How To Train Your Dog to Come?

Tips for Teaching Recall to Your Dog

"Come" is perhaps the most crucial command you can teach your Dog since it has the potential to save his or her life.

Dogs are easily side-tracked, and their curiosity can lead them into dangerous circumstances, such as oncoming cars.

When your Dog is charging blindly toward danger, you want them to respond first and foremost to your voice.

"Come" becomes a real lifesaver at that point.

It's a simple command, but it can be difficult to teach since so many things can distract your dog.

It's worth the effort, though, because correct recall can prevent your Dog from ingesting poison, running into the street, or being attacked by a wild animal like a raccoon.

It's also essential for a successful excursion to the Dog park or other off-leash activity.

Before you begin teaching your dog the "come" command, you need first teach him a few other words.

The first is their name, which should be interpreted as "pay attention to me." You want to teach your dog to look to you for further instructions when they hear their name.

The steps below will assist you in playing the name game:

Offer High-Value Rewards for Positive Reinforcement

Reinforcement is crucial in Dog training, as it is with other commands.

Use high-value goodies that your Dog doesn't get on a routine basis at first.

A little baggie of cooked chicken or hot Dog bits, string cheese, or jerky, for example, can be quite stimulating.

It helps if it's good and smelly!

Non-Food Rewards Are Also Effective

Food rewards are fantastic, but other forms of rewards can also be used.

Going for a stroll is a treat for most dogs.

The Dog knows he's going for a stroll when you grab the leash.

Tell him to come, and if he does, take out the leash.

Even if your Dog doesn't instantly obey, if he hears an aural clue the leash, his ball, etc.

after hearing the order, he'll quickly relate "come" with pleasurable rewards.

You can also reward your Dog for good behaviour with verbal praise and stroking.

This can be effective if your Dog is already proficient in this command.

Walks, supper, toys, and delectable rewards can all be used to reinforce 'coming' as a pleasant, happy thing.

Begin By Rehearsing the Command Indoors

You wouldn't expect your 5-year-old child to go from kindergarten to eighth grade in a year, and neither should your dog.

Obedience levels are similar to grade levels, and you can't expect your Dog to begin at the high school level.

If you want dependable recall at the Dog park, you must first have dependable recall at home.

Your Dog will be an F student outside if he is a C student indoors.

" Gradually increase the amount of time you spend training your Dog to come reliably.

Work your way up to 100 per cent reliability in the house before moving outside, where there are more temptations and distractions.

Don't Unintentionally Punish Your Dog for Following Your Commands

Assume you're having a wonderful afternoon at the Dog park when you decide it's time to depart.

You command your Dog to "come" and quickly tether him or put him in the car.

Because most Dogs don't want to leave the Dog park, applying the command in this manner may inadvertently build a negative association with the command.

It's like getting summoned to the principal's office they don't want to go because it's something they don't want to do.

Because they don't want to leave the park, they learn to stop coming when called.

Other "punishments" for obeying recall commands include bathing, grooming, and administering medicine.

If you're going to do something he doesn't like, ensure you're not using the command to call him to you.

In these cases, it's best to go to your dog, put them on a leash, and gently walk them to the car, bath, or medicine cabinet.

Most Dogs respond to lots of praise and pets much more than a high-value treat.

Running away from your Dog when they approach you is a fun way to spice things up.

Encourage your dog to chase you, but never play games that entails you chasing your dog.

If you can persuade your dog that coming to you is the best thing in the world, no distraction will be able to deter them from responding quickly when called.

Make Use of a Long Line or A Leash

Some individuals wrongly believe that allowing their Dogs to go off-leash demonstrates that they are exceptionally skilled at teaching them.

The individual who has their Dog off-leash outside of the Dog park, on the other hand, is more likely to be irresponsible.

They will usually struggle to regain control of their Dog if it chases after a squirrel, bothers other people or dogs, or worse runs into the street.

No matter how well-trained your Dog is, you must adhere to leash restrictions and recognize that no dog is perfect.

Your dog will be just as content if you walk them on a leash or a long line.

