Loose Lead Walking For Spaniels

Loose lead walking is one of the most valuable skills you can teach a spaniel — and one of the easiest to accidentally ruin. Spaniels are driven by scent and movement, so pulling often becomes “self-rewarding” because it gets them to what they want faster.

The goal isn’t to make walks rigid; it’s to build a dog who can stay connected to you, move calmly on a loose lead, and still enjoy sniffing and exploring without dragging you from one smell to the next.

Use this hub to fix pulling, build better walk structure, and create reliable lead behaviour that holds up outdoors.

Key guides in this section

Start here: loose lead walking and stopping pulling

Heel and positioning (what it means and how to use it)

When training a dog what does heel mean?

Puppy lead foundations (prevent pulling habits early)

Calm, relaxed walks (spaniel-friendly walk manners)

Teaching Your Spaniel to be Calm and Relaxed on Walks: Tips and Tricks

Related training hubs

What loose lead walking really means

A loose lead does not mean your spaniel walks in a perfect heel at all times.

It means:

the lead stays relaxed most of the time
your dog can move and sniff without forging ahead
you can regain connection without conflict
your dog learns that pulling does not work, and calm lead behaviour does

Think of this as teaching good lead manners, not strict obedience.

Start here: the simple plan that works

Follow this order and you’ll make progress quickly:

Stop rehearsing pulling (use distance, avoid high-distraction routes temporarily)
Reward proximity (mark and reward when your dog is near you with a slack lead)
Teach “check-ins” (your spaniel chooses to look back and re-engage)
Use access to sniffing as a reward (calm lead = permission to sniff)
Practise in easy locations first (house/garden, then quiet street, then busier areas)
Increase one difficulty at a time (distance, then distractions, then duration)
Keep sessions short (5–10 minutes of practice inside a normal walk)

The spaniel-specific challenge: scent and momentum

Spaniels don’t pull because they’re stubborn. They pull because:

scents are highly rewarding
forward motion builds excitement quickly
they often learn early that pulling gets results

The fastest way to improve lead walking is to change the reward pattern so that:

pulling stops progress
calm lead behaviour gains access to the world

What to do on walks (without turning walks into battles)

Use “sniff breaks” strategically

Sniffing is brilliant enrichment for spaniels. The skill is teaching your dog that sniffing happens through you, not against you.

A simple structure:

walk calmly for 10–30 seconds
cue “go sniff” and let your dog explore on a longer lead
cue “this way” and reward for reconnecting

Don’t rely on constant food-luring

Food can help, but if you must hold food at your dog’s nose the whole time, the skill hasn’t been trained yet. Use rewards to teach the behaviour, then fade the constant lure.

Keep your lead handling consistent

A lot of pulling problems are made worse by:

tightening and loosening the lead unpredictably
letting your dog hit the end repeatedly
changing rules every walk

Common mistakes that keep pulling alive

If you want progress, avoid these:

Letting your dog pull to get to scents (this teaches pulling works)
Only training on high-distraction walks
Stopping and waiting for ages (many spaniels don’t learn from it)
Turning lead walking into constant confrontation
Expecting perfect behaviour too quickly outdoors

A simple weekly plan

Daily: 2–3 minutes of lead practice in low distraction (driveway / quiet area)
3x per week: one dedicated “training walk” (short, structured)
Weekly: practise in one new location at an easier difficulty
Ongoing: use sniff access as your primary real-world reward