How to teach Recall positively

Share your favorite training tips, ideas and methods with other Positively members!

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PittyLover
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How to teach Recall positively

Post by PittyLover »

I have an 18 month young Pit Bull Terrier and I love to let him off leash but it is difficult to get him to come back when I call him. If I go to get him he automatically runs away. I end up having to sneak up on him in order to get him back. I would like some advice on how to do this with positive reinforcements only. Thanks. :P :D :roll:
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Mattie
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Post by Mattie »

I start in the house first as soon as I get a dog, this can make a big differenc when you are outside because your dog is already in the habit of coming to you when you call or whistle. Whistles are very good, the noise travels a lot further.

When outside I have a long line attached to a harness on the dog, I never let my dog know how long this lead is, I keep calling them back at various distances from me and always before they get to the end.

Once they are 100% with one long line on I add another and do the same thing, then a 3rd. My dog can now go quite a distance away from me but I still have control. Once my dog is 100% with 3 long lines on, again I never let my dog know how long it is, I then drop my end and let my dog drag it. I can get to the lead a lot quicker than I can get to my dog.

When 100% I take a lead off and only have 2 on, if still 100% I take another off until I am down to 1 long line on.

I have a dog that has always come back at the first call or whistle, never hesitated, but in some places I will still have a long line on. This isn't because she doesn't have a good recall, she has a 100% recall but I don't want her to learn not to come to me when I call or whistle, she is only 2 years old and still young, life is still an adventure.

Mixing managing with the training helps with a lot of things we teach our dogs, managing while teaching a good recall can make the difference between your dog learning a good recall an ignoring you.

NEVER call your dog when you know he won't come to you, you will be teaching him to ignore you.

NEVER call your dog more than once. We have all seen dogs that return to their owner on the 3rd or 3th calling because the owner has taught the dog to do that.

We have a lot of single track country lanes round here, I always have my dogs on an extending lead when walking along these. I have a different word for any traffic that comes along and that means to my dogs that they had better get back to me pretty darn quick, quicker than a normal recall, or they are in serious trouble. This is the only time I use treats when walking my dogs, it is for theirs and my safety because I often have to get my dogs into the hedge and stand in front of them for the vehicle to pass. The farm vehicles take up the full width of the lanes so training my dogs to do this is a priority.
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Fundog
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Post by Fundog »

Okay, tonight I experimented with Mattie's method-- maybe not to the letter, but close enough: I took just Dottie out, and left Annie at home. We used one of the soccer fields in the park, and I attached a long (approx. 25 ft. long) line to her harness. I had some high value treats prepared and handy for the doling out. Holding the end of the line, I sent Dottie out to run and play and sniff, following along slowly. Every now and then I would call her to me. At first, I got no response. Zero. So what I had to do was reel her in while calling her, so she could get praise and a treat. It took a few times reeling her in, then she would come on her own, with just a little tug. And a few times after that, she came when I called, without a tug! She's certainly not 100% yet; her distraction level is still pretty high, so I had to tug the rope a couple more times, even after she started coming when I only called. But wow, it was a fantastic training session-- I'm soooo excited!
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Mattie
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Post by Mattie »

Fundog, if you know she won't come when you call don't call her, I never pull a dog in, I wait until I know they will come. You are teaching your dog to come when you pull on the line. You can get her attention first by being a clown then call her, better still use a whistle :lol:

I don't use treats for recall either but that is personal preference, I do give lots and lots and lots of praise, again I am a clown, because I don't want to have the problem of weaning my dog off treats. I can be bone lazy at times. :wink:

WELL DONE for getting so much improvement. :D
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Fundog
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Post by Fundog »

Mattie, Dottie won't respond at all otherwise-- she will just run and run and run and run and run.... until she collapses, I think. I don't know how long that is, because I've never actually had enough time to find out. So far, every time I've let her loose in the enclosure, she had done nothing but run non-stop the entire time we were in there-- well over 30 minutes! (I wish you and Emmabeth could see it-- you might be able to recognize a disorder I can't see) So I had to do something to get her attention, and nothing else worked. And I mean NOTHING. Reeling her in was a last resort. Afterall, Annie has great recall. But, like I said, after Dottie figured it out, I didn't have to reel her in anymore; she would come on her own. And I was using a whistle, and that didn't seem to work either. Annie got the whistle right away, but Dottie just doesn't "get it." As I've also said, she isn't exactly the brightest crayon in the box. I'll try again tonight/tomorrow morning, and see if she picks up where we left off.

