# Off leash problems



## Swampcollie (Sep 6, 2007)

We need more information.

How did you teach recall?


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

As distances between handler and dog become greater, the dog feels less and less pressure to obey. Dogs aren't fools, they know you can't enforce a command at a distance: meaning she can ignore you with no consequences. 

She is still a puppy and it takes much longer than a year for most dogs to become truly reliable with recall when the prize is something as wonderful as a dead bird. You will have to continue to drill recalls at a distance.

My other suggestion is going to be that since she has complete understanding of recall and you have worked with her for months, it would be worth investing in an e collar for your hikes. The caveat is that you absolutely must find an experienced trainer to teach you the correct way to use it. There is a method to teaching the dog how the collar works and the handlers timing is important. For a well trained dog, the e collar is a wonderful tool that may very well save your dog's life someday. 

If you're not familiar with the way collars work, they have settings that have a wide range with the lowest setting being undetectable to the average person or dog. When set low, it's no different than a tap on the shoulder to the dog to remind him to listen to you. As the levels go higher, it is not painful, it is more of a "yucky" feeling and you will never have to use those higher levels with your dog. In fact, if you've trained a good bit, after a couple lessons, you most likely will never have to use the collar at all. It will simply be in your pocket in case you dog starts to chase a deer or run toward a busy street. 

A retrieving club (either UKC or AKC) can be a good resource to find a trainer who can teach you the proper way to use the collar and train your dog to understand the situation. If you have a young dog who is generally good with obedience but blows you off in high stakes situations, I recommend you not let her off leash until she has more experience and/or you use the e collar. It can be life or death for your dog.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

Consider getting a long line, (15 - 20 ft. cord) that should be attached to a harness not her collar, so that you can have some control when she is off leash. Then practice her sit, down, stay, recall skills, 'leave it', until she is reliably responding to the cues from a distance - start up close (perhaps in your backyard or a fenced area) and slowly increase the distance as she become reliable. 'Proof' those skills - by giving the cues when your back is turned, when you are standing behind her, out to the side, standing up, crouching down. Our dogs often learn to respond to cues while on leash, or very nearby, while we are standing up straight, facing them, and do not receive the ongoing education they need to generalize those cues to being off leash at distance.

Our recall cue fails when or because our dogs learn that it means the 'fun' over, we are asking our dogs to stop doing something that is rewarding to them - practice rewarding your recall cue on arrival, AND give her the reward she wants the most - to 'go play', release to resume what she is doing, or encourage her to play with you. It may seem counter intuitive but the more we allow our dogs to do what they find rewarding,(and use it as a reward for good behavior) the easier it will be for them to do what we are asking them to do. I reinforce recall with joyful praise, perhaps a game of tug (if the dog likes to tug) AND 'sending my dog away' to 'find it' a tossed treat, chase a ball, or to 'go play'. We can help our dogs to want to stay close, by 
being 'rewarding' - unpredictable in what good/fun things they can expect to do with us.
Instill and 'emergency' recall cue, use a word/sound distinct from your normal recall word. Teach her that when she hears that 'sound' and responds appropriately, she will be highly rewarded -treats, pets, praise, play a game of tug, and that she will (more often than not be released to 'go play'). 

Resist the urge to 'squish' your dog's natural instincts to chase, follow their nose, and retrieve and explore ways to give her opportunities to use them and put them on cue. For example: teaching 'fetch'/play ball fulfills the desire to chase, catch, and retrieve with an added bonus of being a reward for coming back to you, run away from her get her to 'chase' you, and if she likes to be chased, you to chase her, a flirt pole used in the confines of a back yard or fenced open space is something many dogs enjoy, opportunities to use the nose, playing 'find it' game with a tossed treat, (my golden will spend a long time looking for one high value treat tossed out in the grass) or favorite toy, (even a friend or family member.), or allowing her to track/follow a rabbit trail, it is the 'hunt' and using their natural abilities they enjoy the most.

