Teach your dog to walk close to you without a leash

Doesn't it sound great to be able to walk your dog loose without worrying about it running away? Here we'll go through all the steps to help you build the behaviour as far as you want to go.

This exercise will also facilitate your recall. If your dog stays closer to you on the walk, you won't have to recall as often, and it will reinforce the recall when it's needed. You simply won't have to nag your dog.

Step 1

To start, put a treat at your heel. When the dog eats the treat, take a step away from the dog and wait for it to make contact with you again. When the dog catches up with you, place another treat at your heel.

Step 2

Proceed to step 2 when your dog comes quickly to you after it has eaten its treat each time. Now you should start taking more steps away from the dog before it catches up to you and gets its treat at the heel.

Step 3

When you can take several steps away from the dog before putting another treat at your heel, it's time to increase the number of steps before putting another treat at your heel. When your dog catches up with you, take a step with the dog before getting another treat at the heel.

Step 4

Now it's time to put on a signal that you can use when you want your dog to stay close to you on a walk. When your dog catches up with you, say your signal, such as "Walk close" and take a step with the dog. Then give the dog a treat at your heel.

Step 5

Gradually increase the number of steps you can take before placing another treat at your heel. Here, you set the limit and practice the number of steps you can take based on how long you want your dog to be able to walk by your side on cue.