No exceptions
Weekly re-education is one key to Come. When. Called.
Personally, I really don’t care whether a dog learns to roll over or play dead unless that’s important to you or you’re in my trick class, but I am adamant that the safety commands are absolutely bulletproof no matter your dog’s age. One of the most important of those safety commands is come when called. Not moseying over if nothing else catches your dog’s eye. Not coming if and when your dog feels like it. Come. When. Called.
The first rule of teaching a solid recall is that every single time you call your dog and he trots over to you, it’s a party. It’s the smartest thing any dog has ever done in the history of the world and you praise him up one side and down the other for it. No matter how frustrated, angry, or frightened for his safety you are, you must celebrate his arrival.
Do not call your dog over and then immediately do something he finds unpleasant. For example, never call your dog to you and then scold or punish him. He’ll connect your annoyance to his most recent activity, which was coming to you. Why would he ever want to do that again? You would actually be training him to hesitate before coming to you and that’s not good for his safety.
Also, don’t call him over only to give him yucky medicine, or trim his nails, or even to leave someplace like the dog park where’s he’s having a grand old time. If you have to do those things, first spend a minute praising your dog for coming to you, give him yummy treats, and then you can move into the real reason you called him. Then he won’t associate the two events.
In training a good recall, I always suggest using a treat that the dog never gets a whiff of except for when he comes to you. A trainer I know just has to raise her hand in the air and holler the word “cheese” and her pack of five dogs comes a running, like a stampeding herd, because showing up when called is the only time they see Cheddar. I use chunks of roast chicken. Some of my students use Vienna sausages, salami, salmon jerky, peanut butter crackers, or low-fat hot dogs. Whatever your dog craves, that’s what you must use to reward them for a solid recall that showed some sense of urgency. If your dog doesn’t care much for treats, use a tennis ball or favorite toy. I want them to come straight to me at a trot at the very least. A meandering, casual stroll is not acceptable because it’s just too easy for the dog to become distracted and wander off. Brisk is better.
How do you get that? First you start training inside with few distractions. Catch your dog when it’s headed your way of its own accord. Say its name and the word “come” in your happiest of voices. Say “come” once because if you keep repeating it, the dog will learn that the command is “come, come, come, COME, COME” and will wait to hear all that.
When your dog gets to you, praise him enthusiastically and give treats. Note: if your dog is motivated to show up when he hears another word, such as “treat” or “cookie” then use that word. He’s already partially trained to do what you want, so less work for you. The cue you’re using doesn’t matter, the dog’s actions are what’s important.
If you dog’s still a pup or a toy breed, bend over at the waist so the pup can see your face and not just your socks. He’ll be more enticed to come to you. When you bend over from at least five feet away, it looks like you’re doing the “play bow” which is dog speak for “Wanna play?” It’s very attractive to your pup and draws them to you. I say from at least five feet away because if you’re close to them, it’s looming over them which can be intimidating.
Make it a game. Say your dog’s name, call him to you and when he’s almost there, run backwards several steps. All dogs love a good game of chase, and making come when called feel like a game increases your dog’s enthusiasm. Once he’s gotten the hang of it while you’re in his line of sight, call him from other rooms. Remember to reward and praise every single time your dog comes to you. You’re inviting him to a party, not sending him to the principal’s office for punishment.
Now some breeds, particularly the herding or hunting breeds, will come straight at you and then fade around you to see what else is going on. If your dog is a fader, make sure they know you have something delicious and then drop the treat between your feet. That forces the dog to stop right in front of you.
When you first start training the Come, do not make your dog sit. It’s important that they understand they’re getting rewarded for showing up. That’s all. If you make them sit, they’ll think that’s why they’re getting treated and the lesson of coming when called is lost in the shuffle. You can add the sit after several weeks of practice because by then, they are clear that showing up got them the goods.
Once your dog is reliably coming to you inside, use a lunge line (15 – 30 foot long leash) and head outside. The great outdoors is full of sounds and scents competing for your dog’s attention so you’ll have to amp up your body language and your voice to cut through those distractions. Your voice should be full of enthusiasm, your arms open, you can even hop or run backwards to entice your dog to you. Having a squeak toy in your pocket is helpful, particularly for hunting breeds. Note: your dignity is not as important as getting your dog’s attention and recall outside. I had to do jumping jacks to get my squirrel-obsessed Brittany to pay attention to me outside, and I am not a jumping jack kind of girl.
Practice recall outside at 10 feet until he is reliable, then try 20 feet away, then more. If he stumbles in his response, go back to a shorter distance and practice there again. You only graduate to attempting recall off leash in a fenced area when your dog comes to you with a sense of urgency 100 percent of the time on leash and is happily focused on you once he arrives. You’re not ready for off leash recall if your dog is merely touching bases with you and eager to get back to whatever he was doing before you interrupted him. He has to come to you and devote his attention to you every single time before he’s off leash ready.
Keeping your dog recall-ready requires practice. Dogs’ command performance can get rusty. Rusty recalls can land you in the emergency vet’s office. So even when your dog is a come-when-called champ, remember to practice every week or so to keep him rapid recall ready.
About the writer: Molly Dugger Brennan, APDT (mollythedogtrainer.com) adores dogs to the extent that her Harrisonburg, Virginia-based training is "so much fun it doesn't feel like work." Her classes include Puppy, Beginner (five months to any age), Intermediate, Advanced, Trick, Private lessons and Therapy Dog. She also certifies therapy dog teams for the Alliance of Therapy Dogs.