Consistent heeling

[Teddy2019]

Hi all, newbie here. We have a 10month old male cocker pup (Teddy) and since we got him at 2months I practcied heel with him in the garden so he has a good idea of what it is and from previous experience of having a cocker (who didnt like heel) I wanted Teddy to be nice to walk.  Although on walks he is a nightmare and wants to pull even when tired out. He has done his bronze award and was good at heeling with a high value treat during the course. He doesn’t really care much for treats and when he is heeling well I praise him and he starts to pull. It is becoming really frustrating
as he knows what heel is as I sometimes stop and say heel and he walks backwards however he won’t walk at heel for long on his lead and off his lead he always tries to get ahead. Any idea of how I can get him more focussed on me and heeling so he’s not pulling? I have tried the stop method and that doesn’t work as well as the change direction method which does initially then he tries to pull again.

[Mari]

Hello  Here is my take on leash walks.

While heeling can be useful for obedience training, crossing streets etc it is not very useful for walks. A proper walk where the dog is free to follow their nose and read the doggie newspaper is calming and satisfying for a cocker. Walking in heel is hard work for their brain and expecting them to do it for an entire walk is not likely to be satisfying for a spaniel. It is also a huge ask of a young dog. However, it is much easier to teach them to be polite on the leash and not pull if you give them some space to just be dogs if that makes sense.

In my experience, it is all about training them to be aware of our movements and teaching them that it is rewarding to follow us. So first of all rewarding all voluntary contact. Any time the dog looks at you or comes close to you without being prompted, give some praise or a treat for reward. Maybe a tug toy if treats are not interesting, although treats are easier to use for this type of training.

My preferred method for training polite leash walking is to train many short sessions and not worry too much about what happens on the rest of the walk. During training I walk a few steps before changing direction. When the dog follows I reward. Changing directions many times and rewarding when the dog follows teaches the dog to keep an eye on your movements and stay close because that is rewarding. With enough training it becomes a habit to walk together rather than pulling on either end of the leash.

Does he care about treats in other situations? Maybe treats are not working because his stress levels are up during walks. I would train short sessions. Find an empty parking lot or football field, somewhere you are more interesting than the surroundings. If he is interested in treats there, then you have a starting point. After many small training sessions, when he starts to understand the plot, you can train in more challenging environments.

I think that we often make this type of training difficult for ourselves because we expect too much too quickly and walks become stressful for dog and owner. Dogs learn best when we can keep them from getting worked up, and that is the biggest challenge with a young cocker in my opinion.

I hope this can be helpful for you! I struggled with this too when my dog was young, but I read a book that described a method similar to  this and it helped so much! https://www.amazon.com/MY-DOG-PULLS-WHAT-DO-ebook/dp/B004BLK8PQ/ref=sr_1_2?crid=24QVPOPL7S9CK&dchild=1&keywords=turid+rugaas&qid=1587283663&sprefix=turid+ru%2Caps%2C263&sr=8-2

[Barry H]

This may be controversial, so take it all with a grain of salt, but I'm wondering why you want him to walk at heel?  It's always seemed a bit pointless and inessential to me.  Let's be realistic here.  The training is hugely frustrating for both dog and owner, more so with a young excited Cocker making something which should be one of life's joys into a battle of wills.  I never attempted this with Jack.  Cockers are impatient and resolutely inquisitive.  It's a tough job to keep a pup steady even at the end of a 15 foot line! Yes, we've all seen You Toob vids of eight week old pups walking nicely to heel.  There wlll always be exceptions that prove the rule.

I was happy to get Jack to walk steadily with a loose 6 foot lead and persevered with this one aim.  He's not food/treat orientated so that added to the difficulties (as a pup he even refused fresh, warm, cooked chicken).  Now that he's fully mature it's not something I ever have to think about.

It's hard work and having limitless patience is key.  Remember that Teddy is your best mate, not your enemy, so bear that in mind, try to see the world through his eyes and maybe revise your expectations a bit.  Try to get him steady on a long line first, then a long lead, then a short lead, then train a walk to heel if you feel you must.  The 'wait' command is great help so have a go with that at the same time.

 

[bizzylizzy]

Both previous posts are spot on!
A couple of years ago, I joined a dog club (I live in Germany) and they were offering one particular award programme which put heavy emphasis on heel work. We decided to give it a try and practised at every opportunity, all lead walking became stressful for both of us as, although Humphrey walks beautifully to heel off lead, when necessary, the minute the lead is on, the stress is there again.
About six months ago, having failed the original award miserably, I decided to have a go at a completely different scheme which was basically teaching the dog (and the handler) good manners. Humphrey wasn‘t expected to walk to heel but, as Mari describes, learned to stay focused on me.
The difference is incredible, he still pulls because that‘s what cockers do but I give him more space and time now, I‘ll let him stop and sniff a bit and then jolly him along and he‘ll happily join me, until the next interesting smell and then we stop and repeat!
What has, unfortunately, taken me over 4 years to realize is, that constantly trying to get him to walk obediently at my side (as you see in loads of videos but very rarely with spaniels!) was causing stress to him and to me and achieving nothing but frustration. I don‘t „take him for a walk“ now, we go „together“ (or rather I accompany him!  ) . I know it probably goes against a lot of the conservative training methods but none of them worked for me anyway. Walks are a pleasure now, I don‘t balk any longer at the thought of having to walk him on lead in a busy area, the only regret is that I didn’t realize it earlier!
Relax, don’t seek perfection but rather focus on managing a walk that you both enjoy, its more important that he learns not to inconvenience others (you can insist on a short heel, or walking on your other side when approaching small children or other dogs, for instance) than expecting him to stay glued to your heel. There‘s dog training and Cocker Training - its two different things!, 

[ejp]

This is purely my personal opinion, so feel free to ignore. Having your dog walk to heel, is like me walking through the town, spotting a sparkly, shiny thing in in a shop window, and not having the freedom to peer in the window.  What's the point of a walk if you can't be nosey?  I am way more cocker than I care to admit!  Adog that enjoys a mooch on their walk, is polite to other dogs and people is a gift, if you have that, then well done to both of you. 

[IonaD]

I’ve loved this post. When I first got Bella and we attempted ‘walking to heel’ it was a disaster. Having never had a cocker prior to Bella I couldn’t understand why We struggled so much. In the end I gave up...she spends any lead walk with her nose to the ground sniffing anything and everything meaning we don’t ever get anywhere particularly quickly. Not worrying about having her walk to heel has made walks much more enjoyable for her and for me.