10/05/2024
☝️☝️☝️
Say no to greetings on lead and here's why:
1️⃣Any amount of tension on the lead can cause frustration and result in a reaction. Having a lead on also removes a flight response from your dogs options if they begin to feel uncomfortable which only leave them with fight or freeze.
2️⃣ allowing greetings on lead means encouraging and rewarding your dog for finding reinforcement away from you. When you practicing a loose lead walk you want your dog paying attention to you. It's something your doing together and you don't want them to just opt out of that whenever they like.
3️⃣ allowing the greeting to happen when your dog likely pulled you to get to whoever they wanted to see is reinforcing that is OK to. The point of the loose lead walk is the opposite of this. You want your dog to learn that tension on the lead means pay attention to you.
4️⃣ you don't always know the other dog. They maybe working through something, or nervous of interactions with other dogs or people so letting your dog go on over is actually really unhelpful and potentionally dangerous for both of them.
