This is a video of Dice at 12 weeks of age – That’s a recall!
Here is how I got it:
- I started at 9 weeks of age. At that age, most puppies are well aware that they need you and come back quickly and easily. Start at 8 weeks if you can!
- I only whistled when he was facing away and at about his furthest “comfort” distance. In his case he is comfortable at 30 to 50 yards away (he’s a confident little bugger).
- I took his most favorite thing in the whole world as his reward – in his case, a fluffy, whippy toy. A toy on a lunge line might be even better. If food is your dog’s thing – then start with a hungry puppy, don’t let him know what you have in advance, and bring the most amazing option you can come up with – and bring a lot of it.
- I worked in the biggest possible space I could find.
- I whistled at the exact moment that I thought he would probably be thinking about coming back to me anyway and…..the most important part….
- I ran my absolute fastest in the opposite direction, up the hill, through the tall grass and did my best to get as far away as fast as I possibly could. As a general rule, it would take him at least 30 seconds to get back to me. I never even looked back to see what happened when I whistled – I just ran.
- When he got to me, we had the party of a lifetime for at least a minute. A truly world shattering level party.
- Repeat no more than three or four times in a session – always waiting until he’s far away and facing opposite you.
That’s pretty much it. Over time I waited until he was actually moving away from me but slowing down (at a trot). Within two sessions I started to see an instant snap at the sound of the whistle. At that point, I waited until he was cantering away. And finally, I mostly whistled when he was at a dead run, as you see in the video below – and followed the above steps.
He is currently at 100% success with his whistle recall. He does not think when he hears it, he simply snaps back and around and comes back instantly.
Over the next couple of months, I will slowly add a few changes. I will not run until he is part way back. Then half way back. Then three quarters. Eventually he will run all the way back even when I’m at a standstill. I will begin to lessen the value of that toy, but I will continue to reward generously. I will add some whistles when he is relatively close to me, and in some cases, I will have him do a bit of obedience work when he returns, and follow that up with the amazing party.
But no matter what, those above steps? I will make sure to do those on a regular basis for the rest of his life, just to keep the behavior as sharp as possible.
Of course, your milage may vary. You may be starting with an older dog. You may not have a large open space to practice. Your dog may already have a habit of ignoring your requests to return. You may lack a potent motivator – so many possibilities! I cannot coach you through all of those possibilities, but I can say that the more of the above steps you can put into practice, the better your odds of having a super strong recall even under distraction.
Have fun!
Great steps to follow. Thanks for posting them. What a great recall he has!!!
I get a great recall 80% of the time, but we can fail bigtime the other 20%. I think I need bigger parties when we succeed. Will give it a try.
Love it! That video cracked me up. What a cutie.
To come when called. Few things are quite 40 as frustrating as a dog that is oblivious to your futile attempts to call him back to you or worse, a dog that thrives on the game of “keep away.”
Another fun game is “timed” restrained recalls. The trainer will hold the dog back by the collar while the owner runs as far as is safe or reasonable. Upon release, the “restraining” person will time the recall with a stopwatch. The owner should do everything in their power to get speed – including jumping up and down, cheering and even waving a toy or a cookie! The goal is for each team to be a little bit faster as the weeks pass by! Denise Fenzi has titled dogs in obedience (AKC and UKC), tracking (AKC and schutzhund), schutzhund (USA), mondioring (MRSA), herding (AKC), conformation (AKC), and agility (AKC). She has two AKC obedience champions, perfect scores in both schutzhund and Mondio ringsport obedience, and is well known for her flashy and precise obedience work.