Most puppies come with the basics of a recall. I said most not all, there are those independent models out there that learn very early on that the world has much to be discovered and they need to explore every inch of it
All puppies can be taught a brilliant recall, it is much easier if you start when they are young, but it is possible at any age.
That brilliant recall requires two basic things from you 1) the willingness to really get focused with what you are want and what you are currently doing and 2) the willingness to having at least one 5 minute session of daily fun with your dog — two or three would be ideal but one is necessary.
Ha! I bet you where thinking it required that four letter word w-o-r-k didn’t you. Nope, fun, that is how I got my brilliant recalls, it has got to be fun. Work is play and play is work and unless you are enjoying what you are doing and your dog is enjoying what you are doing it is unlikely to end up brilliant!
Take this scenario, your dog is playing with a pack of dogs their own age, new people come to visit, how many of you could recall your dog away from that event?
Not too many right? But remember I said most puppies do come with a pretty decent recall. When that puppy was 5 or 6 weeks old if he was playing with all his litter mates (a pack of dogs his own age) and there where new people visiting (possibly you there to see the litter) and the breeder said “pup-pup-pup” I bet that same dog that won’t recall now did it perfectly back then right?
Why would they? Why do dogs do anything . . . it is simple; reinforcement.
Reinforcement builds behaviour. Somebody (like your breeder) started to say “pup pup” to the litter before she put the litter’s dish down at meal time or to get the litter to follow her in or out doors. Whatever it was (many times over) if the puppy comes when you call it as a wee one, it has been given reason to believe people are very reinforcing.
That is how it starts. So then, what causes Recall Collapse? Aaaah that would be reinforcement once again.
Yes, all of the dogs out there, that have a brilliant recall, have been taught it with reinforcement. All of the dogs out there that have a crappy-doo recall have also being taught that with reinforcement.
It has nothing to do with being the “pack leader” or not physically correcting the dog enough. As a matter of fact, my dogs have never being physically corrected and definitely all have brilliant recalls.
The brilliantly trained dogs earned all of their reinforcement from their owner or trainer while the dog with the crappy doo recall earned a lot of reinforcement for NOT coming when called from his environment (chasing, sniffing, finding something to roll in etc)
So what about your dogs? Where has the value been for him? What distractions have been so reinforcing for your own dogs they are choosing them over you? I really want to help so let me know what is distracting your dog?
Today I am grateful for another great group of campers here at Say Yes handling camps.
Recall what? I made the mistake of thinking that I could teach our dachshund recall. As an independent, headstrong and stubborn young lady, she believes that everything else is more important than us. Hunting and exciting smells make her deaf to the outside world. Yup, I’ve got some work to do this summer. Let the training begin!
The sound or sight of other dogs causes my guy to totally lose his mind. He “must” run toward, cannot be called back; very scary and dangerous behavior, which is why he is never off leash except in our fenced-in backyard agility area. This backfires, though, ’cause practicing recalls gets all mixed in with agility training and causes stress for everyone (lots of sniffing (him), eating of grass (him), and whining (me). We’re currently working on a long-line in the “open” yard but look forward to all thoughts, suggestions and help. 🙂
My young sheltie has always been independent and was a complete recall disaster from the start. He treated himself to zoomies and bird chases and very soon learned that cars and airplanes are fun to chase, too. I kept playing and working on restrained recalls, but our progress was very slow. Now, at 15 months, he is easier to reward with play and the kind of chase that I can provide with a ball on a string,etc, and we are getting there, I believe! But extra reinforcement for me, to keep me working on it, is always welcome. 🙂
Pretty good? Yes. Could be better? Yes. Before I commence a retraining/reinforcement, it would be nice to have a few caveats and pointers. I’m keen to go. I just recognize that I could use some wisdom. Help!
I have 4 dogs (Shelties) – 2 have very reliable recalls away from any distractions. Then there’s the one that loves the outdoors, he’s SO much more comfortable outside than inside, irrespective of the other dogs, that he will stay at arm’s length to avoid coming in. We’ve worked & worked & worked on his recall – it’s much better today than it was a year ago but it’s still not where it needs to be. Our 4th dog is the baby. Because of our 3rd dog, we began recall work immediately & continue to this day. His favorite distraction is sprinklers, kids & other dogs – they are much more exciting than mom & pop – so his recall is not as good as it should be. Help!
