Okay, I have a 1 year old cocker spaniel, and he is housetrained and trained to sit, shake paw, lay down and roll over. But when we let him off of his leash he just takes off runnning everywhere and we can hardly catch him. He is alright when he walks on a leash but he walks infront of me and not beside. how can i train him to first walk beside me on his leash. And then how to be able to walk him off leash with out him taking off?

Take the collar and put it higher on the neck. This will give you more control of the dog. When walking, hold the leash tightly to you by your side. Slowly, let the leash slide, giving the dog more and more freedom. When the dog starts moving ahead, tighten the leash. When doing well praise the dog by saying,"Good girl/boy." With a little bit of patience and practice it will understand.