Teaching Your Dog Off Leash Heel

What is Off Leash Heel?

First thing we need to do before we answer is to understand: what is the heel command? The original meaning of this command is dog's ear at our heel (free etymology lesson of the day). Many people believe it means sitting near you or in front of you, but really it is a position the dog is in relation to us; they may be sitting or standing. At Suburban K9 we typically use the heel command while walking. We also like to have the dogs just a little further back behind us so that in their peripheral vision they can always see us if they're looking ahead. They don't always have to be looking at us, but it's important that they're paying attention to where we're at so they can match our pace and follow us to stay in position.

Now that you know what the heel command is, off leash heel is just what it says; performing this task without the safety net of having a leash attached. It’s important to note that this is an advanced obedience command. If your dog is struggling to sit on command, you have a lot of other things to work on before you try this. We do not begin teaching this to dogs until they can perform all their basic obedience commands: Heel, Sit, Down, Stay, and Come.

There are a number of advantages to teaching this command to dogs, but most notably is it’s usefulness if you want to spend time with your dog anywhere other than in your yard. Time devoted to practicing and making sure your dog can listen and follow regardless of new people, dogs, and loud noises enables you to share so much more with your dog. I take my dog whenever I go to Home Depot, the pet store, hiking, really anywhere I know that I can! Usually once a trip someone will comment how polite my dog is being and that they could never do that with their dog.  When my dog was a puppy she would jump and pee on everyone she met because she was so excited to see them! Now she is still excited, but can wait until I give her permission, is polite while greeting, and doesn’t make messes.

Do you have a local farmers market or outdoor concert you’d like to take your dog to but never try because they’d jump all over everyone? Mastering the heel command is your key to sharing these fun experiences with your favorite furry friend. Are you interested in day hiking or backpacking? Off-Leash Heel makes these activities more freeing for both you and your dog.

How do you teach off leash heel?

Teach On Leash Heel

We teach this command at first with a leash, and we then proof the command quite a bit by taking dogs to different environments and working them through different situations and making sure that they reliably perform this heal command no matter what distractions may be present before we begin to teach off leash heel.

Work with over the shoulder leash

When we are very confident in the dog's ability, we start using one of our over the shoulder leather leashes. We love this as a beginning to work away from needing the leash. You still have control if the dog gets distracted and tries to run off while the dog is getting used to your more relaxed body language and not holding the leash. We also want to pick a good environment. Worry about working up to distractions later, even if your dog does great on leash around them. Find a nice open field that is free from people and wildlife. Set the stage for success, remember, training sessions should be fun!

Once you are ready, say the heel command and begin walking. As you walk, throw in plenty of turns and stops. This is the best way to test if a dog is really paying attention to you or just going with the flow. If you need to, you can reach back and grab to the leash to give a tug if the dog is drifting away from you too far or you feel like you’ve lost their attention. When the dog is performing this very well, it’s time to move on to a dropped leash.

Work with the Leash dropped

The rest of these phases we practicing the same actions with the dog, just with progressively more freedom. With a dropped leash your dog should feel less under your thumb. It is important to use lots of verbal praise while you're working on off leash heel. The positive tone coming from their owner is going to be very helpful to success. Practice the walking with turns and stops until the dog is moving with you effortlessly.

Occasionally some dogs may act a hesitant with the leash dropped, this can be overcome with giving the dog more time with a leash attached and dragging. Try doing it when you're home where the dog is very comfortable.

Work with a short tab

One of our favorite tools for training at Suburban K9 is the short tab. These are basically just really short leashes that give you a little more to grab than just the dogs collar if you need to. With a short tab your dog with be quite a bit more likely to leave on their own whim while heeling. Remember the verbal praise! Once the dog is doing well here, you're ready to go off leash!

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Keep Training

The amount of effort that it takes to get a dog to perform off leash heel is significant, give yourself a pat on the pack and your dog some ear scratches! This is quite the accomplishment, but the work isn't over yet. Remember to proof the command by slowing progressing to harder distractions until your dog look like Holly's Anakin in the video! This is a skill that needs to be maintained, practice daily on your walks and love life with your dog!

Additional help

If you're looking for more reliability, you can look into one of the Dogtra E Collar systems below and check out of E Collar tips video below for some extra info on E Collar heeling.

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