Heel work

[darren m]

heal work simple as it is , my dog does,nt quite get it.

 

at home , at stables , down the lane she will heal BUT get on the shoot and healing is a ******* pain ( on lead and off ) , she will start off ok but with in 10 steps shes 10 steps in front and distance growing all the time despite my screaming heal .

 

The only thing that makes any very temporay difference is physcially scruffing her at the back of the neck and dragging her backwards to my leg with the command .

 

i want my springer bitch to walk at my leg on my command till cast with out question . i know it can be done but how....

[darren m]

or is it a cold fact of nature that springers cant heal very well

[geordieh]

Hi Darren

Away from the shoot is she 100% and how old is she

Geordie

[WGD]

I'd love to help mate, but I don't have the patience to teach heel work to a spaniel... I've got a 16 week old lab here just now that heels better than any of the 2 resident or last 5 (in 12 months) passing through spaniels, not because the labs trained, it just a baby and want to be with you.

 

My spaniels heel, roughly, which means stay close and don't hunt or I'll toe your backside. But I couldn't describe it as heelwork.

[davecooper1]

Getting a spaniel to heel right beside your leg is hard, mine stays couple mtrs either side of me, so Im happy with that.

[Benellimelody]

Have 2 cockers that both heel well without the distractions but when on shoot days - else their eyes are on stalks or their nose is drawn to the ground. They still heel but have to be reminded every 20yards. I think they are getting there tho

 

Try and make it the spaniels job to walk with you and not the other way round. Changing direction, quickly and often and stopping if they get ahead, everytime. I do not move if they are not beside me Remember they are a spaniels and take all the fun out of it and they will try and have fun without you. I.e if mine are good at heel for a decent amount of time i will then quarter the dog a little way or give it a blind as a reward.

 

Memory retrieves may help or they may hinder in my experience depending on the dog. If a dog knows there is a retrieve where it has come from it may be less likely to pull and therefore will heel nicely until sent back thus building on success - Just my 2pence worth

[roadkill]

you need to go back to the lead and not come off it until it learns , a dog will only learn by mistakes but you need to put the check back in so when it goes off the heal then you jerk it back hard and shout the command heal.

[Spaniel]

well i have been struggling with getting the spaniels to heel for the last 5 years

They know what the command mean but they just want to be out in front, at home etc fine but shoot days

Like you William i have a lab and at 6 months old she is a pleasure to take out on the lead

[darren m]

cheers lads - you,ve actually made me feel a bit better

 

shes 2 now and at home shes great , its only shoot days where like as been said her eyes are on stalks and wants to go , shes healing but 5 yards in front

maybe i need to do more lead work , i sometimes slip her back on when approaching a flushing point ( just to be safe ) and she starts pulling on the lead throttling her self , away from game scent she wont do that .

i think i need to get her in a pen and get her healing there around game .

 

glad i,m not the only one , but i,ll keep at it