Husbandry Training: Conditioning Your Dog to a Harness
Written by Lauren Tsao, MS, CDBC, CPDT-KA
Conditioning Harnesses: Step One
This is a step-by-step guide on getting your dog to like their body harness and wear it without concern. The purpose of this dog training exercise is to begin the process of teaching your dog (by association) to love the harness. It may take 2 or 3 ten to fifteen-minute sessions to get all the way through the sequence for some dogs. Start at the beginning each time. The key points to remember are that the treats don't start until the harness is in the picture and that the treats disappear when the harness does. It is not necessary to have fitted the harness at this point since you will not buckle it yet. We highly recommend purchasing and using the Balance Harness by Blue-9, as it is very adjustable and has both front and back clips which you will find useful during loose leash walking training in class.
• Supply yourself with the equivalent of about one-third of your dog's daily food ration in treats.
• Hold your harness up by the neck loop with one hand, so that your dog notices it.
• Reach your other hand with a treat in it just through the neck loop and let your dog take the treat.
• As soon as the treat is gone, remove the harness (you can put it behind your back for a moment)
• Repeat, until your dog is anticipating the treat by sticking his nose through the neck loop.
• Leave the neck loop on just a fraction of a second more each time before you present the treat.
• When he is eagerly pushing his nose through the loop as soon as you present it, leave the loop on while you feed several treats in quick succession.
• When you can leave the neck loop on for 20-30 seconds while delivering a treat every 2-3 seconds, go back to putting it on for just a second, but take one body strap around his body for a second before treating and removing the harness.
• Work up to holding both body straps around his body (do not buckle them) for several seconds while you deliver treats. You can also help this process by always using the harness to “signal” that something good is going to happen. For example, you can show your dog the harness just before feeding him, just before walks, just before opening the door to the yard, etc.
Conditioning Harnesses: Step Two
Getting your dog to like wearing the harness. When your dog is happy to take treats for as long as you will deliver them while you hold the ends of the body straps around his body, you are ready for the next step. The purpose of this exercise is to teach your dog to actually wear the harness for some duration.
• Supply yourself with the equivalent of about one sixth of your dog's daily food ration in treats
• Go quickly through the sequence of treating through the neck loop, with the neck loop on, and with the body straps held up.
• When you can hold the body straps together (almost as if they were buckled) and feed for several seconds, try buckling the straps for a second, giving a great treat, then taking the harness off.
• Work up to leave the harness buckled for several seconds while you feed treats
• Check your harness for a proper fit (Check the manufacturer’s website if you are not using the Balance Harness. If you are using the Balance Harness, your harness shouldn’t be in your dog’s armpits. The body strap should fall about the second to last rib and you should be able to fit two fingers under every strap comfortably. The colored strap should be on top of your dog’s back with the metal ring at the end closest to your dog’s tail).
• Let your dog eat all the rest of the food and treats with the harness on. As soon as he finishes, take the harness off and leave him alone for a few minutes.
• Instead of giving your dog his meals in Kongs during this period, hand feed him with the harness on.
• Put his harness on right before you put on his regular collar and leash to go for a walk. Walk him with the harness on, but do not attach the leash to it--use his regular collar for that.
Conditioning Harness: Step Three
Getting your dog to like walking in the harness. At this point, making the transition to actually walking on the harness should be relatively smooth.
• Keep your leash loose as much as possible, but don't let your dog hit the end of the leash hard.
• If your dog pulls, reel him in smoothly and gently. Do not jerk on the harness.
• If your dog tries to rub the harness off on the ground or chew on the harness, encourage him to move forward and focus on you with a happy, excited voice. Do not verbally correct or punish this behavior, as it can undo some of your hard work thus far.
• Use treats, praise, and happy talk frequently when he is walking with the leash loose.
Struggling with husbandry and cooperative care training beyond the scope of this article? Contact me, a certified professional dog trainer and dog behavior consultant. I help students from around the world virtually and in person at my Jackson, MS metro dog training facility.