My 2-year-old English Shepherd has a good recall (not perfect, but good). But he’s especially distracted by other dogs’ toys that someone may leave on the floor where we train–in fact, obsessed by them, for example, twice racing over to where they USED to be, as he shot out of a tunnel in practice, ignoring me. One question I have, though, is where should he end up when I’m doing a recall, say, in our yard or on a walk–should he stop and sit right in front of me (which he now does), or is it better to have him swing around and be at my left, facing forward–or does it matter? Thanks!
Jedi comes pretty well for me. Granted its always something we work on. If I discover a distraction then we work on it until he will come with that distraction. My big problem is he doesn’t come when my husband calls him, or when my parents or in-laws call him. The biggest issue is my husband, when I’m working my hubby takes Jedi out for exercise (we live in an apartment so it’s a must) and there are big fields where dogs are allowed off leash and of course the dog park…but he won’t come when he’s called. He stays with my parents or in-laws a few weekends a year…my in-laws live on a busy street and Jedi has escaped twice…luckily he stays in teh front yard but he won’t come when they call. My parents take the dogs jogging in the woods every morning. Their dogs come when they call, Jedi plays cat and mouse…so they don’t let him off leash and he doesn’t get enough excercise and so is more mischievous at home. How can I help Jedi get a decent recall with family. He is a 20 month old Standard Poodle.
Thanks
Launa
My 4 year old terrier cross has a fairly good recall, but any new, old or enticing smell on the ground is definitely her kryptonite. Outside, it includes anything that she feels the need to roll in before answering any calls for retreat. In the ring, it could be the left over hair from another dog in a tunnel or on an A-Frame – she just can’t help herself but check it out.
Interesting subject and very timely. Today horse manure with a bit of mold on it was far more interesting than a recall. Sigh. guess I have to start all over.
Well I have just figured out that it is not so simple as my ( Dog is my best friend ), as much as it needs to be ( I am my Dogs best friend ). Best recall is the Latter now what has change since she was a Puppy and I was ( The Best Play Mate ) how have I changed. I will look with in and figure why I am not as exciting when she come to me as I once was. I was delighted when she Recalled to me as a Puppy but as a Mature Dog I demand that she should recall.
G & P
Regarding squirrels, I *know* he is capable of ignoring them because he will do it on request when we’re out on leash walks, and the reason he will is that I’m able to get a head turn and reward it immediately. The problem is only in our back yard.
Food- Toys- other dogs.
FYI He is an Aussie
My dog had a great recall as a young puppy. His obedience recall is also great. His recall outdoors is still pretty good except with a few issues.
SMELLS and birds. Both of which are great for field training, not so great when not field training. When your out in a field with at least 100 yards separating you and your dog you need a good recall. So far we haven’t encountered any deer or bunnies etc. on the return.
Other dogs. Big Time Distraction. He LOVES LOVES LOVES other dogs and has never met a dog he didn’t like. On one hand I am glad he has a happy attitude towards other dogs as my first standard was very dog dominant and aggressive. We have met other dogs off leash hiking and he must say hello and play for a couple of minutes. Being an only dog family and having no close friends who are into dogs I have little opportunity to practice a recall out of a trustworthy group of dogs. The only option is the dog park and a long line, but I am not a dog park person.
Rudy is just a happy happy outgoing dog. He is very easy to motivate with food and toys, but the dog issue is a big thing to me. I don’t mind him being social with other nice dogs, but definately want the recall back.
I’m sure I’ll get it back……but I definately need HELP.
Squirrels. (I’m detecting a theme here!)
Smells, cats, and his people friends (in that order). Also other dogs which is a safety issue as he can be (fear/protective) aggressive with some dogs.
Squirrels, bunnies, chipmunks, and other fast moving wild life. There seems to be no in between to practice the slow introduction of the stimulus. These wild critters are either present or they are not. Squirrels especially seem to invoke a total loss of consciousness on my dogs part. Flying toys do not seem to equate to the primal excitement of these wild critters.
I just have 3 words to say – “jack russell terrier”. I have 3 aussies and 3 border collies, and they all have completely dependable recalls in any situation. They all do agility, flyball, and/or herding. The BC’s were all rescues, and the aussies were 10 months, 2 years and 3 months when I got them. Then I got a 5 week old JRT rescue (Hurricane Ike rescue baby). She is now 20 months old, and has just started her agility career. She is FAST and is going to be an amazing agility partner, but her recall is almost non-existent in uncontrolled situations. I do not take her off lead anywhere but in the house or back yard! On the agility course, when we are done, she wants to keep running! It is only after she realizes that the only option is to come to me, that she will. We have had lots of suggestions and are working on some of them, and its helping, but I need more! Help!
my biggest nemesis right now is the door. The doorbell rings or someone knocks and I have 3 barking dogs, one who is deaf but can certainly tell when there is activity, … but won’t stay quiet when I give a hush signal.
