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I'm posting this as part of a set of helpful 'easy reference' articles for common questions and problems. Feel free to add additional information on recall in this thread but please start a new thread for specific questions relating to your dog.
Note that this article is spread over two posts as it a little too long for the forum software to display in one post.
Introduction
If you only teach your dog one single skill, make it recall.
Why, I hear you ask?
Because whatever your dog is doing that you don’t want him to do, if you can recall him, then he won’t be doing it any more and you can get him under control. Also, the consequences of you dog not, say, sitting when asked, are unlikely to be terrible. Not being able to recall your dog means there is a real risk of the following:
So that’s the why, now for the how...
The key to teaching excellent recall is, as far as possible, only to use your cue when you know it is going to work. You never want to be one of those people shouting, ‘Fido, come! Come Fido! Here! Get your bum back here Fido! Come, come, come! FIDOOOOOOOO!!!!!’ That is an excellent way of training your dog to completely ignore you.
So, you start at point-blank range. In an environment with no distractions, e.g. your living room, say your cue word when your dog is right by you, and give him a reward. Once he realises that the cue predicts a reward, cue him from three feet away so he has to move towards you. Gradually increase the distance, so that you can call him from another room (excellent for when he’s lying on your bed and you’re not sure if he’ll agree to get off). The key is that he should always be thrilled to hear the cue, and come running towards you doing handbrake turns round the corners, then screech to a halt in front of you with a huge expectant grin on his face. If he ever shows reluctance (because he’d just settled in the sunny spot on the sofa, or was hoping to ‘help’ your partner prepare the evening meal), then you need to go back to the previous step. Really high-value treats, maybe ones that you only use for recall, can help a lot. And a recall should always be rewarded, even when it is reliable, either with a treat, a game, or even an ear rub; because you want your dog to know that coming back to you when you ask will be better than anything else he might be doing.
Once his recall is solid in the house with few distractions, try increasing the distractions... gradually. Call him when another family member is playing with him, or when he’s playing with a toy, for instance.
Then, take it outside. You need to start somewhere with as few distractions as possible, maybe your garden. As far as possible, try to avoid other people and dogs, birds, leaves blowing around... whatever is likely to distract your dog. Gradually increase the distance from which you call him. If not in the garden, then keep him on a long line so he can’t take off. The key here is...
Gradually – and this may be days, weeks or months, depending on your individual dog – increase his distance from you and the level of distraction. But only one at a time. And be prepared for unexpected distractions, such as another dog suddenly appearing. You really don’t want to be hollering at him to come back if he’s simply not ready for that level of obedience, or he’ll just realise that ignoring you is an option. And on the subject of obedience:
Obedience isn’t something that comes naturally to a dog. Some humans have the idea that because they feed and care for the dog, a good dog will always do as he is told, and if he disobeys he is ‘bad’ and should be reprimanded. It doesn’t work like that. A dog with think, ‘What’s in it for me?’ So you need to make sure that they really want to do what you want to do, at least initially. If you keep up this approach then doing what you ask will become a habit because (usually) doing so is in their interests. Yes, some breeds (and individual dogs), like collies, seem to want to please their owner, to follow instructions, and then to wait for further instructions. But other breeds (salukis spring to mind) think more along the lines of ‘I’ve considered your suggestion. Possibly later, but for now, I’ve decided that I’d rather do this’ which makes sense if your ‘suggestion’ means that the fun ends.
Over time, with careful training, you should get to be more confident in your dog’s recall and can dispense with the long lead where it is safe to do so. Make sure that you regularly practise recall on walks, in situations where you know he will come back, and release him to do his thing again once he has recalled – this will reinforce his training and show that recalling doesn’t mean the fun stops. If he’s still a pup, be aware that, like any self-respecting teenager, he is likely to test boundaries or rebel when he hits adolescence. Go back to basics, repeat your previous training, and trust that one day he’ll be more level-headed again.
When on walks, always try to be aware of any ‘abscond’ triggers – in the words of Patricia McConnell, try always to look 50 yards and 5 seconds ahead on walks. Will you ever get perfect recall, in the face of all distractions? Yes, you may well if you have trained carefully. Though there may be some situations where recall will fail. If you can see your dog isn’t going to come back, then don’t keep calling him – it will achieve nothing and will teach him that ignoring it is an option. And some dogs are never going to be safe off lead, at least in some situations. If they could pose a danger to livestock, wildlife or other dogs, then accept this and keep them on lead, and maybe investigate enclosed dog training facilities. The website Dog Parks Near Me (www.dogparksnearme.co.uk) might help you locate one, though it doesn’t seem to be complete (there are at least two such facilities near me that it doesn’t show).
Note that this article is spread over two posts as it a little too long for the forum software to display in one post.
Introduction
If you only teach your dog one single skill, make it recall.
Why, I hear you ask?
Because whatever your dog is doing that you don’t want him to do, if you can recall him, then he won’t be doing it any more and you can get him under control. Also, the consequences of you dog not, say, sitting when asked, are unlikely to be terrible. Not being able to recall your dog means there is a real risk of the following:
- Chasing livestock, possibly resulting in the death of livestock and, potentially, your dog (farmers are permitted to shoot dogs who are worrying their livestock).
