Lead Tips

Caron's Tips for Lead Training your New Weimaraner Puppy

Training of your new Weimaraner baby starts the minute you get it home. We always start lead training at 8 weeks of age. Lessons are always short (sometimes only one minute or so) and always happy!

What You Need

Make sure you have a small supply of tasty treats as rewards for your baby. We like to use liver treats or tiny cubes of tasty cheese. Don't overdo the rewards as you might cause tummy upset.

We like to start lead training in my hallway with all the doors closed so there are no distractions for the puppy and they are confined to close proximity to my left side. You will need a soft slip lead.

You also need a happy puppy who is hungry (not a sleepy pup who has just been fed!) and you must also be in a good frame of mind and have the time to spend on training.

Start at the Open End of the Hallway
Take your slip lead and place on your puppy and keep the lead in your left hand. Don't put any pressure on the lead and show your baby the tasty treat with your right hand and keep the treat fairly close to their nose but just out of reach.

Start walking down the hallway using your command "heel" in a light and happy tone. Remember to keep the treat just out of reach and coax your baby forward down the hallway. Also remember to have the lead loose without any pressure on it. When you get to the end of the hallway you need to do a right turn using the command "this way" and head back up the hallway still using the treat as encouragement. Once you are at the end of the hallway stop and use the command "stand" and let your baby sniff and lick the treat still in your fingers.

At this stage do not give the baby the treat. Repeating the command "stand" touch the baby with your right hand and move its legs and touch its tail repeating stand and letting it lick and try to chew the treat. Do this for only a second or two and then praise the puppy and let it eat the treat.

Its then time to remove the lead and have some fun.The above is enough training for the very first couple of lessons. Once the baby can go up and back freely, the lesson can be increased to two lengths of the hallway.

If done correctly, this training will only take a couple of weeks and you can then proceed to open spaces but the baby must be perfect and not making any errors before you graduate to open spaces.

Continue using the treats to coax the baby forward and try to keep the pressure on the lead to a minimum. Continue training in a straight line and doing a 180 degree right turn at the half way point and also continue to use your commands and give plenty of praise. Stand command at the end and lead off and treat given as before.

Good luck with your training!