legs, and hold the dog's collar from the back to prevent nipping and mouthing of hands. Let the dog calm himself (it may take a few minutes), while giving verbal corrections if he tries to nip or squirm. Once the dog has calmed, continue the walk. If the excitement builds up again, stop for another time out.
The first two methods are most effective for puppies, who bite and chew the leash as a result of teething, playfulness or as an attention-getting behavior.
The last dog training method is most effective for dogs who are testing boundaries or biting the leash as a display of dominance. The time out puts the human back in control, while returning the dog to a calm state of mind.
Sitting the dog down for a "time out" of sorts also prevents the owner from engaging in a game of "tug-of-war" with the dog - a game that's very fun and rewarding for the dog, which means the tug-of-war reinforces the behavior of biting and tugging at the leash.
It's important to note that a dog who starts biting and chewing at the leash as a way to test boundaries or as a display of dominance will likely exhibit other problematic behaviors as well, so dog owners will need to make changes across the board to help regain control as the alpha of the dog pack.
Related Reading for Dog Owners
To learn more about how to handle a dominant "alpha" dog, read What is the Alpha Dog? and Alpha Exercises for a Dominant Dog.
Also check out Why is My Dog Biting the Leash? to learn more about why leash biting behaviors occur.
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