leading dog

British

noun

a dog trained to lead a flock of sheep to prevent them breaking or stampeding

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The famed musher Leonhard Seppala owned Togo, who was a mess as a puppy—undisciplined, a flight risk—but turned out to be really good at leading dog teams.

From Slate • May 8, 2023

But at first look, some viewers found the leading dog to be more distracting than nuanced; some complained online that they wished the studio had taken a different route.

From New York Times • Feb. 23, 2020

Blackman called Robert Milner - one of the leading dog trainers in the country and the owner of DuckHill Kennels in Somerville - and Milner said come on down.

From Washington Times • Jul. 20, 2014

For years The New Yorker served as the leading dog park of the literati.

From Slate • Apr. 5, 2013

Holfax says he can take the leading dog team, and, attaching the other dogs to the head sled, he can pilot them all.

From The Young Treasure Hunter or, Fred Stanley's Trip to Alaska by Webster, Frank V.

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023