Natural Dog Training

How I reset the heel position without losing Pippin's flow.

It looks easy. Two dogs. Loose leads. No pulling. No constant corrections.

But here's something I've learned:

Loose-leash walking isn't really about the leash. The leash is often just where you see the problem.

What matters more is what the dog believes they need to do when they encounter something interesting, exciting, frustrating or unfamiliar.

That's where the real training begins.

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How do you feel about dog parks?

Do you go often or not at all? And why?

It's a tough sell.

Take a dog who is interested in everything. A dog who wants to run, jump, sniff, bark, explore and be involved in absolutely everything.

Then tell them:

"Walk at my pace. Don't worry about that. Don't go over there. Just keep walking."

But what I try to say is, we can't do that right now but we can do this instead?

I used to think there were only two ways to walk a dog: a loose leash walk and a heel.

Now I have three.

This isn't an everyday heel. It's a focused, high-energy exercise where Pippin gives me everything he's got.

For dogs like him, who are bursting with drive, excitement, and enthusiasm, this gives all that energy somewhere productive to go. Right beside me.

The more I reward those tiny moments of effort and engagement, the more he offers them.

I didn't expect this to become one of my favourite ways to work with highly driven young dogs, but it's been a game changer for building focus, teamwork, and self-control.

How do you channel your dog's energy?

Dog training in new and novel locations and under distraction is essential to develop reliability.

Here, my parent's sheep provide an excellent distraction. I also think they enjoyed watching our routine 🤣

Movement together, rhythm and flow.

Your dog doesn't need a 30-minute training session.

They need 2 minutes you'll actually do.

One of my favourite habits is sneaking little training breaks into our walks. A couple of sits. A down. A short heel. Then we keep walking.

At first, a simple task like "sit" might take five times longer than normal, and that's okay. Every second is well spent teaching your dog how to function around distractions. Help them just like you did when they first learnt to sit on cue.

Don't get frustrated. Get back to basics. Pretend you're teaching it for the very first time.

Distractions make things harder, and that's exactly why we practise there.

With patience, your dog learns that working with you helps the walk continue.

There was a time when these two things meant exactly the same thing.

Pippin was an escape artist. Every open gate, every opportunity, every distraction was worth leaving for. People had very little value compared to what the world had to offer.

Today looked very different.
He's still running. He's still fast. He's still adventurous.
But he's choosing to stay close.
He's enjoying his freedom without feeling the need to leave.

That's the difference.
Training isn't about stopping dogs from being dogs.
It's about building enough trust and connection that they want to include you in the adventure.

This moment made me smile more than any perfect recall ever could.

Because he's not running away anymore.
He's just running.

It It won't happen overnight, but it can happen!

Reactivity isn't solved with a cue or a punishment. It's a process of understanding the "why" behind the behaviour, then helping your dog develop better coping mechanisms, a calmer mindset, and the confidence to make better choices.

These are two formerly reactive dogs proving that progress is possible.