Leashes help guide your dog through life while keeping him safe. They keep your dog in the training area, which expands as he advances in his education. Leashes make teaching easier and give you the means to apply appropriate corrections when training the commands. With practice and patience your dog eventually won’t need a leash at all. So how many leashes do you really need? The chart below may help.
| Leash | Description |
| 4-foot Light Nylon: Use with puppies or dogs newly brought into the house | A 4-foot leash is very handy for use inside the house. If you attach your dog to your belt loop with a clip, you can catch him EVERY time he’s making a mistake. You can correct him when he goes potty on the floor and quickly get him outdoors. If he breaks a house rule, you can correct without chasing him. You’ll also be able to teach him to physically follow you, so he literally sees that you are the leader. And you can practice many repetitions of the “easy” and “let’s go” commands for short distances in the safe confines of the house. |
| 6-inch Tab: For dogs that know the house rules, but need an occasional correction | Use the 6-inch tab when your dog does something you don’t like. You still have something to take hold of and give two quick tugs of correction. If your dog is rebelling, attach the 4-foot leash again to the dog and yourself showing him that he’s lost his freedom because he’s not obeying the rules. Switch back and forth. When he’s not obeying he gets the leash back on and loses the freedom to mill about the house. When he’s obeying, the leash comes off and the tab goes on and he wins some freedom. |
| 6-foot Leather: Your dog’s lifetime adolescent and adult leash | A 6-foot leather leash is the basic training tool used to keep your dog in the teaching or training area. At first, a 6-foot radius area is best. It keeps the dog close enough to guide him into compliance with a command when you’re in the teaching phase. And it helps you give a quick correction in good timing when you’re in the training phase. Soft leather is gentlest on your hand and because it gives a little it won’t make a sharp hard jerk on your dog. But it’ll be strong enough to give an effective correction when needed. |
| 26-foot Flexi-Lead: A chance for your dog to stretch his legs | The 26-foot flexi lead allows your dog to get an adequate amount of exercise every day. By using the 26-foot leash for an extended amount of time, your dog will see how far away from you he can get. Therefore, he gets into the habit of staying within about 30 feet of you when he is eventually off lead altogether. |
| 30 and/or 50 foot Long-Line Used to transition to off lead altogether | The long-lines gives you enough time to give a command and let your dog process that command. Then either he complies with the command and gets rewarded or doesn’t comply and gets a correction. You can step on the long line or pick it up and tug on it to administer a correction. It’s very handy for example, for perimeter training and proofing your dog on the command “come”. You can connect the two together to make a longer line if you like. |
Begin with fun walks
To begin, take your dog for many walks with proper leash for the environment and experience your dog has according to the table above. If he pulls, give quick tugs on the leash to slow him down and stop him from pulling. He’ll figure out that when HE stops pulling, that annoying tugging stops too. In time that annoying tugging will become the physical correction that tells him he is making a mistake and helps you learn How do I correct a dog? https://pawsiloveyou.com/course/3minute-walking-politely-on-a-leash/
If you have a new puppy, here is an excellent article on “How to Teach a Puppy to Walk on a Leash.” https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/training/teach-puppy-walk-leash/
Be sure your dog understands what you want before you use corrections
Be absolutely sure your dog is deliberately disobeying you before you do any type of correction. A dog who doesn’t know what a command means is confused and stressed by a correction. You also need to learn how to properly use training equipment. And you need to find a correction that is effective, not cruel, that matches your dog’s age and personality. It’s important to learn how to correct your dog. Be kind but effective when you correct your dog so he clearly understands, “oops I made a mistake”. And tune in next time to learn about proper use of training equipment as an aide to learning How do I correct a dog?
If you are interested in purchasing a collar or harness to answer the question “How Many Leashes Do I Really Need?”, here is some we use and recommend (https://pawsiloveyou.com/recommended-products/)