:: THE DOG DAYS OF WINTER ::

October 22, 2003

Heel


Autumn pup in High Park

9:30 a.m.
I haven't been training Dusty very much, except for maintenance work on old skills (her sit-stay and down-stay are very solid now).

I never taught Dusty to 'heel' because I never really saw a point to it. As it is, she walks on either side of me - the side furthest from the road, as a safety measure. But she's allowed to range ahead as long as she doesn't pull on leash.

Lately, though, I've run into some situations that I would have really liked her to 'heel' - mainly the approach of other dogs, in large crowds, or tight spaces.

This morning, I started the work to teach her the skill. Since she already knows not to pull on leash, this has been fairly easy. I've been pulling the leash behind my legs and holding it in my opposite hand. When Dusty tries to get the leash to go slack, she automatically falls back to position by my right or left knee (I'm going to contine to ask her to walk on the side of the sidewalk furthest from the road).

So far, so good. I'm taking it slowly and only asking for a 'heel' for short duration. I've also been practising in the hallway of my building, since it's an environment with few distractions, it's a good place to start.


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