A huge part of the ease of walking a dog is the position in which the leash is held. Though humans generally walk with their hands at their side, put a leash in one of those hands and for some odd reason that hand goes right up to the shoulder in an awkward, tense position.

After a block or two of walking like this a pet owner can start to get a little irritable without even knowing why.

The most common reason I’ve heard for holding a leash high is "to prevent the dog from getting tangled". Oddly, the opposite is true. Holding the leash up is what prevents a dog from becoming untangled.

Yet there is a strong reflex to hold that arm with the leash up in an unnatural position. This is so commonplace that I had an assistant once who suggested that I duct tape people hands to their sides in order to get them to hold the leash in the proper position.

That may be one way of doing it but I have some suggestions that are a little bit less sticky.

First, make sure you have a 6’ leash. Whenever you are buying one just hold it up next to yourself. 6’ is taller than most people. If the leash is not as tall as you then you’ve got a 4’ leash and there just aren’t that many dogs who walk well on a 4’ leash when learning.

There are dogs that need 10’ leashes when learning, and that’s fine, just make sure the leash is at least 6’ long.

Start with a proper grip on the leash. Eventually with a trained dog you won’t need a leash at all but when starting out you want to be able to hold tight if your dog bolts after a squirrel, a car, or a child on a bike.

Next, be sure that your hand is at your side. The leash should make an L shape (a curvy L). Try making sure your thumb is touching your side in the beginning to help you become conscious of the position of your arm. It will soon become second nature to hold it down at your side.

If your dog becomes tangled? Big deal. Let them learn to become untangled. If you are holding the leash down at your side correctly, all it takes is a little hop for your dog to untangle itself. I had a Dalmatian who learned this in 10 minutes. I had a Chow who took a year to learn this easy little hop.

Regardless of how long it takes, keep your arm down and let your dog learn this on her own. It will make walking your dog on a leash so much easier and fun for both of you.

Happy walking!