Oh-- a bummer: Our city has now put up a notice for all the dog owners saying that we can't let our dogs in the park, even in the enclosed ball field, off-leash, due to all the sports leagues resuming activity full volume, and they don't want pet feces/urine on the fields. So all of Dottie's running will have to be on that long-line, until she masters recall. I can't even take her out onto public wilderness areas with the long lead, because it would snag on our desert wild plants. I would love to take the girls out hiking off-lead, but until Dottie learns to hear me when I call her, it is simply not an option.
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Mattie
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Post by Mattie »

Only do this when you know you have the time to see it through, is you don't have the time it is pointless. Let her run, don't say anything to her just watch, when you see her starting to slow down, they you can start to think about getting her to recall. You could do some training immediately before you take her out or play mind game, this will take some of her energy off.

Dogs are like children in the fact they can't learn if they have too much energy, they have to get rid of that first then they can start to learn.

I never worry about a long line getting snagged in bushes etc, I just unsnag my dog but were my dogs go is not a desert, so it may not be practical there.
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Noobs
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Post by Noobs »

Mattie I feel like I read your recall instructions at least twice a week. I wish I had the room to use 3 long lines, and ANY lines as a matter of fact. But I live in NYC and there's a leash law and I don't have a yard. I just have a tiny dog park where he can be off leash.

Amazingly enough, the couple of times he's gotten out of his harness or collar (on a sidewalk in a busy street! yikes!), he came running back when called. Whew.

Mods, I sense a sticky could be helpful. Thoughts?
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Mattie
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Post by Mattie »

Noobs wrote:Mattie I feel like I read your recall instructions at least twice a week. I wish I had the room to use 3 long lines, and ANY lines as a matter of fact. But I live in NYC and there's a leash law and I don't have a yard. I just have a tiny dog park where he can be off leash.

Amazingly enough, the couple of times he's gotten out of his harness or collar (on a sidewalk in a busy street! yikes!), he came running back when called. Whew.

Mods, I sense a sticky could be helpful. Thoughts?
Move to West Yorkshire, England, there is plenty of places you can use more than 2 long lines Noobs :lol:

The length of line doesn't matter that much apart from giving the owner confidence. :wink:
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Noobs
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Post by Noobs »

Mattie wrote:
Move to West Yorkshire, England, there is plenty of places you can use more than 2 long lines Noobs :lol:

The length of line doesn't matter that much apart from giving the owner confidence. :wink:
Ah, I WISH and would move to England in a minute if I could! You're right, I do work on recall when on the regular leash. He is sniffing around, I call him back, praise - and if he doesn't I pull him gently toward me. At the park, I don't use "come", but when we're at the dog park by ourselves I wait until he's close to me and paying attention, then run to my little treat jar and he follows. I praise, treat, and say "Go play!" and he goes away again. I don't like to do that too often since he's off leash at the dog park and I don't want to call him when I'm not sure he'll come (learned that from reading your posts!).
Feathers
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Post by Feathers »

Q: What do you do if you call them and they don't come? Do you just sit and wait until they do? I just got a puppy and I'm am trying to teach her to come but she never does... she just sits firm and stares at me.
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Mattie
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Post by Mattie »

You need to start in the house, same room at first then call from other rooms, never call when you know she won't come, you are just teaching her to ignore you. Always use high reward treats or toys for recall, you don't want her not coming.
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whatthedeuce
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Post by whatthedeuce »

I wondered the same as feathers- I feel like they are still learning to come to you only when they feel like it. What do you do if they don't come? Just let them go do whatever? It seems almost self rewarding then, not to come- you may have their favorite treat, but if they only come when they're not distracted, that doesn't help when someone walks by with a dog, etc. :(

I know you have to gradually work up to distractions, but do you know what I mean? About it seeming like a self rewarding behavior, if there is no way to *make* them come to you.
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Mattie
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Post by Mattie »

Try walking or running the other way or hiding etc., I don't call my dog unless I know they are going to come back, I will walk the other way and pretend I don't want them. I will say, "This way" and they usually follow.

If you call them and they don't come, you are teaching them they can ignore you, if you walk the other way and they follow, you have their attention and hopefully will come when you call when closer to you.
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whatthedeuce
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Post by whatthedeuce »

Mattie wrote:... I don't call my dog unless I know they are going to come back...
I am confused about when and how you add distractions though- Because eventually you do want your dog to come to you no matter what, even if another dog is in the vicinity, or if they are sniffing something interesting... right?

It seems if you never, ever call them when you know they won't come, then they are the ones teaching you when you can call them! :lol: ;)

Hasn't there got to be a point when you teach them to come no matter what?

Maybe I'm not being very clear in what I mean :(
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Post by springermomx3 »

I just do what Victoria does on the show when they dont listen... start walking the other way, make high pitched noises, "you cant get me".. make it into a game. They come running every time.
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