Can anyone give me any techniques for getting a puppy ready to be let of the lead? I’m nervous about letting her off and want to do all the ground work so that when the time comes I can let her off confidently.
Can anyone give me any techniques for getting a puppy ready to be let of the lead? I’m nervous about letting her off and want to do all the ground work so that when the time comes I can let her off confidently.
Try using a long lead to start…whilst out walking keep calling your pup to you at random intervals. Reward your pup each time with a treat (I always carry a pocket full of dry dog food as its the perfect size!) and verbally praise her. Do this for a few weeks allowing your dog to go as far as possible on her long line. Once she is coming back without hesitation you are ready to let her off the lead.
Make sure you are somewhere enclosed ,like a fenced field (just in case) and let her off. Keep calling her back at random intervals and reward her for this each time. She will not associate you calling her back as the end of the walk using this method and will be happy to come to you when ever she is called. Take the lead on and of randomly if you like as long as she is doing what you ask she will be fine. After a few months of her having total recall you can ease up on the food rewards but always keep some just in case. I find young dogs forget there manners occasionally and make sure when she goes through her teenage stage you are extra alert ! (usually up to 2 years)
I have a mad little dog who, despite being 2 1/2 years, still can’t be let off the lead! However, when training your dog make sure you have a retractable lead. Take her to a field where there aren’t any distractions and give her freedom on the lead. Then call her, using an excited voice. Keep calling until she comes back to you. When she does, be overly excited and praise her so much. Also take some treats so that she knows when she comes back, she will get rewarded.
You then have to keep up the same technique but when there are other distractions around. Other people, other dogs especially. If she comes back to you then, she should be fine off the lead.
When you first let her off the lead, make sure it is somewhere where she can’t get lost or runaway. A secure field or something.
Wait until you feel confident enough that she will return to you. There’s no need to rush it, just wait until you and your dog are ready!
Best of luck!
I have recently found a trick that seems to work with many dogs. It works on the premise that all dogs are inquisitive, so works with their mindset rather than against it.. If you watch a group of dogs, should one find an interesting “smell” it will focus on it intensely, you can guarantee that other dogs nearby will join it to see what’s been found. You can use this inquisitiveness to teach the recall.
Pretend that you have found something highly interesting on the floor, get on your hands and knees if need be, but reach into and highly focus on this one spot on the ground. When your dog sees you, it will be fascinated so see what you have found and will come bounding to investigate itself. When it comes offer the a treat you have ready in your hand and use the word that you choose as the recall command (come). Do not touch the dog, but offer lots of excited sounding praise.
I have found that it works with some dogs when all else fails.
You need to train her to come to you in a confined area first, like your back garden, reward her every time she comes to you on command, never punish her for not doing it though!! This will only make her scared and increase the likelyhood of her running from you. Walk her round the garden and keep her at heel again with treats.
Decrease the amount of treats gradually and give her praise instead as she becomes better trained.
When you are happy that she’ll come to you on command, try taking her somewhere quiet with no traffic and have a pocket full of her favourite treats and her favourite toy, anything that will make her come back to you just incase she gets distracted.
Hope this helps
With my dogs I used to take them down to an empty beach at night, let them off the lead and run away.
It may sound extreme, but it put the onus on the dog to keep up with you, reward him always, with praise, maybe treats and make a fuss of him for coming.
Never chase a dog, it will become a game, make the game for him to chase you.
Have fun with your puppy!
what you need to do is get a long leash like 20 feet long and clip it to her collar. let her run off with the leash dragging on the ground. then call her back to you. every time she comes to you praise her and pet her. and if she dosent come to you drag her to you using the leash. let her do this a couple of times this teaches her that she has to come to you weather she likes it or not. oh and no treats. when you do this you train your puppy to only come to you when you have the treats. so if you dont have treats she wont always listen. another method is to take her to an enclosed space. like your backyard and call her. if she dosent come chase her. this is not like a game you chase her until she cant run anymore then she will be glad to come back to you . i have this advice from a trainer with ten years experience.
practice in your home and garden first.
you have to make sure she knows her name.
the most important thing to remember is when you tell her off NEVER use her name at the same time or she will think its a bad thing to come to you when you call her.
Im getting a puppy in may. My Nanna has always had dogs and she says make sure theres no other dogs and your not near any roads nearby the first time you let her off. she says you have to carry on walking. the puppy with either start sniffing about and ignore you or just stay where they are. when you have go so far away just stand still.
after a couple of minutes call the puppy if she hasnt already come to you. when she comes to you give her a treat and make a massive fuss out of her.
my Nanna has always done this with her pups and she says it works coz they realise your not there and get scared and cant wait to be back with you. i have seen her do it with her latest dog. i had my running shoes on just incase but she came straight over!
Train in a confined area e.g back garden. Recall is one of two most important commands you can teach your dog , it insures they will return once called e.g. if you are out walking and your dog gives chase to a wild animal , an effective recall means he/she will return.
I know of a number of dog owners who have lost there dogs to traffic or dogs have been in fights due to no recall , so do not let off lead until you can guarantee recall.
A really fun way of doing this is by playing hide and seek , hide around you garden or home and when puppy come reward with treat, do this with friends , family anyone . The more fun you make it the more likely he/she is of learning a good effective recall.
You can try standing at one end of your garden a friend at the other and call , this is great for first time recall.
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You can also use a clicker as well, give a click every time your dog has done something correct. In conjunction with this you should use treats, nothing says well done better then a good old treat!
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well if you doggy is under 1 years old then keep on trying to learn its name i have a dog and it took him about a month to learn keep on trying some treats might help and make sure you have a clear and loud voice !
I used a whistle… every time they would come when I blew the whistle I would give them a treat now they just come when I whistle.
I started this process in my fenced yard and let them get a little farther away then blow the whistle.