11 month old rottie bitch won't listen and pulls a lot whilst out walking

by Lin
(UK)

Hi, i have an 11 month old rottweiler bitch, everytime i take her out it's a constant battle with her pulling, she just does not listen!

I have a harness on her and i have to put the lead across her front legs to give my arm a rest when she pulls. Would a halter help? She's a very muscly dog and i'm afraid i'm going to have to accept defeat and probably just sell her if she doesn't stop.

Any tips or advice








Hi Lin
Just about every dog in the world will pull on the leash if they've not been properly leash trained. Unfortunately due to the size and strength of a Rottie, it's much more difficult to deal with than if you owned a miniature or small breed dog!

However, to sell your pet because of this would be extreme, and personally I feel it would be very unfair to her. Dogs don't naturally understand that you want them to walk beside you and your very best bet is to get her enrolled in a formal obedience class where you can learn how to show her what you expect. Just pulling on the leash/collar/harness and telling her 'no' isn't going to work I'm afraid.

Meantime, you would be best to get a proper training collar for her - a prong collar - as it's likely to be more effective than a harness. Used correctly the prong collar works much better than a regular chain 'choke' collar and is safer as well.

There's also an innovative product designed by Cesar Millan (the Dog Whisperer) which seems to work much better than a regular harness and can replace a prong collar. It's called the The Illusion Dog Collar and Leash . I haven't tried this myself as I always use a prong collar, but it's getting great reviews and might be something that would work better for you.

All in all, leash training takes time, patience and the right approach. Rottweilers are very smart and willing to please, if you learn to show your Rottie exactly what you want from her in a way she understands then you will be able to have her walking nicely with you given some time. Some hands-on help from a dog trainer will achieve this more quickly than if you try to do it alone

Hope I've helped some and I wish you the best of luck.