Improving Your Dog's Engagement On A Walk

Four simple strategies to strengthen your bond and boost their obedience to get better engagement from your dog.

Is your dog more interested in sniffing the ground than paying attention to you? Do your walks feel more like a chore than a fun adventure? Keeping your dog engaged isn’t just about preventing boredom—it’s about strengthening your bond and improving obedience. Whether you have a high-energy pup who craves excitement or a laid-back companion who needs a little motivation, there are plenty of ways to turn everyday interactions into engaging experiences.

Are walks becoming boring?

Vary the Pace

• Always set the pace for the dog walk. Walking at a faster pace can ensure that your dog understands you're in charge here and will respond to your assertiveness, which may help when your dog gets distracted. It can also provide an adrenaline rush keeping high energy dogs engaged. Don't forget to marry this with mental stimulation too, because sniffing will allow them to tire their brain out, leading to a quality walk.

  
  

Change The Route

• Trying something new can provide a new adventure for both you and your dog. There's new smells, sounds and sights to get the most engagement from your dog on your walks. As much as dogs love routine and marking their territory over and over again, get curious with your dog, as over time these walks can become boring for both of you.

Do you need them to respond to you?

Interactive Toys

• Bring their favourite toys. It may be especially hard to grab your dogs attention whilst on a walk, so bringing a ball, frisbee or squeaky toy that they love can provide a huge amount of engagement from them, especially if they are off-lead. It's important that your dog comes back to you when you want them to but if they are being defiant, using a toy can turn this in your favour as they are engaging in a good mental game and being rewarded for coming back to you, all whilst the 'fetch' aspect is good for their exercise.

  
  

Practice Obedience & Tricks

• If all else fails this is a good training exercise to do that will teach them to engage with you on their walk and 'check-in'. First, keep them on a shorter lead and practice this in your garden or a low stimulation area. Turn your back to them and once they walk round to you and give you eye contact, say 'yes'/'good' and reward them with a treat. Keep repeating this. You want to teach them that they must return to you regularly and 'check-in' without a recall.

• Check out this video for a better visual understanding.