I just get one hushed and the others take over, it becomes a vicious circle and I end up managing (everyone in their crates! now!) in order to answer the door. No one comes the first time I call when someone’s at the door, .. sad to say and I know I haven’t been a good dog trainer :(. I realize that I have to set this up to work on it, but don’t do it often enough.
Your comments got me thinking. What is more valuable for my dog? He is totally toy crazy, especially the squeaker. The problems with his recalls are: he has toys in the yard and if he sees a chipmonk, I am in trouble and my recall is not that great. If I call him and he has no interest in coming in, he’ll look at me and then grab the nearest toy. He’s telling me he’s more interested in his toy outside than coming in. Sometimes, I don’t have time to think it through since I have to be somewhere at a certain time. He knows I’m serious when I start coming down the stairs to bring him in. No, I don’t hit him. I get a hold of him and bring him in. Sometimes though, he thinks, great, a game of chase. He is a rescue and I swear he never had a recall. This is something I have been working on forever. I always treat him when he comes in. After reading your message, I now know I need to get his tug out. He loves the tug, I think more than any toy. I’ll try this and hopefully we’ll have better recalls.
Definately squirrels! Zoomies when training outdoors other than home. Some sniffing. Frustratng to say the least.
#1 Food – totally food motivated – will not call off of any type of food.
#2 Other dogs – especially when he gets into herding mode with other dogs that are playing & he is ‘herding’ them (he is an Aussie.)
This blog post hit my inbox at just the right time. Two weekends ago my 2.5 year old aussie went zoom on me in the agility ring for the second time, a month after the first time.
Everyone said, “she’s young. she’ll settle down.” But I wasn’t satisfied with that for an answer. After all, she didn’t zoom at 18 months in the Novice ring. Why a year later? Did she get younger on her way to Excellent?
I puzzled and pondered and had half-decided that over the winter I had let the agility game lose value in her (young, distractible) eyes.
Now suddenly I’m seeing her zoomies differently and realizing they’re part of a larger pattern. See, her perfect recall has also deteriorated – just a bit, only at times of high excitement, not enough that i had put the two together or even identified that second ‘Here!’ as a problem.
Oops!
One of the things that makes this dog hard to keep a snappy recall on is that she’s very fast, very curious, very food-driven and dog-driven and, in busy day-to-day life, inevitably self-rewards now and then. If I were more disciplined about keeping her on lead in environments where self-reward is possible that might not happen but…I am the trainer/dog owner i am.
I see more pondering in my immediate future. Thanks!
Hi Susan,
Interesting timing. Guinness’s recall has become shamefully bad sometime, when we’re outside at home, due to marking (neutered long ago). It’s a wait I gotta’ pee/mark this spot routine.
He also picked up a scary little habit on hikes I’ve had to spot & interrupt. I carry treats on hikes & have rewarded him for coming to me from a long ways away. In fact I’d let them sort of bugger off with distractions just for the recall ops. Little Mr. brown dog, Guinness, has perfect natural camouflage and can disappear seemingly right into the bush while standing still in plain sight, figured out that if he stands still at any given point while I walk on, I’ll look around for him, call him and here he’ll come running for his reward. He figured this out before I did, so got a few reinforcements up on me.
I tried correcting this by only reinforcing him when he’s moving with me and that has helped some. But this doesn’t work well for long hikes. Or as I increase time btwn treats, we eventually hit that point where he’s back to his old trick – which scares me to death of course as I imagine him going missing in his own game of hide & seek.
So he’s on a leash for hikes. If we were with a group of dogs it used to be he’d stay up interested in the group, but even that doesn’t last for a whole hike anymore.
We still work recalls, they remain great around other dogs, training, in class, on the field, in the ring, coming & going from home, etc. But this wait I gotta pee one, when I know he’s just marking is a pisser.
Gail
Here’s a slightly different one: grazing in the back yard in the morning, when I need to call them into the house. They love to eat grass, sticks, small rabbits … whatever they find. I DO have a strong obedience background; but I sure have let it slide!
