Training: Getting Your Dog to Walk NEXT to You (this was a real challenge for me!)

Getting your dog to walk on a loose leash is easy. However, sometimes your dog--especially if he's a young or adolescent dog--will still instist on walking slightly in front of you. He's not pulling on the leash... he's just not walking along side you, in the heel position. (The heel position means that his right leg is aligned with your left leg, and his toes and your toes line up, when you stop).

Many young dogs, especially, don't initially understand the concept of staying parallel to you.

Here's how to fix it:

Take a baby step forward. Only one. If he doesn't take one baby step forward, tug backward with the leash, until he takes a step backward and is parallel to you.

Now take one more baby step forward. Do the same thing. Continue this for about 50 steps, and you'll see your dog begin to make eye contact and only take on step forward.

Now take two baby steps forward, and stop. Repeat, repeat, repeat.

Then three steps. And back to one step. Practice this, and remember to praise whenever your dog only moves with you, in unison.

Pretty soon, it'll "click" for your dog, and you and your pet will stroll along, picture-perfect.