How to train your Dachshund to walk off-lead

We get asked a lot about Kingsley being off lead and how he does it and why he doesn't run away... From my perspective it is a lot of trust between you and your dog. 

When I first got Kingsley I trained him in the house to come, wait, sit, stay all the basics (They really do come in hand) I would allow him to walk around the house with his lead on to get use to it and then we also did lots of "Come" training.

From this we built a lot of trust together. After Kingsley was fully vaccinated I walked him off lead in our local area (hardly any cars or traffic) and allowed him to follow me, if he didn't I would then call him to come and stay. It really didn't take me long to teach Kingsley as he was such a quick learner as a puppy.

After a few days of that type of training we then started walking around our local village without the lead attached, from the basic beginning training Kingsley was so use to being an off-lead dog he would stick by my side in busy areas and not divert.

From this learning curve as such a young puppy I can now trust Kingsley to listen when called (Not always if his nose is to the ground - haha).

If you are wanting to train your dog off lead I would start by keeping the lead attached and allowing it to drag along the floor or grab a lead extension to give the dog more space to run. I didn't use treats as an incentive but if you have a food driven dog I would suggest rewarding the dog every time he/she comes back to you when called. This way when you slowly take the lead completely away you and the dog will have made a trust connection. 

In saying all of the above I am not a dog trainer nor a vet these are just my suggestions that have worked with Kingsley and other dogs who have successfully completed the steps as well. Please ALWAYS do carry a lead with you just incase there is another dog approaching, Always pop your dog on lead just incase they are not friendly. You can never be too safe! 

Love King Kingsley's Ma, Emma

xx