I had a very similar problem with recalls as a lot of people that are responding. My young dog thought that my older dog was MUCH more exciting than me. This caused me to have to walk them separately for a very long time. Once I thought I had my recall where I wanted it I started trying to walk them together and the recall went out the window. My young dog would eventually come but then wouldn’t take food since he was completely uninterested and overstimulated by the older dog. I actually went back to one of Susan’s books. Read about controlling the environment until my dog made the right choice. I put my older dog in a down stay at first about 50 feet away so that she wasn’t as exciting. My young puppy started choosing to come very consistantly and I rewarded then with something that I knew he would find reinforcing (toys). Eventually I allowed my older dog to move around more and more, closer and closer until my young pup not only made the right choice but also eventually would even take food. I think that section in Shaping Success changed the way I will always look at recalls. Although his recall still isn’t perfect at times I think that method did work very effectively.
Birds and bunnies. The opportunity to find them, flush them, and chase them. We have several trees and bushes in our yard that are used extensively by the birds and bunnies. So if my dog hasn’t checked them all out, I get a very slow or no recall.
My one-year old BC is very hard to call away from other moving animals: either critters or other dogs playing. Dogs playing are probably actually worse than critters. He sees motion, and he wants to start running large circles around everything, and once he starts circling, it is like his brain switches into some auto-loop mode. He totally zones out and is just running circles. I’ve been not letting him rehearse this behavior at all, and am approaching one month of doing Ruff Love and lots of recall work. Tested calling him off our other dogs in the yard this week, and am happy to say we are making progress but have a long way to go to be where I’d like to be yet. I definitely would not trust him off leash in an unfenced area right now!
That’s simple. Food. In any form. Wheter it’s cats poo, deer poo, or any carbadge humans leave behind. My dog simply has a food obsession. She is always hungry.
For my borzoi — almost always a great recall. The almost always involves the wind in his ears. He lives to run. (He’ll come back to me when he’s running, but it’s not brilliant. He runs a wide loop as he’s doing it, rather than turning and coming straight back. “Really, Mama, I’m coming!!”) The only other recall challenge I’ve had is when his tail’s glued to the floor and he’s distracted by an obedience trial site and likely doesn’t even hear me — that one bothers me the most.
Wow, where’s the rolled up newspaper? I’ve got an 11 week old puppy — and I bred her so I know exactly how quick that PupPupPup litany works! This is so timely and SO valuable for me at this very moment. What timing, THANK YOU. I am going to whip that out and use it, but will have a treat pouch and a tug toy with me whenEVER I go outside with her from now on! Well, not at 3 a.m. when she wants her ‘wee’ hours trip but anyone with a tiny baby right now should capitalize on THAT one!
Hi, its a work in progress. I have been depositing in our bank of recall, changed the command to “ici” to prevent the dilution and am working on distractions. He still loves to sniff animal smells and play with butterflies, bumblebees, crows and pheasants so he is slower to respond in those situations. I think the hardest is if he has to use the bathroom although we have gone out to do his business and you think it is all done, he will go and finish then recall. Overall, i am very happy with his progress but continue to work it. He was a 2-4 y/o rescue with no recall whatsoever when i started. Any hints, ideas are very welcome. I would love to know what you did with Encore in the example you gave in an earlier blog post last week. You left us hanging….
Other people that are new to her…especially Children! My 3 year old “schnoodle” loves children. Would much rather wiggle worm around a kid then me. Even if the child is timid and unsure of her she still wants the child to pay attention to her.
How about the ring stewards at an agility trial…would rather jump up on their laps then play on the course. Will not come to me no matter what I try…maybe if I had some cheese in the ring, but that is not allowed!! I tried just playing tag in the ring to no avail.
squirrals, rabbits, and rabbit poop!!!!!!!!!! i never attempt to call my terriers off anything if i don’t think they will willingly come. rather, i calmly go and get them with no negative consequence. why would any dog come to a harsh voice or impending correction.
i am using leslie nielson’s really reliable recall techniques for emergency recalls and this as truly strengthened a day-to-day conditioned response recall. positive reinforcement and LOTS OF IT is the key.
My dog usually has a really good recall, but on occasion (usually when squirrels or something really exciting is involved), she is a little slow to tear herself away from whatever she is doing. I never know if I should reward these recalls. She did come, but it was slow. I usually do not reinforce slow recalls, but sometimes I wonder if not reinforcing her for turning away from something she really likes (even if it is slow), is undermining my recall.
Critters! I haven’t been able to figure out how to offer my terriers a better reward than chasing squirrels and deer (they are on the other side of the fence) or how to set things up so chasing is used as a reward (the critters don’t wait around to be chased while my dog comes).
