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Foundations
Session culture: the dog brings the energy, you channel it. Define the jackpot and charge your markers. Build magnetic attraction to the lure, and condition pressure into reward events first.
Coming November 20
Heeling in Focus with Ann Quigley
Focus heeling built like a dance: power, precision, and flow. Ann's full scaffolded system, 26 videos and four PDFs, opens November 20.
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Join the waitlist and you'll hear first when the doors open.
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Watch the trailer
Competition heeling video course with Ann Quigley
Build a Heel With Power, Precision, and a Dog Who Wants to Be There.
Good focus heeling is a dance. Two partners working off each other's cues, with flow, power, and precision. Heeling in Focus is Ann Quigley's scaffolded system for building it, in order: a dog who brings the energy to the session, markers and jackpots, luring with drive, conditioned pressure, the four core concepts, and finally fading the help until your dog heels on reflex. Not a robotic force march. Movement with meaning, commitment with joy.
- 26 videos, taught in the order the heel gets built
- Energy and emotion first, technical correctness married to it
- One heeling picture that holds up at home, at club, and around bite work
Curriculum Overview
A library of video lessons plus PDFs, organized so you can jump to exactly what you need.
Bite-sized video lessons
26 focused video lessons, concept videos plus 13 trainer sessions, so you can train in quick chunks and jump back to the exact piece you need mid-session.
PDFs + reference guides
Four PDFs: Building the Heeling Picture, the Four Core Concepts, Terminology, and a Heeling Readiness Checklist to run before every session.
Easy to navigate
Every lesson includes bullet-point notes + timecode references so you can jump straight back to the exact moment you want to watch again.
See the full course outline+
- V01Welcome to Heeling in FocusConcept
- V02Starting SessionsConcept
- V03Starting SessionsTrainer session
- V04Jackpot and the Terminal MarkerConcept
- V05Charging the Terminal MarkerTrainer session
- V06Luring: Drive and MagnetConcept
- V07Luring for Power and PositionTrainer session
- V08Conditioning PressureConcept
- V09Introducing PressureTrainer session
- V10The Four Core ConceptsConcept
- V11Head Position and StraightnessTrainer session
- V12RhythmTrainer session
- V13ForwardnessTrainer session
- V14Throughness in HeelingConcept
- V15The Picture You Practice: Clean HandlingConcept
- V16Adding Cue and PressureConcept
- V17Adding Cue and PressureTrainer session
- V18Reward Timing and PlacementConcept
- V19Reward Type, Location, and TimingTrainer session
- V20Navigating the Intermittent StageConcept
- V21Fading the LureTrainer session
- V22Food to ToyTrainer session
- V23Fading the PressureTrainer session
- V24Proofing and CorrectionsConcept
- V25ProofingTrainer session
- V26Next StepsConcept
Why most heeling falls apart
Flat, disconnected heeling isn't a dog problem. It's a fundamentals problem.
You've probably seen some of this, maybe in your own dog:
- The dog heels one way at home and turns into a different dog around decoys and bite work.
- The dog heels because it sees food in your hand, so the lure never leaves.
- Pressure shows up as correction and conflict, and the power goes out of the picture.
- Forging, lagging, crowding, and a head that drifts every time you turn.
If the fundamentals aren't built correctly, the whole behavior lacks intensity and falls apart under distraction.
The real issue
Powerful heeling is built from four core concepts: head position, straightness, forwardness, and rhythm. Holding all four as challenge grows is throughness, the signature of powerful heel work. You build them with strategic luring, prioritize energy and emotion over technical correctness, and add the layers only once your dog is lost in the doing.
Building the heeling picture
Five stages, from the first marker to one heeling picture that holds up everywhere.
Every video builds on the one before it, so you always know what you're working on and what it sets up. And it's not a staircase. When things get flat or difficult, you go back to a preceding stage or address emotion, then come back up.
2
Core concepts
Head position and straightness, in static and in motion. Forwardness and rhythm, in motion only. Build all four with strategic luring and clean, consistent handling.
3
Layers
When the dog is lost in the doing, name it, add opposition to build commitment, and layer in activation pressure. Reward timing and placement balance motion and emotion.
4
Intermittent
Fade the help: the lure, reward predictability, and pressure. Vary your rewards and move from food to toy. Help as little as possible, but as much as necessary.
5
Proofing
Build one solid heeling reflex in low arousal, then proof it into distraction, new places, and higher arousal. Corrections clarify a cue the dog already understands. They never teach.
How the course is built
Two kinds of videos, because people learn two ways.
Concept videos
Tight, produced, and quick. Ann lays out the idea, why it matters, and what it looks like done well and done badly. Watch these when you want the big picture.
Trainer sessions
Thirteen sessions with room to breathe. Ann works dogs in real time and talks through what she's seeing and why, rep by rep. Watch these when you want to see how it actually looks in a session.
What changes with a system
Before Heeling in Focus vs after Heeling in Focus
Before
You train heeling a lot. You just aren't sure what you're building, so every session turns into fixing whatever looked worst last time.
- The lure or the food bag is doing the heeling
- Pressure shows up and the power and emotion leave
- Position is close, but the head, the rear, and the rhythm come and go
- You're never sure what to work on next
After
Every session has a job. You know which piece you're building, how it fits with the rest, and when the help can come off.
- One dog, one heeling picture: reliable, powerful, and reflexive
- Pressure is a coaching language that elevates the go
- Head position, straightness, forwardness, and rhythm hold together through turns
- When things get flat, you know which stage to go back to
Why learn from Ann Quigley (with Chris producing)
A world champion's system, filmed so you can follow it.
Ann Quigley is the owner and head trainer of The Discerning Dog in Raleigh, North Carolina.
A firm believer that a trainer's own skills should be tested against other professionals on the field, and not just talked about online, she has actively competed in Protection Sports Association at the highest levels, all with podium finishes.
- Club, regional, national, and world champion in PSA
- Coach to dog teams all around the world, in person and through online coaching
- Chris Williams of Work Your Pack produces, bringing a reality TV production background so the course is clear and worth watching. He admits his own focus heeling leaves a lot to be desired
Common questions
Questions people ask before they start
What sports is this built for?+
The course is tailored to surprise scenario sports like PSA, where what the field lacks in routine it makes up for in pure chaos. Ann also covers how to adjust for routine-oriented sports, like keeping contact in head position as light as possible. The principles work for anyone who wants heeling with real power and precision.
Is this for beginners or experienced handlers?+
Both. The course starts from the first session and the first marker, so a newer handler can follow it front to back. Experienced handlers usually find the gap that's been nagging them, often in the order things were taught.
What equipment do I need?+
Food, toys, and a leash cover most of the course. For pressure work, Ann uses a flat collar, agitation collar, or harness for opposition, a prong collar for activation pressure, and later an e-collar. She explains what each tool says to the dog and when it comes in.
When does the course open?+
November 20, 2026. Join the waitlist on this page and you'll get an email the day it goes live.
How do I access the course? Can I go at my own pace?+
Yes. Once you enroll you can watch anytime, anywhere, as many times as you want.
Still have questions?+
Email info@workyourpack.com. An actual human will get back to you and help you figure out if the course is a good fit before you buy.
Doors open November 20
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Drop your email and we'll let you know the moment Heeling in Focus goes live on November 20.
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