It’s All Connected: Modern Loose-Leash Walking
live with Kiki Yablon
A KPA LIVE!™ Class featuring real-time training and coaching WITH kiki
A game-changing approach to loose-leash walking for you, your dog, and your clients.
Join Kiki and learn a connected, dog-centric way of walking on a loose leash.Modern, dog-centric loose-leash walking doesn’t look much like the old “obedience” models, with the dog trotting closely by your side for most of the walk. It looks more like a dog and a person moving through space together, almost as though they were off-leash, interacting with each other and the world in ways that both parties find enriching.
Does that picture sometimes require that a dog walk closely by your side? Yes, and this course will cover that—but that’s not even half of it. In some ways, dog-centric walking requires more skill from both the dog and the handler than the old “step, step, step by my side” strategy. Dog-centric walking is like an improvised dance. Both partners need to know how to communicate with and respond to each other, as well as to a wide variety of events they are likely to encounter on the walk.
Like any good improvisation, this dance requires a foundation of skills that can be assembled into different sequences—not unlike agility runs, freestyle performances, or the 10-part chains that Karen Pryor Academy (KPA) Dog Trainer Professional (DTP) graduates demonstrate. In loose-leash walking, these component skills must be put together in an environment that is not only different every day but changes as you move through it.
Join Kiki for this four-unit, five-week class and learn component skills for loose leash-walking that can be “missing links” for both ends of the leash. You will also learn how to put those skills together with any others that are important to you personally, as well as how to reduce reliance on food reinforcement and incorporate naturally occurring reinforcers. This class is a great fit for pet guardians and trainers alike!
All students will learn about and practice:
- a modern way to visualize, break down, and teach a dog-centric form of loose-leash walking
- identifying component skills that make up the longer sequences involved in loose-leash waking
- identifying cues and reinforcers that will help you link those skills together in the natural environment
- equipment selection
- taking new skills on the road and dealing with distractions
- troubleshooting
Excel students will learn and practice all of the above plus:
- receive coaching on how to apply these skills in your real-life environment
- a broad range of approaches so that the skills from this class can be used with new dogs or client dogs
- the skills and plans for continuing to build on your success after the class has ended
Where and when!
- Content unlocks on October 22, 2024.
- Teaching support and discussion board begin on November 5, 2024.
- Zoom classes will be held on Tuesdays: November 12, 2024, November 19, 2024, December 3, 2024, and December 10, 2024. Classes will start at 3:00 PM PT / 6:00 PM ET and are two hours long.
Please note: There will be no live Zoom class on November 26, 2024.
Can’t make the live classes? No worries! The Zoom classes are recorded and made available shortly after each class concludes; you can access all of the recorded material for an entire year!
LEARN, PRACTICE, SHARE
LEARN
Six weeks of training, a week-by-week curriculum integrated with four LIVE virtual classes with real-time coaching, interactive learning, and Q&A. Super educational, super fun.PRACTICE
The LIVE week-by-week curriculum integrates with, and prepares you for, the weekly LIVE class. New levels of advancement each week!SHARE
Ask questions and share insights, pics, and your training videos. Celebrate progress together!A week-by-week curriculum guides your learning every step of the way. Each week, join your classmates for one of four LIVE classes for real-time training and personalized interactive coaching, plus Q&A with your instructor. You will see other students practice the behaviors, hear your instructor’s feedback, make adjustments, and improve their training. Each of these Zoom-based classes is two hours long. All students get access to the full week-by-week curriculum and class forum. In each Zoom class:
- Engage students watch training and your instructor’s coaching and can ask questions through Zoom chat.
- Excel students get personalized real-time coaching and feedback on their training during the Zoom class PLUS on-screen Q&A.
Miss a class? No problem. LIVE classes are also recorded.
Let's Begin This Fabulous Journey, Together
- Begin Unit 1 Lessons!
- Discussion Board Opens: November 5, 2024
- Live Zoom Class 1: November 12, 2024
- Unit 2 Lessons
- Live Zoom Class 2: November 19, 2024
- Unit 3 Lessons
- Live Zoom Class 3: December 3, 2024
- Unit 4 Lessons
- Live Zoom Class 4: December 10, 2024
Please note: Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, there will be no real-time Zoom class on Tuesday, November 26th.

LEARN WITH Kiki Yablon
Here's What You'll Be Learning UNIT by UNIT
1
Overview and Handler Skills
Unit 1 starts by focusing on the human end of the leash. You will learn how to approach loose-leash walking as a sequence of behaviors that can include any skills important to your setting and goals and what to consider when selecting equipment, as well as several leash-handling and reinforcement delivery skills that Kiki recommends as the foundation for most loose-leash walking applications.
Topics include:
- Envisioning your walk as a behavior chain or sequence
- Setting yourself up for success, including equipment selection
- Leash handling techniques
- Reinforcement procedures
2
Dog Skills
In Unit 2, you will begin teaching your dog skills for loose-leash cooperation. Starting in low-distraction environments at home and off-leash, you will work with your dog on a selection of exercises that Kiki most commonly teaches to start or refine loose-leash walking. Some exercises are foundational, while others are “missing links” that can enhance existing loose-leash walking systems needing refinement.
Topics include:
- Attention
- Moving forward
- Directional signals and waiting
3
Fluency, Generalization, and Transitioning to Naturally Occurring Reinforcement
In this unit, you’ll learn how to practice individual dog and handler skills in increasingly more challenging environments, as well as what to do if the leash goes tight.
Topics include:
- Handling distractions
- Building duration
- Generalization
- Leash tension
4
Putting it All Together
In this unit, you’ll learn how to chain the skills you’ve developed on the fly, in response to your environment, and how to identify and troubleshoot “missing links.” Excel students will have the opportunity to share and discuss their video of working in outdoor settings.
Topics include:
- Building chains and sequences
- Incorporating naturally occurring reinforcers
- Odds and ends