Heeling is not a nice leisure walk with your dog. Heeling is your dog following you closely and paying attention only to you and where you are going. When you take your dog on a walk the safest way to cross a street or walk through crowds is heeling. He needs to learn to focus solely on you so that in these situations he can ignore any usual or unusual distractions.

It is a very easy lesson to start because you can practice when you take your puppy outside to eliminate, after he is done, and when you go back inside.

This is not the same as learning heeling in obedience classes, but rather a sort of pre-course. You can also practice off lead wherever it's safe, inside or out. At this stage it is not important to use "heel" either.

Get your puppy's attention as he is walking next to you, to let him know what he is doing. Or if he is sitting or standing still, lean over and softly clap your hands in front of his face. Some may want to hear you talk; others just want to go wherever you go. As you go you can add an occasional "Watch me!"

Keep your puppy focused by walking quickly enough that he will want to keep up with you. When he gets distracted, stop and start over. Do not correct him, you are just taking one step in the right direction so add lots of praise. If your puppy's attention is totally elsewhere, take a break from your lesson. Sometimes a tasty treat will get him started, but if not let him play for a few minutes. Followed by a drink of water before you try again. Or wait until next time so he doesn't get tired of it.

Be realistic about what you expect from your chin puppy. A few steps on command earn a reward, then a few more earn a reward. When your puppy is heeling on command, praise him and quit practice. Practice again later.

If your puppy arrives in the winter practice in a long hallway or your basement. These places are perfect for indoor training, no distractions, limited space, and you are the most interesting thing around.

After a bit add some turns to keep it interesting and to make him focus his attention. As you turn right bend down and clap your hands so he keeps on following you. Left turns are a bit harder because you have more to do. Put your left foot in front of your puppy to guide him into the turn. Be careful not to step on the puppy, but if your foot bumps him or he plows into your foot, don't apologize. He needs to think it was his mistake, and he will pay closer attention next time.