Leash Pulling: What Works
Lead pulling is one of the most common complaints about young dogs. What the equipment studies measured, and why no trial has tested how to train it.
Written by thecanineledger
In a large UK study of young dogs, owners were asked which behaviours they found undesirable. Pulling was among the most common: “Across all five timepoints, barking, jumping up, pulling on the lead and recall issues were the most commonly reported undesirable behaviours” (Kinsman et al., Animals 2025).
While equipment makers promise to stop pulling, the research mostly measures how hard dogs pull on different gear for a few minutes. We found no trial of how to train a dog to walk without pulling. This page sets out what the studies did find.
1. How common it is
In the UK study, owners of dogs in the Generation Pup cohort described any behaviour they found undesirable. Pulling on the lead was reported for 3.8% of dogs at 6 months and 6.6% at 12 months.
Why the figure is low. Owners wrote in whatever bothered them, so the figure counts dogs whose pulling bothered their owners enough to mention. It doesn’t measure how many dogs pull.
Our note: A separate online survey of UK and Ireland owners found: “Of 2,531 respondents, 82.7% (n=2,092) of dogs pulled on lead” (Townsend et al., BVBA Study Day 2021). It was published only as a conference abstract, not a peer-reviewed paper. Owners were recruited online, through Facebook pages, and each reported on one dog.
2. Does a harness make a dog pull more?
One study says yes, for one kind of harness. A 2021 study of 52 shelter dogs tested a collar against a harness with the lead clipped on the back. When the dogs were tempted with food, “The maximal and mean leash tension and the pulling time were greater under restraint by harness” (Shih et al., Frontiers in Veterinary Science 2021, abstract).
Not with a toy. “No significant difference was detected between harness and collar with respect to leash tension and stress-related behaviours in the toy attraction test.”
What it doesn’t show. The dogs were pulling towards a treat in a test, not out on a walk. It tested back-clip harnesses only.
3. Gear that claims to reduce pulling
What was tested. A 2024 US study walked 23 dogs for 5 minutes each on four types of gear: a collar that tightens a little, a front-clip harness, and two prong-style collars (Johnson and Wynne, PeerJ 2024).
What it found. Dogs pulled significantly more on the collar than on the other three. “No other differences among equipment types were significant.” The front-clip harness and the prong collars didn’t differ significantly, though dogs pulled least on the metal prong collar.
Why they might pull less. The authors suggest the dogs may have pulled more on the collar “precisely because it was more comfortable than the other leash types”.
What it doesn’t show. Each dog had a single 5-minute walk on each item. “While our research did not provide any clear evidence of poorer welfare due to equipment type, we caution the generalizability of these findings”. Gear that makes pulling uncomfortable doesn’t teach a dog to walk on a loose lead.
Our note: We report the prong collar results because they’re in the study. Prong collars are banned in some countries.
→ Collar or Harness: What the Pressure Studies Show · → E-Collars, Prong and Choke Collars: The Evidence and the Law
4. Training
No trial found. We found no study comparing ways of teaching a dog not to pull.
What the wider evidence says. Studies of training methods in general favour reward-based methods over aversive ones. Those studies didn’t test lead walking specifically.
Ask for help early. In the UK study, pulling was reported more often at 12 months than at 6 months. A qualified trainer or behaviourist can help if pulling is making walks hard.
Our note: We found no trial of lead-walking training, so we point to reward-based methods in general.
Our note: Lead walking can injure owners. A US study of emergency department records estimated that fractures in people aged 65 or over, linked to walking a dog on a lead, rose from 1,671 in 2004 to 4,396 in 2017 (Pirruccio et al., JAMA Surgery 2019). Most were in women. The study didn’t report whether the dog was pulling. A UK review says that, apart from bites, being pulled over on a lead is “the leading cause of non-fatal dog-related injuries in the UK” (Townsend et al., Veterinary Record 2022, abstract). We could read only that review’s abstract.
→ Reward-Based or Aversive Training: What the Studies Found · → Training That Works, and Why: What the Evidence Says About Methods
5. What we could not verify
| Commonly said | What we found |
|---|---|
| “Most dogs pull on the lead” | In one online survey, yes. 82.7% of owners reported that their dog pulled. It’s a conference abstract, not a peer-reviewed paper. |
| “Harnesses make dogs pull more” | Back-clip harnesses, in one test with food. Not with a toy. |
| “A front-clip harness stops pulling” | It reduced pulling in one short study of 23 dogs, about as much as prong collars. |
| “This gear will train your dog” | Not shown. The studies measured pulling on the gear, not learning. |
| “Method X is the proven way to teach loose-lead walking” | No trial found for any method. |
Sources
- Kinsman RH, Casey RA, Tasker S, et al. Owner-Perceived Undesirable Behaviours in Young Dogs and Changes with Age. Animals 2025: longitudinal cohort, owner reports for up to 1,718 dogs. Funded by the Canine Welfare Grants Committee
- Shih HY, Phillips CJC, Mills DS, et al. Dog Pulling on the Leash: Effects of Restraint by a Neck Collar vs. a Chest Harness. Front Vet Sci 2021. ⚠️ abstract read. Within-subject experiment, 52 shelter dogs
- Johnson AC, Wynne CDL. Comparing efficacy in reducing pulling and welfare impacts of four types of leash walking equipment. PeerJ 2024: within-subject experiment, 23 dogs. No funding; no competing interests declared
- Townsend L, Dixon L, Chase-Topping M, Buckley L. Owner approaches and attitudes to the problem of lead-pulling behaviour in pet-dogs. BVBA Study Day 2021. ⚠️ not peer-reviewed. Conference abstract, online owner survey, 2,531 respondents
- Pirruccio K, Yoon YM, Ahn J. Fractures in Elderly Americans Associated With Walking Leashed Dogs. JAMA Surg 2019: research letter, analysis of US emergency department records, 2004 to 2017. No conflicts of interest reported
- Townsend L, Dixon L, Buckley L. Lead pulling as a welfare concern in pet dogs: What can veterinary professionals learn from current research? Vet Rec 2022. ⚠️ abstract read. Narrative review
Always confirm with your vet before acting on anything on this page.
This is not legal advice. It is our reading of the laws and rules as we best understand them from our research, and no lawyer has reviewed it. We state what the sources say and don't bend them to fit a story. Laws differ by place and change over time, so check the current rules where you live.