A long line is a leash that can be 30 to 50 feet long, giving your dog lots of space to roam while still providing enough control to keep them safe.

Ensure Your Dog Comes All the Way to You

When Dog owners use the coming order to merely catch their dog's attention, it might be misleading if they use it inconsistently.

"Come" should always signify "come all the way to me" in order to be a successful recall command.

Rewarding your Dog for coming half of the way to you is not a good idea since it may give them the wrong impression of what the command implies.

Otherwise, the Dog assumes that just seeing them is enough, and they don't realize they have to come all the way to you.

Add Distractions to The Recall Process

You're ready to introduce distractions now that your Dog will cheerfully run to you from anywhere in the house.

Begin with tiny steps, such as having another pet in the room, watching someone cook in the kitchen, or tossing a ball in your hand.

Then progressively increase the size of the distractions.

After that, take your workout outside.

However, do not allow your Dog to run loose.

Even if they arrive 100% of the time indoors, it's a whole different ballgame outside.

Begin by placing your Dog on a 6-foot leash.

Then progress to a 20-30-foot line and gradually increase the distance between you and your Dog while training.

The objective isn't to catch your dog if they ignore you but to keep control of the situation.

Simply grab the leash as you approach your dog again and try again.

On the other hand, if your dog is ignoring you, it's time to rethink your training.

There could be a variety of reasons why your dog does not respond when called.

Take a few steps back in your training, and make sure you're not asking for too much too soon.

Your dog will eventually have a reliable recall anywhere and at any time.

But keep in mind that even the best-behaved dog will not be 100 per cent flawless.

As a result, only allow your dog to run free in a secure setting.

Important Lessons

Getting To Know Your Dog's Point of View

When you call your Dog to you, he has the option of stopping what he's doing and coming to you or continuing what he's doing right now (like sniffing the grass.) Every time you call him, your Dog will weigh the pluses and minuses of this option.

If your Dog believes you'll feed him a nice steak if he comes to you, for example, this notion will most likely overshadow all other options in his thinking.

Your Dog will weigh the pros and cons of sniffing the grass vs.

devouring a steak.

Isn't it a simple decision?

Many dog owners, however, are unaware that this choice process also works in reverse.

If your dog feels you'll reprimand him and yell at him if he comes to you, it'll be easy for him to continue sniffing the grass.

Training your dog to come on command is a game of balancing what you offer (rewarding your dog for coming to you) and demanding the behaviour at the appropriate time (when the self-rewarding behaviour is at its lowest value, or when you believe your dog will choose you instead of his current activity).

When either of those actions is out of sync, your dog will not choose you.

It Is a Loss of Freedom to Come to You.

You should also be aware of what happens once you call your dog.

Dogs are far more intelligent than people give them credit for, and they will notice what happens once they come to you.

For example, you're in the Dog park, and your Dog is having a great time with the other dogs.

You realize it's time to leave and call your dog.

Your Dog will eventually realize that coming to you is not a good idea since all the fun stops, the leash is put on him, and he has to return home.

As a result, you must become unpredictable.

You may need to call your Dog over from time to time just to give him a treat and then let him go back to what he was doing.

Everything Revolves Around Timing

You can train your Dog to come when you say any word or give any command? You could practically train your Dog to come when he hears the words "banana" or "spider." The word itself has no meaning.

Your Dog only learns to come to you after hearing a specific word since he's been conditioned to do so.

You may have done this intentionally or unintentionally, but there must always be a specific sequence of events for your Dog to respond to a command.

You must have proper timing for this command to work.

This means that each event in the sequence must occur within a few seconds of the next.

If you give your dog a treat five minutes after he comes to you, for instance, he won't understand that the treat is a reward for coming to you.

If you call your dog to come to you and he arrives five minutes later, it's the same thing.

Even if you feed him a nice steak, he won't understand the command since the gap between events is too great.

You want your dog to come to you within five seconds of you calling him, and you want to reward him as soon as he arrives.

It is preferable if everything happens as quickly as possible