Your dog not coming when you call is a complicated problem, and one that needs to be worked through in stages to ensure success each time. To start with, we’ll list the most important do’s and don’ts of recall training, then we will go through training of a recall. Many of this is common sense and you probably already know it, but unfortunately we tend to get a little emotional when it comes to our pets and “common sense” can often get thrown out the window. After all, how can we correctly discipline Fido when he looks at us with those adorable chocolate eyes?
As with a lot of training, this is easiest with a young puppy, but any dog regardless of age and previous experience/training can learn to do lightning fast recalls in all environments.
Do’s: Set you and your dog up for success.
- Make sure you have your dogs’ attention before asking them to come.
- Always reward your dog for coming to you.
- Make the reward proportionate to the distractions your dog left to come to you.
- Practice often and in as many environments as you can.
- Make being with you more fun than elsewhere.
Don’ts:
- Never ask for your dog to come when you know they are too distracted to come.
- Never punish your dog when it comes to you (if you need to tell your dog off, go to them. Don’t tell them to come and then yell at them as this will have the opposite effect to what you’re trying to do).
- Don’t lean forward when your dog approaches.
- Don’t grab your dog by the collar as if you are afraid you will never get near them again (this only frightens them and makes them less likely to come right up to you).
As with all training, start by practicing in an area free of major distractions and make sure you have your dog’s favourite rewards available. Be relaxed, and ready for some fun; recalls should be fun otherwise there’s no point. It is best to start with a lead on your dog, either a 6’ lead or a longline to enable you to guide your dog in if needed. We want to ensure they understand that coming towards you is what we want.
Make sure that you have your dog’s attention, hold your hands out wide (ensure you don’t tug on the lead if it is in your hand) and ask your dog to come in a happy, upbeat tone. As your dog moves toward you praise them, “good dog, that’s it, keep coming”, and when they get all the way to you ensure they come in really close, and give them a big reward including lots of praise, a cuddle or treat, etc.
Make sure that as your dog approaches, you have your back straight – this ensures your dog comes all the way in and doesn’t learn to stop an arm-length away to play “catch me if you can”, a fun game for all dogs and one that many people fall for.
As your dog gets better at coming to you, add more distance between you both. You can also start to ask for their attention (usually with the use of their name) before asking for the come, and you can start to add in more distractions over time.
Here is where things can get complicated! You need to work on each element of the recall (distance, attention, distraction) separately, then when you have good control individually then start to add them together. For instance, a 20m recall without distractions is a lot easier than with another dog running with your dog. So add distance without other people or dogs around, then add distance when your dog has low level distractions (eg smell, looking ahead instead of at you).
When you start to add major distractions, reduce the distance between you and your dog, starting close and on lead, then building up the distance, again ensuring your dog has to come each time (ie don’t remove the lead/longline until your dog is ready to recall away from distractions at a distance without any help from you).
When you feel ready to try off lead recalls, we recommend beginning with dropping the lead, rather than removing it altogether. That way if things go wrong you have the entire length of the lead to grab, instead of making a dive for your dog and spending the rest of the day running after them. At West-Coast, we also help many Perth families and their dogs with recall training, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to us and see how we can help!