What is a "training leash"? Is it a long line? Long lines are great for teaching loose lead walking and working on recalls.
Many people seem to think that walking a dog off leash is a good thing, when in reality it is in most places breaking the law. There are some places that you can walk your dog off leash without being in violation of the law but in many places there are not many safe places that you can walk your dog off leash. As Janneke said, a real benefit to working on a long line on recall is that if your pup ever does get out then you have a tool to get him back. Name response, coming to his name with various distractions and in various places could very well save his life some day. You can play the come game in the house having people in different rooms call his name and give a treat if he comes. You can work on a long line outside calling him between two people. Only treat if he comes when called not if he is just running back and forth between you.
As for him listening to you, are you taking him to training classes? What is your role in training him? The more you work him, and the more consistently you work him, the more he will listen to you. You can start really by just taking a handful of one of his meals and just ask for some basics before giving him the main meal. Sit, down, stand, I practice targeting, what ever you may be working on until you have used your handful then when you are done ask for a sit and then you can give his bowl.
