"Heel" is a position command. Your dog should be on your LEFT side with his head parallel with your left leg. The
leash should be held in your RIGHT hand and should not be pulled tight in front of you. Make sure it has some
slack to where it's bowing in the middle. Your reward (which is also your lure) should be in your LEFT hand. Make
sure your dog is highly interested in your reward for the "Heel" because learning this position is dependant upon
it. An easy way to check your dog's desire for the reward is to touch it to his nose then move it back and forth in
front of him. Is his nose still glued to it? If yes, then that treat will do.
STEP 1. First, place your dog into a sit position on your left side. When you step off, there are
three things you must do simultaneously... Give the command "Heel", step off with your left foot, and lure your dog
forward using the treat (which should be in your LEFT hand).
STEP 2. At the end of every "heel" there should be an automatic sit, but your dog does not know this
yet. We must teach him that rule. In the beginning, you will take two steps then immediately put him back into a
"sit" position by commanding AND luring him. Using your left hand, drag the treat over his head with your palm facing behind you.
Remember, your dog learned that "sit" means come to around front and face you, so this new manner in which to "sit" will
be confusing to him. If he does sit in front of you, he should still receive praise, because after all, he did do
what you asked. But, it is your job to lure him in to a "sit" beside you in the future.
STEP 3. Once your dog is sitting, he gets his food reward and praise. Don't get too exciting with
the praise however. He may break the position, and you're not done yet. For the first few days, you're going to
repeat the above steps over and over again, like so:
"Heel!" Walk 2 steps. "Sit!" - "Heel!" Walk 2 steps. "Sit!" - "Heel!" Walk 2 steps. "Sit!"
The repetition will help your dog get into the habit of sitting when you stop after he's executed the heel
command. And yes, he gets a reward for every time he sits.
STEP 4. As he becomes familiar with this method, add more steps into the equation and try leaving
out the "sit" command on a random occasion. (Don't go too fast for him now.) When your dog is doing well with the
advancement, begin adding turns into your heel and some small distractions, such as interesting objects and people.
If your dog is looking up at you during the heel, that's a good sign. ;-)
*** Trouble Shooting ***
Here are some problems you might have and some answers that might help...
My dog hops and/or jumps when I try heel.
Try picking up the pace a bit. If your dog is leaping, he can stand to go a little faster.
My dog is interested in everything in the area EXCEPT for me and what I'm wanting him to do.
If you've practiced too long, give him a break from training. If you've just started, then most likely, you are a
pushover and you are not the one in charge here. Find your confidence and use it! If your dog starts to wander,
immediately put him back in the heel position. At the same time, YOU can't dawdle either. Keep your training
quick-paced and try not to hesitate. Yes, the heel is awkward and takes some getting used to. Therefore, I suggest that
before you even try it with Rover, get used to what your movements are supposed to be with an empty leash. Once
you're confident that you've got it, hook him up and try the real thing.
