Jul 8, 20224 min read

Teaching Recall/ "Come" when called

Updated: May 23

What you will need: ½ of your dog’s kibble A high incentive treat, cut into very small pieces; (dehydrated beef liver or freeze dried turkey livers are a great options that most dogs LOVE and they support their overall nutrition) Exercise to try:

Beginning inside your home, find a spot to sit and

keep your kibble and treats nearby and easily accessible

for quick rewarding. Throw a piece of kibble a short distance away from you to begin,

telling your pup to “Go Find!” As soon as they grab the piece of kibble,

Mark it with: “Yes!! Good Find!” When they naturally turn back to you, because they are excited by your tone, your enthusiasm, and the realization that you have snacks, Mark their eye contact with “Yes! Good Look!” begin to reach for the higher incentive snack. If/ When they begin to return to you*, Mark this behavior with “Yes!! Good Come!!” When they get to you, give them a small piece of the high incentive snack, before repeating and throwing a piece of kibble, a bit further away this time, and instructing them to “Go Find!” Continue playing this game as long and as often as you like. As your dog excels at the game inside in a small area, begin to increase the challenge by throwing the kibble further away or even around obstacles, like down the stairs/ down the hallway for example.

When your dog is good at this inside, build on their foundation and increase the challenge by moving into the hallway, just in front of your building/ home, in the lobby, outside in a quiet and not busy area, and eventually around lots of distractions and activity.

When beginning to take this training outside, be sure to keep your dog on leash so that you are able to get them to return to you when asked, if they become distracted. It is extremely important to get our dogs to follow through on behavior cues once we have asked for them in order to not water down our cues. This means if I call: "Penny: Come!!" and she gets distracted midway to me, it is important that I reel her in with the leash to help her follow through with the cue. When she does return to me, I will heavily reward and focus on the return, rather than the hiccup along the way.

We want our dogs to ALWAYS view returning to us as being the most exciting, rewarding thing that they could possibly do. This is why it is crucial that even if your dog gets a bit distracted during recall, be sure to celebrate when they DO return to you and reward heavily.... you never want you dog to run off, her you calling, and think "Oh I don't know.... dad might yell at me and leash me up and end my fun if I go to him, so maybe I'll just keep following this other dog over here instead...."

Some things to be mindful of: Training is meant to be fun!! If it’s not fun, stop doing it and pivot.

Take a break with the Go Find game (scatter feed) or change tactics entirely.

Dogs learn best through play, enthusiasm, and being incentivized. (It has been proven through research over and over that not only are corrections and aversive techniques (like prongs, e-collars, etc) emotionally damaging and traumatic, but they are rarely effective in teaching our dogs our expectations as we intend. If we are feeling frustrated and are trying to force our training, even with the best of intentions, we may accidently make the training aversive because we are not in the right head and energy space to be present with out dogs. Dog rearing requires you to be self aware and honest in order to set yourself and your pup up for success.) When teaching a new skill, always begin doing so in the most comfortable and least distracting environment first. The more distractions, the more difficult the task becomes for our pup. It is unrealistic to expect our dog to be engaged with us if we are not engaged with them. Be present with your pup! They are part of such a short period of our lives, while we are their entire lives. *If your dog does not naturally want to return to you, incentivize them by being more

exciting and engaging. Call your dog’s name and then step backwards a few times, repeating "Pup! Pup! Pup!" In a high and excited tone. You might even use kissy noises, clap your hands, or tap your hands on your legs.

Dogs like to move with movement, and so if we move away, they want to move towards us. If your dog is not recalling, do NOT move toward them as they will no longer see the purpose in returning to you if you intend to move toward them instead.

Keep in mind that recall training, and all dog training, is built on the foundation of your relationship first. If your dog is not excited to be with you and doesn't view you as fun and engaging, training will be much more difficult. Focus on relationship building exercises above obedience and you will find the traditional obedience skills come naturally and much more easily.

Want some help building your bond with your four-legged bestie?

Engage in private training, group classes, and other events to spend more time getting to know your dog and cultivating your relationship.