One of the most common training difficulties that pup owners are faced with is trying to teach their pooch not to lunge at the end of the leash every time said pooch sees a squirrel or another doggy friend in the distance. You may see other pet owners enjoying a happy stroll in the park with their well-controlled pet and wonder how on earth to accomplish this mystical feat with your own crazy, charging canine. According to leading dog behaviorist Dr. Ian Dunbar, there are two steps to training your dog to behave on leash:

Creating a "Velco Dog"

The first does not require a leash at all. First, you need to teach your dog to want to be beside you and to want to follow you. This is taught off-leash, in safe areas: indoors, in a yard, in other enclosed spaces. Dunbar says "You have to have a dog that wants to be close, before you can even think of putting a leash on him and expecting him to stay close." Practice having your dog follow you around the house and yard until he is happy to be by your side; give him pats and the occasional treat to motivate and reward him. Make sure that he also learns to sit and stay at your feet for at least 30 seconds at a time before proceeding to the next step.

Patience, Patience, Patience

Still practicing indoors (where it's less distracting), make sure your dog also knows how to stand around on-leash without pulling. Put your pup on leash. Firmly grasp the end loop with both hands held close to your body. Stand perfectly still, and pay absolute attention to your pup, but ignore all antics at the other end of the leash. Eventually, your pup will sit or lie down. Yes, it will. Just be patient and wait and see. When it does so, immediately say "Good dog," offer a treat, say "Let's Go," take one step forwards and then stand still again. Be prepared; taking a single step will energize your pup, and it will lunge with vengeance. Again, ignore the puppy's antics, and wait until it sits once more. Then, reward your dog, take another step and stand still again. With successive trials, have your dog sit for progressively longer periods before praising it and taking another step. Once it is possible to alternate single steps with standstills without the pup pulling, try taking two steps at a time before standing still. Then try three steps, four steps and so on. As with off-leash heeling, think of it in short sequences. Once the sequences have expanded to six or seven steps, you are now walking your pup on-leash without it pulling, and it will sit automatically by your side whenever you stop. If your puppy ever tightens the leash when you are walking, immediately stand still and wait for it to sit again before moving on.

More Patience

Practice walking your pup on leash around the house and yard, stopping frequently. Once you have mastered walking on leash at home, you are ready to brave the great outdoors! Keep in mind however that walking around the block will provide a world of distractions for your pooch, and you'll have a lot of work to do together. Do not forget to keep Fido controlled during your exit from the house - this counts too! If he forges ahead out the door, stop, wait for him to sit, then turn him around and start again, as many times as it takes for him to understand that pulling means the walk comes to a standstill.

Did We Mention Patience?

Hold the leash with both hands close to the left side of your body, so as to give the puppy just a couple of inches of slack, then start walking and keep walking. Whatever the puppy does to improvise on your intended direction, do the opposite. If the puppy lunges ahead, just do a smooth right-about turn and head off in the opposite direction. If the puppy pulls left, turn right. If the puppy drifts right behind you, turn left. If the puppy drifts right in front of you, speed up to cut-off the pup, and then turn left in front of it. If the puppy slows down to sniff or pee, that's fine - this is usually the reason we are walking the dog - slow down and wait for the pup."

Teaching your dog not to pull on the leash takes a lot of patience and hard work - for both of you - but the reward will be countless walks in the park with your best friend, by your side where he belongs.