PitaPata Dog tickers
PitaPata Dog tickers

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Invention of the Flexi-Belt

About two weeks ago I stumbled on the best puppy training discovery ever. I shared this idea with fellow club members, and a few have adopted it for their own. It's time to pass on the trick to others.

You'll need two items you probably have laying around your house: a flexi leash and a belt.

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If you cannot tell what's going on in the picture, I threaded my belt through Kyle's flexi leash to create a "flexi-belt." Now Kyle has 16 feet of freedom. My hands are free, but I can reach him whenever needed.

Almost instantly, I've seen a marked improvement in Kyle's house behaviors. His barking is deceasing, and there's no way for Kyle to run "lab loops" through the house. Plus, we can practice stay and come while I go about my daily tasks.

Kyle is a pro in public and reasonably well behaved at home. With our last two months together, my goal is to get Kyle's house manners to the same stellar level as his public manners. I've tried other methods of directing Kyle, but the smarty pants always finds a way around them. (For example, he'll carry 20 feet of long line in his mouth just so he can run.)

The true test this weekend was one of our many road trips to visit my sister. Since Kassie only sees Kyle every other month or so, she is a great judge of his growth. The verdict: Kassie repeatedly complimented Kyle on his improved house manners. It's working!

I challenge other puppy raisers to try the flexi-belt while working on house manners and basic commands. Afterward, leave a comment and let me know if it works for you. Also, if you have any fun puppy training tricks that you've developed, I'd love to hear them.

4 comments:

  1. I love it! The best training is keeping a dog from engaging in a negative habit, so keeping Kyle close but still giving a modicum of freedom is a terrific idea. It's funny how home and public behaviors can be so different. Cabana was always the opposite of Kyle. Her home manners have always been stellar; it was outside the home that she would embarrass me to death!

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  2. Your wearing the same shirt in this picture as the one below it. :)

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  3. I keep meaning to tell you...they actually sell something really similar to this for running. Your idea is much more cost effective, though, if you've already got a flexi-leash!

    http://www.amazon.com/Buddy-System-Hands-Leash-Regular/dp/B0002ZAZLC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1301420195&sr=8-1

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  4. @Becky--That's actually where I stole the idea. I saw an ad for a hands free leash and considered buying one. However, I'm a cheapskate and wanted to save money.

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