Walking Multiple Dogs Together: How to Keep a Pack Under Control
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Walking Multiple Dogs Together: How to Keep a Pack Under Control
Walking one dog nicely to heel can sometimes be challenging enough. Walking 11 dogs together, all with different personalities, ages and tendencies, takes a completely different level of consistency.
In our latest Kugae Gundogs YouTube video, Carl takes 11 dogs from our own pack out for a walk, including Labradors, spaniels and even our Patterdale.
The aim isn't simply to show a group of dogs walking together. Throughout the video, Carl explains how he maintains control of a large pack, what he expects from the dogs and what he does when individual dogs begin to push the boundaries.
And they do!
A Well-Trained Dog Will Still Test the Rules
One of the important things we wanted to show in this video is that trained dogs aren't robots.
Even dogs that understand exactly what is expected of them will occasionally try their luck.
A dog might gradually creep ahead. Another might move away from its normal position. One may become interested in something happening nearby, while another notices that Carl's attention is temporarily elsewhere.
These little moments are important.
If they're continually ignored, a small change can gradually become the new normal.
Carl therefore deals with these moments as they happen, rather than waiting until the dog is completely out of position or the whole group has become unsettled.
Control Starts With Clear Expectations
When we walk our dogs together, they know what is expected of them.
That doesn't mean constantly nagging or correcting them. In fact, good control should look relatively uneventful.
The dogs understand where they should be and the handler remains aware of what is happening around them.
This comes from consistency.
If you allow a dog to pull ahead one day but expect perfect heelwork the next, it becomes much harder for the dog to understand the rules.
Whether we're handling one dog or 11, we try to make those expectations clear and consistent.
Watch the Whole Pack – Not Just One Dog
Handling multiple dogs requires you to look at the bigger picture.
It's very easy to concentrate on the dog that's behaving perfectly or, at the other extreme, become completely focused on the one causing a problem.
Meanwhile, another dog may quietly be beginning to push the boundaries.
When Carl is walking the Kugae pack, he's constantly watching where the dogs are, how they're behaving and whether anything is beginning to change.
Often, the best time to deal with a problem is before it becomes a problem.
Don't Wait Until You've Lost Control
This is something that applies to everyday dog owners just as much as it does to people working several gundogs.
If your dog begins creeping further and further ahead, don't wait until it's several metres in front of you before doing something about it.
The same principle applies to recall, steadiness and many other areas of gundog training.
Deal with the small change in behaviour early.
The more often a dog is allowed to practise unwanted behaviour, the more established that behaviour can become.
Heelwork Is About More Than Looking Smart
Good heelwork isn't simply about having a dog walking beautifully beside you.
For a working gundog, heelwork forms part of a much bigger picture.
A dog that understands it should remain with its handler until asked to do otherwise is learning self-control, patience and attentiveness.
Those skills become particularly important when you move into more exciting environments.
On a shoot day, for example, there may be other dogs, people, birds, shots, smells and movement everywhere. That's not the ideal place to suddenly discover that your dog only walks nicely when nothing interesting is happening.
Good habits need to be established long before they're tested in those situations.
Every Dog Has a Different Personality
One of the things we particularly like about this week's video is that you can see a mixture of dogs together.
They don't all behave in exactly the same way.
Some are naturally easier to keep in position. Others are more inclined to push their luck. Some need very little reminding, while another may require Carl to step in sooner.
That's perfectly normal.
Good dog training isn't necessarily about treating every dog identically.
It's about understanding the dog in front of you while keeping the overall rules consistent.
And yes, Carl even brings the Patterdale along with the gundogs!
Can You Walk Multiple Dogs Together?
If you eventually want to walk two, three or more dogs together, our advice would be not to rush it.
Get each dog's individual training to a sensible standard first.
If two dogs are both pulling, ignoring you or competing with each other, putting them together isn't likely to improve matters.
Start with dogs that you can control individually and gradually build from there.
Remember that adding another dog doesn't simply add another lead – it adds another personality and another set of decisions for the handler to monitor.
Watch Carl Walking 11 Dogs Together
If you'd like to see these principles being put into practice, watch our latest video on the Kugae Gundogs YouTube channel.
You'll see Carl take 11 of our dogs out together, explain what he's looking for and show what he does when some of the pack start testing the boundaries.
Rather than showing perfect heelwork edited together for the camera, we wanted to show the little things that happen during a real walk with real dogs – because those moments are often where the useful training lessons are.
Need Help With Your Gundog?
If you're struggling with heelwork, recall, steadiness, general control or another aspect of your dog's training, we can help.
At Kugae Gundogs in the Lincolnshire Wolds, we work with both working gundogs and family dogs from working lines, helping owners understand not only what to do, but why their dog is behaving the way it is.
We offer training assessments, one-to-one training and residential training, as well as practical advice through our YouTube channel.
Contact Kugae Gundogs to discuss your dog and the most suitable training option for you.
📞 WhatsApp: 07505 014363 📧 Email: info@kugaegundogs.uk