Traditional training, also called escape and avoidance training, teaches a dog to start or stop a behavior to get away from light, unpleasant pressure.
- Escape learning: the dog learns a behavior that ends the pressure. Leash pressure guides your dog into a sit; the moment they sit, the pressure releases.
- Avoidance learning: the dog learns to do the behavior before the pressure ever arrives. Eventually, the command alone is enough.
Leash pressure
Leash pressure is how I teach escape and avoidance. We use it to guide your dog forward, backward, into a sit, a down, or onto a place, and the release of pressure is the reward. Pairing it with a correction marker means less pressure over time.
Is it safe?
Yes, when it’s done right. Two rules matter most:
- The pressure must always be escapable. Pressure the dog can’t escape leads to fear and learned helplessness.
- Start low. We begin below the level that changes behavior and raise it only until we see results.
I don’t use hitting, alpha rolls, yelling, or social pressure. Those are unclear, too intense, and give the dog no way out.
See equipment for the collars we use, and What training styles do you use? for how this fits with force free training.