Off leash is a 'privilege' earned when our dogs have the skills they need to be allowed to be off leash safely, consider whether it may just be too soon, 'out there' is too distracting, stimulating, at this stage of the game, and more practice is needed in a secure/fenced area. A long line can allow some freedom, without the risk of setting her up to practice unwanted behaviors.


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## CedarFurbaby (Jun 6, 2016)

I am also trying to teach off leash recall to one year old Cedar and its also not super good. But how to practice with those distractions, avoid them completely and practice in other situations? Cedar will recall fine with no one around. When there is another dog he wants to go to them, and recall works but is not immediate. I had to call a few times, and only when he turned around and looked at me, saw my hand signal then came running towards me. 

So I want to ask, should I keep practicing in these situations, or is it too risky to let him off leash? I guess I also never intended to practice with other people around, usually I go really early so there's no one, we practice the off leash recall a few times, he runs a few loops, then we go back on leash.


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## Yaichi's Mom (Jul 21, 2012)

When I first started training Brisby for off leash, we would practice recall ( come, reward, praise etc.) both at home and in places like a large fenced in dog park at non busy times, school yard far away from road etc.

I also trained both "with me". I would have treats in my hand, let Brisby off leash and train "with me" by having her walk beside me and rewarding her every 5 - 10 steps, then extending the reward by more steps in between. By training this IMHO it helped her focus more on me off leash than all the interesting things on the trails. 

We would continually practice recall with high value treats used only for off leash ( command come...lots of praise, treat )

Another thing we would do is play "find mommy". Off leash on the trails when Brisby was ahead of me, I would find a large tree or some other object, hide behind it and yell "find mommy". Of course when she found me, she would get praise and a high value treat we would only use for off leash training. ( hot dog, pieces of cheese, cooked turkey...whatever is very high value to your dog and that they get at no other time).

The above, IMHO helped train Brisby to always be aware of where I am. To this day she will run ahead on the trails, however will always come back to see where I am. 

Fortunately though, Brisby does not have a high prey drive and does not go after animals in the bush, however water is her high value magnet. When she is near water, she is hell bent to get there and that is where I sometimes have challenges with her recall.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

CedarFurbaby said:


> I am also trying to teach off leash recall to one year old Cedar and its also not super good. But how to practice with those distractions, avoid them completely and practice in other situations? Cedar will recall fine with no one around. When there is another dog he wants to go to them, and recall works but is not immediate. I had to call a few times, and only when he turned around and looked at me, saw my hand signal then came running towards me.
> 
> So I want to ask, should I keep practicing in these situations, or is it too risky to let him off leash? I guess I also never intended to practice with other people around, usually I go really early so there's no one, we practice the off leash recall a few times, he runs a few loops, then we go back on leash.



Our dogs learn by 'doing'. It is not possible to completely avoid situations that might distract from what we are trying to teach, so we need to help our dogs learn to be successful with those distractions that are out there. We may need to work a little harder to get their attention and the response we are looking to reward them for, we may need to take a little time to consider what is working at this point in time and what needs more attention, practice and reward. 

Focus on the 'positive', celebrate the 'small' stuff, those little things (that truly aren't so 'little') that happen on the journey you travel with him. 
Sounds to me like Cedar did an amazing job, considering the situation! 

Consider for a moment, what you learned from those few moments in time. Cedar DID respond immediately to the visual signal that tells you that he DID 'choose' you over doing something he really and naturally, wanted to do! (once he understood (got the message) what you were asking of him). That is a wonderful thing! You also now know that he does not have a reliable response to the verbal recall cue - he needs more practice. Starting 'up close' in a quieter area, and then slowly increase distance as he is successful and then add distractions. Keep in mind that he wasn't 'ignoring' you, he simply hasn't had the opportunity to learn that that 'sound' you are making is 'relevant' to him (that you are talking to him) or what to do when he hears it.

You are doing a great job with Cedar. Kudos to you for 'investing' in his future, one of the greatest gifts we can give our dogs is a good education.


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