Teaching a dog to "heel"

Thank you so much for the advice. I'll have to try that with my dogs & see how they respond to it. :) Thanks again.

Thank you! I will definately try this with my dogs.

The way we did it in class (which really isn't as mean as it sounds) is you put a slip collar on your dog. (Made of nylon, not chain). And you put the leash on. Until they are trained, you never 'play' with them with the leash on. They come to know it as working time. So there you are, walking them with the leash on. When they race to the end of the leash and start pulling, you yank on it just hard enough to knock them off balance, you firmly say heel, and it doesn't take them long to know you mean business. Whenever you stop they are then to sit by your left leg. So stop, get them to sit, and praise them. Sooner or later, they will automatically sit whenever you stop. Also, if they start to race ahead, turn left sharply in front of them, and they most likely will catch on that they are never suppose to be out in front. Keep the training sessions to 20 or 30 minutes. Then when you are back in your yard or home, take the leash off and play with them for a bit, so they come to look forward to their working and playing time. I trained 5 dogs this way so I know it works. Some breeds catch on faster than others. P.S. If you are training them to do circus tricks, the rules are different. This is for normal training.

Thanks. I'll have to see if I can do something like that. Although, Bingo doesn't seem to be as stubborn as my dogs are. LOL