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Unread 03-13-2018, 11:36 AM   #5
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My experience with teaching "heel" has been with Springers and Labs. Assume it would work with Setters also. I teach my dogs to heel on the side away from the gun. (In my case, that means the dogon the left side) I've never used anything more than a choke collar, and more often simply her regular nylon collar. Begin walking, and force the dog to keep his head even with your knee - never more than several inches fore or aft. Stop and start frequently - the idea is to teach the dog to react to you and your movements. I also force the dog to sit when we stop. As the dog progresses, speed up and slow down - the dog should now be keying off of you. Finally, I start walking in a figure eight about 10 yards long, The forces the dog to adjust his speed depending on whether he is on the inside or outside of the figure 8. While all this is going on, I keep the dog on a lead. You never want to give a command which you can't enforce.

Good luck!
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