Chickentrain's Dog Q&A

[black_cat]

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Yeah, I've heard of that rule. I wanted to join competitions, so I taught heel on the left, but I am personally more used the dog being on the right. Maybe I could teach both!

Competition obedience has super strict rules, but BCs are the most popular breed for it. I'd recommend taking classes and maybe starting with rally as a good intro because it's more lax.

 

[black_cat]

my dog doesn't heel. I feel its cruel to make him walk next to me

I thought that you only had a rabbit and a fish?

 

[cherrylimeaid]

I thought that you only had a rabbit and a fish?

my dog died

 

[SpotTheCat]

my dog doesn't heel. I feel its cruel to make him walk next to me

My dog likes walking in between people

 

[black_cat]

my dog doesn't heel. I feel its cruel to make him walk next to me

it's not cruel because it's not forcing the dog, it's teaching the dog. Training a heel is different then just keeping a very short leash.

 

[black_cat]

my dog died

I'm sorry

 

[NatJ]

Theres a side your supposed teach them to go on? Any idea why?

I've read a few different explanations, although none of them completely explain why it's almost-universal at present.

Right handed people wear their sword on their left side, so it's easy to draw.

So they mount their horse from the left, so they don't have to swing the leg-with-sword over the horse's back.

So when they lead the horse, they do it from the same side (horse on the right, person on the left.)

So the dog heels on the left of the person, where it doesn't get stepped on by the horse.

[Obviously, most of that no longer applies happens, so not a good explanation for why we do it that way NOW. And what about left-handed people?]

Alternately, maybe a right-handed person wants to handle their shepherd's crook or gun with the right hand, so the dog goes on the left to be out of the way of that.

[Also not relevant for most dogs in modern times. And again, some people are left-handed.]

Or maybe a dog heels on the left so that you can walk along a road with the dog further away from the cars.

[But British cars drive on one side of the road, and American cars drive on the other side of the road, so "heel on the left" would not be right for BOTH countries if that was the explanation.]

By now, I think dogs heel on the left because that is just the way people think it's supposed to be, no matter what the original reason was.

 

[black_cat]

I've read a few different explanations, although none of them completely explain why it's almost-universal at present.

Right handed people wear their sword on their left side, so it's easy to draw.

So they mount their horse from the left, so they don't have to swing the leg-with-sword over the horse's back.

So when they lead the horse, they do it from the same side (horse on the right, person on the left.)

So the dog heels on the left of the person, where it doesn't get stepped on by the horse.

[Obviously, most of that no longer applies happens, so not a good explanation for why we do it that way NOW. And what about left-handed people?]

Alternately, maybe a right-handed person wants to handle their shepherd's crook or gun with the right hand, so the dog goes on the left to be out of the way of that.

[Also not relevant for most dogs in modern times. And again, some people are left-handed.]

those both make sense
didn't they kill left handed people because they thought that they were the devil or something???
pretty sure that that happened at some point

Or maybe a dog heels on the left so that you can walk along a road with the dog further away from the cars.

I was going to mention that one but then I thought about the reason that you mention:

[But British cars drive on one side of the road, and American cars drive on the other side of the road, so "heel on the left" would not be right for BOTH countries if that was the explanation.]

By now, I think dogs heel on the left because that is just the way people think it's supposed to be, no matter what the original reason was.

and the competition stuff probably came from the original reason

 

[NatJ]

didn't they kill left handed people because they thought that they were the devil or something???
pretty sure that that happened at some point

I've heard of people being taught to act right-handed no matter what hand they naturally wanted to use.

As far as I can tell, attitudes toward left handedness have varied quite a lot from one place and time to another.

 

[black_cat]

I've heard of people being taught to act right-handed no matter what hand they naturally wanted to use.

As far as I can tell, attitudes toward left handedness have varied quite a lot from one place and time to another.

oh ok