Having your dog respond to your call consistently, commonly known as “trustworthy recall,” is crucial for ensuring your furry friend’s safety and good behavior. It is particularly crucial if you intend to allow your canine companion to wander off-leash in public dog parks, natural environments, and even within the confines of your own yard to avoid hazardous situations. Our training guidance features comprehensive step-by-step instructions, success pointers, and a wealth of other valuable information.
What’s The Best Dog Recall Training Method?
The objective of effective recall training is to link your canine’s return to you with a pleasant, stimulating, and fulfilling encounter. Employing positive reinforcement training significantly enhances the probability of your pet responding to your call nearly every time.
To set yourself up for success in training your pup, reward them with treats or other incentives, and offer plenty of praise and physical affection. Avoid using negative body language, a harsh voice, or any aversive training methods, such as shock collars, when teaching your dog to come when called.
What You’ll Need Before You Begin
Prior to starting, it’s necessary to have some items, such as training rewards and a lengthy untethered training leash. To simplify your training, it may be advantageous to obtain a treat bag. Furthermore, you must decide on a recall verbal signal such as “come” or “here.” The choice of word is entirely up to you, but it must be used consistently throughout the training. It’s also essential to select a word that isn’t commonly used in everyday conversation at home. Your recall cue should be easily identifiable.
How To Train A Dog To Come When Called
Teaching a dog demands ample patience, repetition, and steadiness. Few canines acquire recall ability more swiftly than others. The process to instruct a young dog to come is identical, but you should ensure that you have familiarized the pup with her name and that she makes eye contact with you when you call out.
Essential Rules Of Recall Training
The SFSPCA recommends following these four essential principles when teaching your dog to come during training.
- Don’t give your pup your verbal cue to come for anything she won’t like while you’re training (e.g., going to her crate, leaving the dog park, going inside, etc.)
- Never use your verbal cue if you don’t think your dog will actually come (e.g, if she’s too distracted).
- If you call your dog and she doesn’t come, don’t repeat your verbal recall command . Only say it once, and then entice your dog to come to you using other measures (e.g., saying her name only, clapping, squatting down, or anything that will encourage her to come to you.
- Always give your pup a reward , praise, and positive attention when she comes when you use your cue.
First Steps: Indoor Training
Prior to advancing to more complex recollection exercises, it is important to ensure your puppy comprehends your verbal signal. Within your household’s serene setting, adhere to the following actions:
- Back up a few steps from your puppy or dog.
- Encourage her to come to you .
- When your pup is on her way to you, say “Fido, here!”
- Once your dog reaches you, give her a treat and praise (a verbal cue like “good.”) Some trainers suggest that you gently take or touch her collar and have her sit, so she understands that she should stay with you when you call her.
- Repeat this process , gradually moving further away from your dog.
- Reinforce this several times during your day , always sending your dog on her way after she gets her reward.
An expert suggestion is to utilize daily occurrences to strengthen your dog’s response when they are already on their way towards you, such as during mealtime, playing fetch, or when you’re preparing to take them for a walk. Remember to offer rewards and commendations each time your dog reacts to your cue.
Next, Move Training Outdoors
Starting training outside can create more diversions for your puppy. To ensure your pup’s safety, it is crucial to commence outdoor training with a leash.
- First, practice backing up from your pup on-leash in your yard (see indoor training steps). If you have a fenced-in yard and once your pup is reliable on a leash, you can then practice this back-away technique with a long training leash and then off-leash.
- You can practice while you’re on walks . Start with your regular leash and then move on to a long leash.
- Practice with a long leash in several different environments with few distractions . If your dog ignores your command or gets distracted, go and get her and bring her to where you were standing when you called her. Praise, release, and repeat. Don’t drag her to you using the leash.
- Once your dog is reliable, you can then practice in places where there are more distractions (people, other dogs, cars, etc.). Start on your regular leash and then on the long training leash.
- Go to fenced-in areas to practice off-leash , gradually adding various distractions like toys, people, other dogs, etc.
Valuable Advice: If you have a long training leash, you can gradually release it and allow your dog to carry it while you remain near. However, only pursue this if your dog has proven trustworthy while you held the leash.
Recall Training Exercises & Games
Teaching your dog to come consistently cannot be achieved through a single method. However, several techniques and games are available to make the process enjoyable for both you and your furry friend. Below are some of our preferred options.
“Hide” And Seek
Unexpectedly call your dog from various rooms within the house while she is out of sight. Once she locates you, provide her with rewards and commendations. This technique is effective in capturing your dog’s attention when she’s unprepared.
Round Robin
To train your dog to come when called, position two individuals with treats at a distance from each other, or have numerous people form a broad circle. Each person should take turns calling your dog and giving her a treat when she replies. In case your furry friend fails to come, the previous individual who requested your dog’s presence should retrieve her and make another attempt.
Chase Me
Begin by walking your dog while holding a leash. Proceed to capture her attention, swerve around abruptly, and sprint a few steps. Once your furry companion chases after you, convey your command. After a brief period of time, halt and provide a reward. Execute this exercise several times.
Look-At-Me
Teaching your dog to concentrate on you during recall training with distractions can be effectively achieved by playing this game. Begin by throwing a few treats a short distance away from you. As your dog finishes consuming the treats and before they command their attention elsewhere, call their name. Praise your furry friend profusely and offer them another form of reward, such as a different snack or a preferred squeaky toy. This exercise can be gradually intensified by increasing the distance at which you throw the treats.
Frequently Asked Questions
These are some frequently asked questions on the topic of teaching a dog to come when called.
When Should I Start Recall Training?
At approximately eight weeks old, you can initiate training your puppy to come. However, it’s essential to ensure that your puppy is familiar with their name first. When conducting training, remember to keep it brief and enjoyable, with sessions lasting only five minutes. Additionally, the key to successful training is to remain patient throughout the process.
How Long Does Dog Recall Training Take?
Due to the diverse and individual nature in which dogs learn, there is no set timeframe for training. Typically, it may require three to six months of consistent training for a dog to develop dependable recall skills.
How Do I Teach My Dog To Come Without Treats?
In case your dog lacks interest in food or if you don’t want to use treats for training, you can opt for using a much-loved toy as a replacement for the treat reward. For several dogs, squeaky toys prove to be effective. However, ensuring some form of a reward for your furry friend is crucial to attain success.
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