Train your dog to stop chewing on the leash

There can be a number of different reasons why a dog chews on your leash. Most of those reasons are due to the dog resisting you and your control or simply wanting to play. No matter what it is, it is annoying and you must stop if you want to train your dog to walk well on a leash.

The methods I discuss below try to make the leash taste bad so that it is undesirable for your dog to have it in his mouth. Of course, keep in mind that patience is important when breaking this habit.

If your dog has already started this annoying habit, you will need to modify his behavior to eliminate the problem. The first method I always suggest is to soak the bottom 18 inches of the strap with bitter apple. Bitter apple is a spray that is available in all pet stores and will deter your dog from its bad taste.

If that doesn’t work, I suggest you soak the bottom 18 inches of the strap with lemon juice. It seems that most dogs do not like the taste and will stop putting the leash in their mouth to avoid the taste.

Of course, there is always a tough dog who doesn’t seem to mind bitter apple or lemon juice, so we move on to my third option, which is spicy. Yes, you want to buy a hot sauce like tabasco, cholula, or any other hot sauce that comes in a bottle and is available in all grocery stores, usually where they have Mexican foods and spices.

One way to avoid this problem entirely is to start training your dog to tolerate the leash and enjoy early walks while still a young puppy. It seems that the longer you wait to insert the strap, the worse the problem will be.

There is no better way to establish a good pack leader attitude for your dog than to go for a walk. Taking the time to teach your dog to walk nicely beside you and not nibble or pull on the leash is something that will pay off with plenty of enjoyable walks. Walking your dog builds the master’s relationship and is something your dog will thank you for many times over the years.