- Chasing wildlife – have you ever seen the viral video of Fenton the labrador chasing deer in Richmond Park? I’m sure I’m not the only one who didn’t find that funny.
- Running onto a road.
- Going up to other dogs uninvited. Ideally, we shouldn’t let our dogs approach any dogs without permission from the owner, but this is even more the case if the other dog is on lead, wearing a service dog harness, or wearing a yellow bandana/jacket/etc., which may indicate that the dog is nervous or not friendly towards other dogs. Even if your dog is always friendly, the other dog may not be – and a confrontation could both injure your dog and put the other dog a long way back in any training.
- Raiding picnics.
- Going up to and greeting random people who decided to wear their new, white, dry-clean-only jacket that day (this happened to a friend of mine and her over-friendly lab – she had to pay £60 to have the jacket cleaned).
- Going up to people with a dog phobia, who have a right to enjoy their walk without having to deal with their fear.
- Investigating dead seals and other unsavoury stuff washed up on beaches.
- Refusing to come to you at the end of a walk, turning a lovely one-hour walk into a very frustrating two-hour walk.
So that’s the why, now for the how...
The key to teaching excellent recall is, as far as possible, only to use your cue when you know it is going to work. You never want to be one of those people shouting, ‘Fido, come! Come Fido! Here! Get your bum back here Fido! Come, come, come! FIDOOOOOOOO!!!!!’ That is an excellent way of training your dog to completely ignore you.
So, you start at point-blank range. In an environment with no distractions, e.g. your living room, say your cue word when your dog is right by you, and give him a reward. Once he realises that the cue predicts a reward, cue him from three feet away so he has to move towards you. Gradually increase the distance, so that you can call him from another room (excellent for when he’s lying on your bed and you’re not sure if he’ll agree to get off). The key is that he should always be thrilled to hear the cue, and come running towards you doing handbrake turns round the corners, then screech to a halt in front of you with a huge expectant grin on his face. If he ever shows reluctance (because he’d just settled in the sunny spot on the sofa, or was hoping to ‘help’ your partner prepare the evening meal), then you need to go back to the previous step. Really high-value treats, maybe ones that you only use for recall, can help a lot. And a recall should always be rewarded, even when it is reliable, either with a treat, a game, or even an ear rub; because you want your dog to know that coming back to you when you ask will be better than anything else he might be doing.
Once his recall is solid in the house with few distractions, try increasing the distractions... gradually. Call him when another family member is playing with him, or when he’s playing with a toy, for instance.
Then, take it outside. You need to start somewhere with as few distractions as possible, maybe your garden. As far as possible, try to avoid other people and dogs, birds, leaves blowing around... whatever is likely to distract your dog. Gradually increase the distance from which you call him. If not in the garden, then keep him on a long line so he can’t take off. The key here is...
Set him up so he cannot fail
Gradually – and this may be days, weeks or months, depending on your individual dog – increase his distance from you and the level of distraction. But only one at a time. And be prepared for unexpected distractions, such as another dog suddenly appearing. You really don’t want to be hollering at him to come back if he’s simply not ready for that level of obedience, or he’ll just realise that ignoring you is an option. And on the subject of obedience:
Obedience isn’t something that comes naturally to a dog. Some humans have the idea that because they feed and care for the dog, a good dog will always do as he is told, and if he disobeys he is ‘bad’ and should be reprimanded. It doesn’t work like that. A dog with think, ‘What’s in it for me?’ So you need to make sure that they really want to do what you want to do, at least initially. If you keep up this approach then doing what you ask will become a habit because (usually) doing so is in their interests. Yes, some breeds (and individual dogs), like collies, seem to want to please their owner, to follow instructions, and then to wait for further instructions. But other breeds (salukis spring to mind) think more along the lines of ‘I’ve considered your suggestion. Possibly later, but for now, I’ve decided that I’d rather do this’ which makes sense if your ‘suggestion’ means that the fun ends.
Over time, with careful training, you should get to be more confident in your dog’s recall and can dispense with the long lead where it is safe to do so. Make sure that you regularly practise recall on walks, in situations where you know he will come back, and release him to do his thing again once he has recalled – this will reinforce his training and show that recalling doesn’t mean the fun stops. If he’s still a pup, be aware that, like any self-respecting teenager, he is likely to test boundaries or rebel when he hits adolescence. Go back to basics, repeat your previous training, and trust that one day he’ll be more level-headed again.
When on walks, always try to be aware of any ‘abscond’ triggers – in the words of Patricia McConnell, try always to look 50 yards and 5 seconds ahead on walks. Will you ever get perfect recall, in the face of all distractions? Yes, you may well if you have trained carefully. Though there may be some situations where recall will fail. If you can see your dog isn’t going to come back, then don’t keep calling him – it will achieve nothing and will teach him that ignoring it is an option. And some dogs are never going to be safe off lead, at least in some situations. If they could pose a danger to livestock, wildlife or other dogs, then accept this and keep them on lead, and maybe investigate enclosed dog training facilities. The website Dog Parks Near Me (www.dogparksnearme.co.uk) might help you locate one, though it doesn’t seem to be complete (there are at least two such facilities near me that it doesn’t show).
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