Step #1
Stand facing your dog
Say dog’s name ‘COME’
Click & treat
Do this for one week, 15 repetitions, 4 times a day

Step #2

• You need two people, a dog holder and owner

• The owner shows the dog the treat and then walks about 10 feet away

• The owner should sit or kneel on the floor facing the dog

• Dog holder ignores the dog (i.e.: no petting, talking, etc.)

• With a light happy voice, say the dog’s name and then the word “come.” Men: think Ronald McDonald!!!

• As the dog turns his head and commits to coming, the owner clicks AS the dog holder lets go of the collar. The owner should encourage the dog to run to him.

• When the dog gets to the owner, it’s PARTY TIME!!!! Slowly, one at a time, give him his treats. The treats should be very small. Praise verbally the whole time you are feeding him his cookies. Gently taking hold of the collar keeps the dog from getting past you or playing “keep away” games.

• Take turns with one person being the caller and the other being the holder.

• Do recalls inside only this step. In the house, as you gain more distance, you can change places or rooms, hide behind chairs, doors, in closets and eventually change floors. These are called “hide & seek” recalls. They are fun and teach the dog to use all of his senses to find you.

• Encourage your dog a lot when you are making things more difficult. When doing recalls, you should click when the dog commits to coming.

• NEVER, NEVER, NEVER call your dog to do something unpleasant such as nail trimming, medications or baths, GO GET HIM. Also, if you are not 100% sure that your dog is going to come when you call him, don’t call him, just go get him.

Step #3

• Remember that you have to control the environment and the consequences.

• At this stage in roadkill recall training, we are teaching the dog that all the fun is with the owner.

• Have someone hold your dog by the collar and give it NO attention. Just hold the collar and be a tree (boorrriiinnnggg!)

• Stand 15 - 20 feet away and call your dog using the dog’s name and “COME” only. Say this only once. Click when your dog turns his head and commits to coming. The person holding the collar lets go when the dog turns his head. If the dog doesn’t respond, the holder continues being ‘tree’ while holding the dog by the collar.

• If your dog comes on the first call, praise and treat for a minimum of 20 seconds. THIS IS A BIG DEAL, so make it a BIG DEAL! Use lots of enthusiasm and cookies. Let your dog know by your attitude that you are thrilled that he chose to come to you.

• If your dog does not come on the first call, then he needs help. Walk up to your dog and show him the cookies. Walk 15 feet away and call again. If he still doesn’t come, repeat showing the cookies and walk 10 feet away. Some dogs learn faster than others, so don’t be discouraged if your dog doesn’t understand. It is our responsibility to teach them. So keep trying, lowering your criteria, until your dog is successful.

• Eventually the person holding the dog can talk to him, and distract him with toys.

• Praise and lots of encouragement the moment your dog turns his head to look at you is essential. This makes or breaks the recalls.

Step #4 - CONSEQUENCES
We are going to show your dog that there are consequences if he chooses not to come.

• Increase the difficulty for your dog by having the holder talk to your dog and/or pet him; or better yet, show him the cookies!

• Have another dog somewhere close where you can run over to it. If another dog is not available, have a box of his favorite treats that you can eat also. Suggestions would be string cheese, American cheese, Cheerios, bacon bits, hot dogs, roast port or beef.

• Stand 10 - 15 feet away and call your dog using the word “COME” only. Remember that the person holding the leash must let go when the dog turns his head and commits to coming to the owner. When your dog turns to look at you, click. Make sure you excitedly encourage him to come to you by verbally praising, hand clapping, kneeling down, running away, and/or squeaking a toy. Use your imagination and your knowledge of what your dog really likes. Reinforce for 20 seconds minimum.

• If your dog doesn’t turn his head and start to come to you when you call him, the holder does NOT let go of the leash but immediately stops interacting with the dog.

• The caller quickly runs over to another dog and gives him all the treats and fun. Do this right in front of your dog. In order for this to be effective, you must be a great actor and show the dog all of the fun things he is missing by choosing not to come when called. REALLY GET INTO THE ROLL! If you are not making an impression on your dog, you are wasting your time and the dog is not learning that there is a consequence if he chooses not to come.

Step #5

• Slowly increase the difficulty for your dog by having the holder show the dog some food. Remember, we want our pets to make the right choice. Raising your standards too fast will cause your dog to fail and frustrate him. We want our dogs to be right.

• If your dog doesn’t come on the first call, show him what he has lost by not coming. If you don’t have another dog to interact with, you can play with his toys by yourself or eat all of his cookies. Make sure he is reacting to your acting. We want our dogs to think that coming when called is the most important think in the world to them. Therefore, at this stage, you should reinforce heavily for at least 20 seconds every time your dog comes when called and show him what he has lost when he chooses not to come.

• Click & treat and use lots of encouragement immediately after your dog turns his head to look at you. This makes or breaks recalls.

• We want our pets to be successful so be very careful when increasing the level of difficulty.

Step #6

• Increase the difficulty by presenting toys, talking to, and petting. Incorporate hide and seek games in your recalls.

• When proofing by working outside, be sure your dog is on a long line for safety purposes. Remember, you have to control all the consequences at this point in your training.

• When your dog is off leash, never call unless you’re absolutely 100% sure that your dog will come to you.

• Use the word ‘COME’ only one time. If your dog doesn’t come on the first signal HE’S DEAD! Show him what the consequence is for choosing not to come (see Step 4).

• Click & treat with lots of praise and encouragement the instant your dog commits to coming to you.

Courtesy of:
Waggin’Tails Canine Center
Wilder, KY
859-572-9247
www.waggin-tail.com
email: waggintails@fuse.net

 

 

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