I know the feeling of embarrassment when the dog I’m walking pulls me in every direction, my arm straining against the force. The thought of my dog training clients witnessing this leaves me feeling mortified, questioning their perception of me as a trainer. What will they think of me and my dog training skills?
Over the years as a pet sitter working with multiple dogs in many different scenarios, I learned that I can arrange my environment for optimal success and minimize errors. The changing environment of a walk is one of the trickiest ones to arrange but with the knowledge of the dog I’m walking with, I can devise a plan with the highest success rate. Moreover, I continuously introduce new challenges to ensure steady progress. The truth is, that transitioning from pulling to a peaceful walk takes time. However, my experience with different dogs and environments, allowed me to create a 6-week program that will show improvements even with the strongest pullers!
After taking a lot of my pet sitting dogs through this program and honing it with their help, I no longer feel the same embarrassment I used to feel on walks. Now the dogs are happily trotting next to me for most of the walk and when I can I let them off leash (or long line) for other parts. We are enjoying the walk together, getting the most out of it.
You can get the same results I did by signing up for this 6-week program. Even if you are a trainer or work with your dog for a long time on many other things, one of the students in this loose leash walking course shared a valuable perspective:
“Hi Anna! I can’t thank you enough for your observations and encouragement. You do a fantastic job pointing out our wins, small and large. I always felt like you were on our side, your genuine joy in our successes really showed through. (…) When we’re striving towards our goals, (…), we don’t have to do everything all at once, just focus on one thing for some amount of time until we’ve started to integrate the skills that help us progress, and there are times when we would do well to outsource some part of the process. I consider taking classes in that way. I still have to do The Work, but I don’t have to do all the planning and organizing and analyzing. This frees up my bandwidth to be able to do the work, the skill progression with a touch of observation, and then sharing where we are going with my instructor and their knowledge and experiences. So, thank you for freeing up my capacity to be more present with Duncan and what we are working on together instead of having to do the entire package of thinking, planning, doing, observing, and reflecting.“
Katherine and Duncan
Join Katherine in experiencing the loose leash walking training plan I’ve developed, allowing more time for practical training. As a premium student, you’ll receive daily feedback, enabling us to celebrate successes together and adapt our approach for continued progress, even amidst setbacks.
What will we work on during this course?
- building a solid foundation of behavior in a distraction-free environment
- looking at the handler and focusing attention on them
- looking away from distractions
- developing strategies for when the leash gets tight
- walking at different speeds and for different durations
- u-turn and changing direction
- walking together as a team in different environments
- troubleshooting common problems
Who will be your instructor?
I’m Anna Bartosik, a Tromplo instructor since 2020. Grounding my practical training in theoretical knowledge from Applied Behavior Analysis, I’ve worked with various species, including dogs, cats, horses, and guinea pigs. This experience has enabled me to understand how behavioral principles apply universally. My goal is to simplify scientific concepts, empowering teams to maximize their training potential.
Course Testimonials
I cannot recommend Anna enough as an instructor, observer, cheerleader, and free-thinker. Duncan and I already had some exposure to loose leash walking training but I just kept struggling to progress. Anna gently helped me to become aware of my expectations and how to free myself from “we should be able to do this” to the benefit of my dog and myself. She gave me permission to take sniffy walks at his pace and that led to opportunities for Duncan to engage and progress his understanding of when to work and what that work looks like. Her observations and feedback are so clear that it’s almost effortless to add her suggested approximations, yet she is always available to discuss if things go sideways, as they do. Anna also helped suggest some complimentary fitness training to encourage Duncan’s confidence on certain surface textures. I am so satisfied with her instruction from my reframe of walks to our improved confidence and continued practice. I wish I could take a little “pocket Anna” with us on our loose leash walking progression, but I know I can take what I have learned and help me and my dog take some lovely, peaceful walks.
April 11, 2024