Picture of Perfection - A Drill for Heeling

The rule book says that a judge should “hold a picture of a perfect performance.” When it comes to heeling, do you hold such a picture?

For me, perfection involves rhythm and smoothness, on both the part of the handler and the dog. While the rulebook doesn’t specify head position, a dog that has a consistent head position, looking up or toward the handler, makes achieving rhythm and smoothness much easier. A smooth handler fades into the background so that when you watch, your eye is drawn to the dog, not the handler.

My picture involves a dog that not only maintains heel position without forging or lagging, but the dog does not weave in and out. He is always the same distance from the handler.

One of my favorite drills to achieve this is “Self Designed Heeling,” demonstrated in this video. This drill helps fine-tune your dog’s heeling by addressing subtle errors with purposeful movement on your part. For example, if your dog tends to crowd, start curving into him, which encourages him to find his own lane and hold it consistently.

As you watch the video, notice how I use my Reward Marker to reinforce those moments when the dog adjusts his position. This drill is incredibly effective for developing smooth, rhythmic heeling.

I hope you enjoy it!