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It's not really about forging or heeling. It is about paying attention instead of wandering and sniffing. It's about coming in next to me and wanting to stay there because that's how he knows what I am gonna do next. I give them the relative freedom of the 40 foot line so they can decide for themselves that they'd rather stay close. By the time we go to any leash, the dog already knows how to heel, just not smartly. Then we go outdoors and I let them drag the line. Then I pick up the line and call them to me and we work just like we did indoors. Invariably the sights and sounds outdoors will entice them away. That's when my 40 foot line comes into play and by the second or third session, the click of the leash being attached to their collar already means it is pay-attention time. Work time. Ignore everything else time. And this works for me.
Also I've tried prongs but found them cumbersome. The pull-and-release correction is quicker with the light chain than with the prong, or so it seems to me, and I get better results with the chain. My goal with a chain is to use lighter and lighter corrections. But everyone does have a different "touch" on the various bits of equipment, which is why there is such a variety available. Also, I'm not a youngster and I freely admit my methods are older than the hills.
I had never even heard of clicker training until fairly recently. Personally I don't understand it. What happens when somebody else uses a clicker near you while you are working? How does the dog know which clicker is the right one? Or do you eliminate its use by then? And if that is the case, then why start it at all? To me it sounds more useful in utility than in obedience or tracking or protection work. I think I'd rather stick to vocal praise. It's faster and you "own" it, ie the dog never mistakes someone else's voice for yours the way he might with a clicker.
Perhaps the best advice is to find a method you agree with, that "feels" right, and then stick with it consistently. I think consistency or lack there of is the single biggest stumbling block for all new trainers and their dogs. There is such a temptation to try this and that and the other thing until the poor dog has no idea which method you are using now....and often neither do you! Because there ARE so many different methods, it is really easy to get lost and confused about which one is "right". Pick one that feels right and then STICK WITH IT consistently.
Again, JMO.
