Some tips for recall

Hi everyone need some tips on getting Harley to come back to us on walks. Took Harley to the sand dunes today and let him off and he ran off and we couldn't find him. He eventually came sprinting back but worried us both.

We have a long line and Flexi leads that we practice with and he does quite well without a distraction, the problems starts when he knows hes off lead, he doesn't listen and if there is a person or dog within sight he will run up to them.
We are going to go back to basics with him but struggling for ideas as we have tried sausage, cheese, ham and his favorite toy but he isn't interested.

Also he lies down if a dog or person approaches and will not come back without us pulling him which defeats the point as we want him to come back with distractions.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Need help with this one. 
 Thank you

I cant really offer any advice as Misty is exactly the same- when shes on the long line with no other dogs she is wonderfully responsive. Ive only this week started letting her off the lead completely and that's only when shes with her new best friend Mac. The only thing I have learnt apart from the usual food treats etc is a whistle. Macs owner used a normal whistle with him and the first night we met I let her off the lead and she was VERY responsive to the whistle. Im now the owner of two normal ones plus a dog whistle
Im really interested in any others tips people have.

Hiya beth , it would be best to keep practising with the long line until both you and harley have mastered his recall and will know what works best for you both recall with him may take a while longer as hes in the teenage phase and will be reluctant to listen and may push boundaries. Just keep the long line and keep practising it will pay off .

I would say stay practicing with the long line. We only ever let Suki off when she is in an enclosed area with no chance of getting free.

Good to read some advice here. We bought a clicker for Bella yesterday and started her recall training. She was doing great when it was just me & my husband she was coming back no problem. 30 minutes later last night she saw 3 boys walking a good bit away & unfortunately bolted for them which involved going across a road & she was nearly hit by a car we are going to buy a long line lead today & keep practising on that so she can still run free a little but be safe from harm!

I'd say be careful of expecting too much too soon. Work on recall in easy places - home and garden - and on safe walks where there is little potential for distraction. Anywhere remotely near a road, clip her on the line. Remember that she has to really understand what it is you're asking before she can do it consistently, and she REALLY has to understand before she can do it in difficult situations.

Una's recall is excellent - unless there's an interesting smell, something moving or another distraction

The long leash has been brilliant, I am far more confident, Una gets to run around and we get to play the "Ange walks in really odd directions" game. (I also get a good arm work out folding the line back in).