Dear Miss Behavin’: My dog Sparky has picked up a new habit of chewing on the leash at the beginning of our walks. He tends to settle after some time, but I worry he’ll chew through his leash and get loose. How can we avoid this entirely?
If Sparky is only chomping on the leash at the beginning of walks, it’s likely that he is just so excited that he doesn’t know how to contain himself. If you have a yard, try playing fetch outside for ten minutes or so to burn off a bit of his excess energy. If that isn’t an option for you, there are a few other things you can try.
If he gets excited by just the sight of his leash, you can try desensitizing him by picking up the leash as if to go for a walk, clipping it on his collar, and then taking it right back off and continuing to go about your day. After enough repetitions of this, he will eventually learn that the leash does not always lead to a walk, and often is no big deal.
Since this process can take some time, try to spray the leash with something that is safe for dogs to ingest, but tastes yucky, such as Bitter Apple. For many dogs, a few sprays of this are enough to keep them from trying again. If not, you can try switching to either a leather leash that will be more difficult to chew through, or a chain leash which will be less pleasant to chew in the first place. Ultimately though, these management techniques will only get you so far. The best way to teach a dog to stop an unwanted behavior is to teach them what you do want them to instead. When Sparky starts to become excitable, get his attention with a yummy treat and ask him for a “sit” or a “watch me.” Reward him with the treat for being a good boy. Soon, when he’s feeling frenzied, he will automatically turn his attention to you.