recall/off lead training

Hi everyone,

I'm hoping you can help. we have had Theo (2 years old) for about 2 months as his previous owner is in a wheelchair and couldn't exercise him (we think he used to just open his door and let him out!!)

he is the best dog in the world (but accept I might be biased!) and is an absolute softie - he is great with people, kids, other dogs and even cats but is very excuberant and still acts a bit puppyish at times.

His recall on the flexi lead is really good and he is very treat orientated but if he is distracted (which is usually by other dogs but could be anything) he just ignores me. If he sees another dog he will bound over to play and the couple of times it has happened, i've had to leg it after him and find myself shouting 'he's a softie really, and just wants to play' cue looks of terror on faces as 18kg of muscle comes flying towards them!

he is usually on the lead and I only let him off if he is in an encolsed field where i've never seen another dog or in the park when there are no other dogs about. i keep my eyes peeled and put him back on the lead if we see another dog. If he is on the lead and the dog ignores him, he just ignores them, i praise him if that happens, If the other dog wants to play, he will pull and whine a bit but will listen when i tug the lead and say his name.

How can i get him to improve off the lead. I want him to socialise with other dogs but i'm really aware (maybe too aware) of the unjustified reputation the breed has and I don't want him to pick up on my unease when we see another dog.

I hope that makes sense, all thoughts gratefully received!

Emma (and theo)

Does he have a favourite toy at all, my dog was the same as a puppy. We got her favourite kong squeaker balls and when she started haring off after a dog, we squeaked it, she came back and got rewarded with a game of ball.

jules

Hi,

Thanks for that - he has a few toys but doesn't seem to have a favourite, i'll work on maybe playing more with one toy and hope he gets more attached to it, and give that a go.

Thank you for the help

Emma

No problem, hope you get it sorted, make sure its a noisy toy xx

turbos the sames but wen he sees other ppl and dog etc he completely ingores me wen i call or yell or anything hes like im not listening to u and goes bout wot he was doing and im looking getting a friendly collar and lead from those ppl http://www.friendlydogcollars.com.au/ cos i hear gd things from them but i want to be able to take him to the beach and stuff with out him being a *

To help with practicing, you could get a long line, its a fabric lead but you can buy them upto to 200 foot long...i have a 25 foot one but have today bought a 50 foot one, then you can practice recall whilst still being within reach of the lead. the idea is you let go of the line so its trailing behind your dog, but should hopefully be still within reach for you to step on it. I got a longer one as the 25 foot one is only twice as long as my flexi lead, which i feel doesnt give her enough freedom.
They are very cheap on ebay. - i just paid around £6 for the 50 foot one.

Ps, your pooch looks just like mine, but the patch is on the other side x

Hiya,
Bruno was like this as well. We got an e-collar eazypet247 I think it was called. We just had it on a low vibrate setting and after a few weeks he was brilliant. His recall is now so good If I can see something that he might want to chase to I can call him and he will walk to heel. It's not the best coller build quality wise but it does the trick and you shouldn't need to use it for long.

Thank you for all your suggestions - think I am going to try a long lead and toy - I'll let you know how I get on!

Thanks again

Emma and Theo

Chiquito has a 50ft and 100ft long line which I use when we play ball or frisbee at the common - they work really well for recall training as well, lots of treats initially is the trick

I have found teaching a really strong 'watch' command is helpful with recall - helps to get their attention when there is distraction. I used a squeaky toy when out with Chiquito to do the same when he was first learning

These are the long lines I use

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DOG-HORSE-TRAINING-LEADS-5FT-10FT-15FT-20FT-25FT-30FT-40FT-50FT-65FT-80FT-100FT-/140987430180?pt=UK_Home_Garden_Kitchen_Steamers_Cookers_PP&var=&hash=item20d3817524