I am having trouble getting my 2 year old dog (we've had her for a year) to walk to heel. (when on the lead as she can't be let off)

She seems to half understand the heel command in that she will come to heel on command but doesn't understand that I want her to continue walking to heel

ie she will come to heel but then thinks the job is done and then tries to walk ahead immediately.
I have tried stopping when the lead goes taut until she eventually comes back to heel (she can work that out) but then as before she thinks job done and off she goes again.
I have also tried when the lead goes taut to hold her back till I get level with her then say "Heel" to try and get through to her that way.

I have tried both methods with and without treats to no avail.

I presume I am the problem and am confusing her in some way.

Part of the problem may be that she is used to an extendable lead however I use a normal lead when attempting "Heel" walking.

Thanks for any help.

Edited to say that she understands the "come" command which I use when she is some distance away, I don't use the heel command unless she is either already at heel or has pulled the lead taut and i have got level with her again.

i continue to pat my leg and repeat heel at small interalls, stopping at a short distance to praise her for doing what i want, gradually making the patting less, the patting of the leg is to keep her attention on you and the repeating of the word so that she understands what it is you want. try doing it for small amounts of time, i practiced it first just walking up and down infront of my house, once the dog is intrested in you keep its attention,
hope this helps and good luck.

You just need to be really really consistent. She needs to be by your side for you to keep walking, if she is not then you stop. You might only walk a few meters per hours by eventually she'll get it.

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Jack - Black Labrador
Nalsy & Ponch - Purebred bedwarming moggies

Heeling is quite a bit harder than just Loose-Leash-Walking as it takes more consistency and patience to gradually hone the sweet spot and proof it reliably, it's all too easy to give up at times, or muddy the "Heel" command by using it when the dogs going to fail due to other factors, which un-reinforce it.

You don't say how what approach you took to build the association with the "Heel" command, luring to the position or just saying "Heel" when the dogs there. Whether training treats are still motivating your dog, and why there are problems with recall.

Personally I would try and re-teach it from scratch and assuming a food treat works as motivation. It shouldn't take too long using luring in short bursts of training sessions initially.

Once the dog shows it's understood that "Heel" means to take the heel position, give postive praise feedback but delay the food reward slightly (just a second or so at first). Gradually extend the "Heel" time required to earn the full reward, and with patience you can extend the reward time, the postitive feedback helps the dog knows it's on the right track, so it doesn't get confused desperately trying to earn the reward in a different way. If the dog goes too far forward, use some friction free method to encourage it back and persist with the heel exercise again, or where more convenient (especially when the dog wants to get to the destination in a hurry perhaps a park, or following another dog) turn round and go the other way for a bit. Short sessions are necessary, especially at first when there's high burn rate of food. With time it'll naturally develop into you & dog interacting, fairly constantly like a running commentary, with aim to keep the "good" at about 10-15x the rate of the failure recovery actions. If the dog is getting a lower ratio, it's the Handler's fault for impatiently trying to proress too fast, not the dog!

My personal feeling, is that it would also be very beneficial to find a secure fenced in spot, like a tennis or outdoor 6 a side football court, to practice dog training, including recall. Also open space sessions with a long line (not one of those reels which encourage pulling/lunging though), which allows your dog more freedom of movement, but keeps you in full control of the situation.

By working on more than just the one command, you can build dog's impulse control and keep things more fun and mentally stimulating for the both of you.

Not always working with the dog on the same old lead, it'll help give your dog a broader mix of stimulation, allow some secure off leash work, and gradually also build a solid recall (at least in certain situations, without highly fascinating squirrels, rodent trails, ballgames etc. to distract your dog).

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Another good piece of advice i was given is to teach heelwork indoors and then garden without a lead on, they seem to take to this quicker, so the position and concept of where to walk by you is ingrained in before walking it with a lead which they may automatically try to pull.

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Thanks for all the replies. I have made a little progress. She is very excitable at the beginning of the walk but responds much better after 20 minutes or so but for short periods only so i am currently leaving it till then.

I'm persevering and have invested in a clicker in order to be a bit more precise in my instruction so fingers crossed.

Have you cracked it yet?

If not watch this Walking to Heel

Im working on it too. I mainly used cookies but on Youtube I found this video with a different technique. Maybe you can try this? Im going to follow this topic too
YouTube - ‪How to teach your dog to "Heel".‬‏

Here the best ive seen so far: YouTube - ‪Got K9 Pitbull Dog Training in Las Vegas Nevada‬‏

That video looks very convincing!