Making Your Dog Heel

A leash is going to be an integral part of almost every dog and dog owner’s life. A dog will spend countless hours on the end of a leash and this time should be a happy, positive time for both the dog and the walker to be together. The goal of this article is to teach every dog owner how to make leash walking a pleasure.

Dog leash training is also one of the most basic parts of dog training.  What is the best time to start dog leash training? The training of a puppy should start when your puppy is about 6-7 weeks old. The best and the fastest way to get good results is tousle the positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement in dog leash training means every time your puppy performs well, you should praise lavishly and you can give your dog a small treat. The positive reinforcement method works much better than any other method available for training dogs.  You will need to take your dog for a walk on a leash once or twice a day so it gets the required exercise and it can relieve itself outside, unless you live on a ranch of course, and your dog can walk by himself whenever he wants.

The first command you may want  to teach your dog is "Heeling". Before you start, you are going to need your leash and some treats or some other kind of reward. Your dog should know how to "sit", "stay", "look" and the "come in" command before you begin training "heel".

Heeling is a more formal technique of walking a dog on a leash. The dog is expected to sit quietly on the left side of the handler. The moment that the walker moves the dog should respond. The dog should be right at the owner's side at all times. If the dog is large enough the owner should be able to touch the dog’s head at any moment. The owner should be able to change direction or speed and the dog is expected to keep pace and remain right with the handler. The moment the handler stops moving the dog is expected to sit. The command is not complete until the dog has done the "sit" and the walker gives a release command.

You can use a nylon lead for the first time which is light and yet strong enough, or a choker collar would be good to keep the dog from pulling on the lead, though the best would be gentle tugging with a stern command.  As mentioned before, the best way for your dog leash training is the positive reinforcement method. You walk in front of the dog and call it to you. When it comes, you give it a treat and praise it. Keep repeating this process while gradually increasing the distance you have the dog walk with you, along with you. Every time it does it without pulling or staying behind you reward it. It will surely take time and patience, but it will be fun for you and the dog.