I have one girl who is very smart and independent (cardigan welsh corgi). She likes to escape and play “catch me if you can”. She has led us on merry chases through our very busy neighborhood twice- very unconcerned about traffic. Obviously I cannot just let her go without following her, and at taht time there is zero recall. On the agility field she quickly learned that if she does that stuff no more fun, but when out in the world it is very self reinforcing. I do not know how to reach her, I admit that readily! Obviously, she is not allowed off leash, but she has escaped twice, and it could happen again. Help!
The most challenging for us would be a recall out of play with other dogs. Very hard for me to compete with at present moment. A work in progress lets say! i think we have a serious case of 2nd dog syndrome…she waits to see what the big dogs are going to do. If they come, she comes…but if I call her independently of the others – her recall is much less reliable.
I teach a whistle recall in my puppy kindergarten class and to all of my dogs.
VEry successful.
All my dogs come running.
I do have a little situation that was reinforced when my girl was a pup and it is something she HAS to do before coming on a verbal.
When she was very tiny, I started playing this “go” game and shewould take off and run the entire perimeter of our half acre fenced backyard.
Now…..when she goes out and I call her back, she looks at me and takes off around that perimeter before coming back. I reinforced that really well didn;t I??
However, if I blow the whistle – it is an immediate recall.
Possible food crumbs! We have a very large sniffing issue, to the point that while running a course my TERRIER will drop his nose in mid-stride to wander off sniffing. Yes, I am having him checked physically to rule out a health issue. He will weave like a demon – once. Then large weave pole avoidance. He is now 4.5 years old. And that darn table just gives him time to think about all the things he can go and look at without me once he’s released. We use jackpot reward toys and I feed him from my hands, not the ground. Please help!
Small critters and smells are definitely the most distracting to my 5yo Aussie. I also have a 9mo who has an AMAZING recall. For the first time over the wkend while she was playing with other dogs around a pond (her first time doing this) she ignored my call. I got a hold of her and we left. The next day I set up her for lots of collar grab recalls and treats and then released her again to play. I want to keep that awesome recall on her and I want to get back one on my older dog.
Squirrels and wildlife as well. . and recently I’m getting a slower response depending on the situation.
The yard is his domain to oversee. A brilliant recall means he will lose oversight of his domain.
I knew there was something I was doing wrong, we should be saying “PupPupPup” – they learned that from day one 🙂
Seriously, given my obedience background is stronger than my agility experience, recalls are automatic for me to teach and thoroughly. I strongly believe recalls should always be rewarded. If you cant guarantee your dog will come, you need to get your dog back to you some other way. If you use your “come” command you are diluting it. I believe you first need controlled situations before you can go out into the big world. I have seen many people correct their dogs for not coming explaining they need to know they have to come. Well they didnt have control of the situation and their recall was weak to begin with. Many a deaf ear!! Glad you are bringing some basic obedience to the forefront Susan!!
Critters and good scents on the ground for my dog.
My rescue Aussie came to me as an almost adult, but we’ve developed a “good” (not brilliant) recall: he’s come away from deer, squirrels, most (but not all) dogs, but never from BUNNIES. I’ve found a location where there are lots of early morning bunnies and it is safe from him to chase them and am trying to use bunny chasing as a reward for attention to me–if that makes sense. I’m pretty new to dog training.
My lab is reinforced by chasing squirels, and birds of course. When theres animals around i do not exist even if i start acting like a fool and play with her favorite toy…………
Yes, any critter that looks like it might be trying not to be caught: a lizard slithering under a rock, a rabbit running across the road, a cat running away, some animal rustling in the forest !
My lab loves this and has crappy – doo recall.
My pyr shep is more distracted by people and other dogs, finds chasing the occasional cyclist whizzing by on the dirt road in front of our house, or jogger, very rewarding. Some dogs he can’t stand or fears will get all his attention, some he falls in love with and has to sniff and whine.
-Trudie
Squirrels & bunnies. Oh, and lions & tigers and bears! Oh, my.
Smells… and things to bark at.
Before I got him I never understood how reinforcing barking can be to some dogs.
He’s so fun to train with until he starts barking or stops at an intresting smell, then he totally blocks me out.
Just one word: Wildlife. The wild critters have varying levels of distraction. I can call my older corgi off of deer, squirrels, and bunnies, but if a fox goes by or even his scent from a recent pass-by, and my dog is gone! And if a cat runs, the chase is on! My younger corgi will chase all of them.