Recall means calling your dog to come to you.
1. Get them used to reacting to their name first. Say it, and when they look around give them a tasty treat.
2. Start training in a secure area – such as your house, garden or on a long lead (these are not flexi or retractable leads, which we don’t recommend, but long leads that you can gather and loosen as needed).
Kneel and say their name to get attention and the command to tell them what you want them to do (e.g. ‘Rover, come here’). Then once your puppy comes to you, however long it takes at first, make it a really positive experience by giving them lots of praise and a tasty treat or game with a favourite toy.
TOP TIP Make your voice as exciting as possible so they want to come and cannot get it wrong. Exciting means loud, at a higher pitch and sing-song and you’ll probably feel a bit silly but you’ll get a puppy bounding back to you!
3. Practice lots before letting your puppy off lead. You also need to factor in that in an empty field they may have good recall but with distractions such as other dogs around, their recall may not be as guaranteed. When you feel confident enough to let your puppy off lead it should always be in a secure field and never near a road.
TOP TIP Save the best treats only for recall training, to make it more exciting to return.
» DOWNLOAD this as a printable page