One of the most common concerns people have is wanting their dog to come when called. It makes sense that this is the case because our dogs have their own interests, and often the world has many fun interests to compete with our call. To compete with that, we need a plan to first teach our dogs that coming to us when we call is an a great thing to do, and to then challenge them with achievable challenges to improve their ability to respond even when distracted. FoundationThe biggest tip I can give you is to make coming to you amazing. Make it fun and enjoyable for your dog, and do so repeatedly so that your dog develops a strong history of responding to you being a great deal for them. This foundation creates an almost automatic response because your dog doesn't need to think about what comes next, they know it will great. And that is what causes them to return even when there is something else they are interested in. There are a variety of games that you can play with your dog to establish this foundation, and in private lessons I can help you choose and tailor games to your dog's specific preferences, but here are some common ones you can try. Orientation Game I love this game, and find it foundational to many other things. This core version encourages your dog to choose to check in with you, rather than run off and check out other things after they eat the treat.
Orientation + Come In this variation we are practicing having your dog respond to the cue to come, by putting it in a framework they know. Practicing coming when called this way allows us to move your dog away from you, so they're not facing you allowing you to notice the moment they turn back to you without creating conflict or using a distraction that may be a bit too challenging for them to turn away from while they're learning because they're allowed to eat the tossed treat. This is a win-win for your dog. They get the tossed treat, get to run back to you for another one, and they doesn’t lose out on anything. The trouble with practicing coming when called away from distractions that a dog can’t have is that there is always an opportunity loss in that setting – they don’t get to do what they were planning on. Even if you reward them for returning, they miss out on their original plan and too much of that type of practice can irritate a dog and cause them to not respond (just think about when you’re trying to get a task done and someone keeps calling for your attention). Therefore I like to play this game to create a great foundation of happy feelings when being called to come and an almost reflexive response to the cue.
Touch This is a very versatile cue that can be used as an alternative cue to come to you.
Safety FirstSomething that I think is very important to keep in mind is that our dogs are not robots. They are living beings with their own personalities, interests and free will. This means that there will always be an element of risk when they are off leash that they may choose not to respond. Good training will reduce that risk, but especially while dogs are learning they may not respond the way you wish. Therefore, I think it is important to also discuss some management options.
Introducing DistractionsCome - Adding Distractions Once your dog is coming to you quickly when you practice where there are no to low distractions, we want to start purposefully including some distractions into training. It is idea for us to plan to do this so that we have some control over how close and how difficult the distractions are. This is very helpful in the learning stage, because we want to work our way up the ladder of difficult distractions starting with easy ones, then mildly difficult, then moderately difficult so that your dog builds their ability to disengage from distractions and return to you, rather than being consistently over faced with distractions that are too difficult at this time.
Come Boosters What if *Dog* doesn’t come when you call?
Catch and KeepOne common challenge I see is a dog that will come back to their person, but won't come within arm's reach. Usually, this is because the dog doesn't want to be caught and is avoiding the end of their freedom. If your dog is doing this, or you want to prevent this from becoming an issue, read on. Taking hold of the Collar Some dogs dislike the feeling or the human posture that accompanies reaching to take hold of their collar or leash. Before we can practice this piece of the coming when called routine, we want to make sure your dog is not only comfortable with you getting a hold of them, but actually is happy for you to do so because of the pleasant associations we’re going to create.
Come - Catch & Release Once your dog is happy for you to take hold of their collar or harness, we can start to practice this as part of the coming when called sequence.
Special Case - Time to go insideAnother common recall issue is not wanting to go in the house, and wanting to remain outside instead. This can be a very frustrating problem to have! To turn things around, I recommend the following:
Going back outside can be the biggest reward of all, and teaches your dog that not only is going inside a good deal, but it doesn't necessarily mean the end of outside time, which will dramatically reduce their resistance to going inside. I prefer to have the reward show up once your dog is inside so that you don't get stuck trying to lure your dog in by showing them what you have. It also makes it easier to reduce the treats later on once your dog is consistently going inside on cue if you wish. Comments are closed.
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