Every dog owner is well acquainted with their dog’s selective hearing disorder that magically appears once it’s time to leave the park or come in from the yard. I’m routinely embarrassed by my dogs blatantly ignoring me at the park, so I am currently in the process of tuning up my dogs’ recall skills, so don’t feel alone on your training journey. Save your voice, and follow these 3 steps to master the art of recall.
After practicing recall in a low distraction environment, it’s time to take your pup's recall skills to the next level. If you are just starting to work on recall, check out my article, Mastering Recall: The 3 Minute Daily Training Routine for Your Dog.
Being in nature is extremely stimulating and thusly very distracting for dogs. Before you get annoyed with her for chasing squirrels like a crazed maniac, understand that her genetics demand she follow her predatory instincts to pursue any fleeing, furry creature. She’s not being bad, or intentionally disobedient, she’s just deep in her lizard brain, behaving exactly as her DNA dictates.
Set her and yourself up for success by having realistic expectations of how truly challenging it is to counteract instinct with a mere sound. That is precisely what you are doing when you call your dog back from a mad squirrel chase.
This is not to say that teaching your dog to have a solid recall is especially complicated or difficult, but there is a very specific method to the madness. Like any training method, consistency is the key. If you fail to continue practicing and reinforcing a behavior, it will likely fall apart and disappear.
Think of every recall exercise like depositing money into the bank of trust between you and your dog. When you need to cash in and ask your dog for a recall, they’ll be happy to oblige because you have laid the foundation of love, trust, and most importantly, delicious snacks.
Follow these 3 steps to master the art of recall.
Step 1: Practice recall outside
Supplies needed: longline (not a retractable leash), high value treats, blanket, or cot.
Once your dog has completed the first level of recall training in the safety of your home, it’s time to increase the distractions and take your practice outside.
If you are just starting recall training, first read this article, Improve your dog's recall in 3 minutes.
For Step 1, choose an outdoor location that’s relatively low in distractions, such as a yard or a peaceful outdoor area. I like to use church parking lots during the week because they’re usually quiet.
Be sure to have your pup clipped into a safely fitting harness as we will be gently, but firmly pulling them back to us in case of a failed recall. For this exercise I prefer to use a front and back clip harness. For a list of my favorite harnesses, click here.
With your pup safely attached with the longline, head outside and ask her for a sit and stay on the blanket or cot. You can also use a training platform, bench, or really any surface that’s safe for your dog to climb up and sit. Having your dog on a different surface such as a blanket or raised object helps them understand that you are asking them to stay at that specific spot.
Need to brush up on your dog's "stay" skills? Check out this tutorial.
Ask her to stay and take a few steps back. Wait a few seconds, use your verbal marker to signal she’s done the right thing, and call her back to you using the recall cue.
If you’re not sure what a verbal marker is, check out my dog training guide or a video example of how to teach the “stay” cue. Click here for full tutorial. At 2:22 this trainer discusses how he says “yes, good girl” as the verbal marker to let her know she’s done the right thing.
The verbal marker is very important because it lets your dog know that 1) they have done the correct action and 2) a tasty reward is soon to follow. Most people skip this, and it creates a lot of confusion for your dog, because they are never quite sure what specific action will result in a treat.
Reward her with a delicious special treat, such as dried liver or a morsel of hotdog. It’s extremely important to use a different treat than what your dog is normally used to receiving. The recall reward treat needs to be worth it, so the higher value, the better.
You may need to switch it up occasionally to keep things interesting. The goal here is to pair the sound of your recall cue to a mouthwatering delight, so if you recall your dog when she’s blissfully rolling in poo, she is motivated to comply.
Repeat this exercise and slowly increase the duration of the wait as well as your distance from your dog. You want this to be a fun game for your pup, so keep the exercise short, no more than 3-minutes. Give them a generous break of a 10-minute snuffle walk in between recall rounds so they don’t get bored. Switch your longline to the back clip attachment on the harness for better freedom of movement.
If your dog happens to get distracted or chooses not to come back after you recall her, go ahead, and give her a gentle tug on the long line using the front clip attachment. Once she starts moving towards you, use your verbal marker and cheer her on as she returns. Even though this wasn’t a “correct” recall, you need to mark, praise, and reward her steps in the right direction.
Step 2: Recall while distracted
Supplies needed: longline (not a retractable leash), high value treats
After a few days of successful outdoor recall practice, it’s time to increase the distraction level. Start small and choose a quiet location, such as a backyard or quiet park.
Begin with your pup on a long line and let them snuffle freely at their own pace. While your pup is engrossed in sniffing, stand a few feet back and recall her using the recall cue. The moment she looks in your direction, use your verbal marker and cheer her on as she returns to receive a delicious reward. If she ignores you completely while engrossed in sniffing, return to Step 1, and keep practicing.
Try switching out the treat to something she finds more tempting.
In my experience, the more stinky the treat, the more enticing it is.
Remember that you’re competing with nature to get your dog’s attention, so come prepared with a worthy snack.
If she looks towards you and does not start to move towards you, give a gentle pull on the longline and reel her back. Praise her as she gets closer to you and reward with a delicious treat. Again, though this is not a complete recall, it’s an important step towards the finished product and should be rewarded.
Repeat this exercise a few times, marking and rewarding her for looking towards you and heading back to you. As she gets comfortable with this and starts heading back on her own, wait until she reaches you to use the verbal marker and reward her with a treat. A polished recall takes time, energy, and repetition to build. For most dogs it’s the most difficult task they ever learn, so breaking it down into smaller steps prevents you and your pup from getting overwhelmed and frustrated.
Expecting your dog to stop enjoying the best part of her day and run back to you immediately after a few repetitions of recall, is an unrealistic expectation.
Slow down, be patient, and enjoy the process.
Step 3: Recall in distracting environments
Supplies needed: longline (not a retractable leash), high value treats
Now that you’ve been practicing recall successfully in the great outdoors, it’s time to level up and increase the distraction level.
Choose a location with more distractions, such as a busier park, walking path, hiking trail, or dog park.
Note: To truly test your pup’s skills, it's best to practice in an area that allows off leash dogs. However, if an area like that is currently unavailable to you, continuing to practice with a longline is perfectly fine.
In this distracting environment, attach your pup to the long line and allow her to snuffle freely. Wait for her to become engrossed in her sniffing, then call her to you using the recall cue. At this point, she should be coming back on her own, but in case she doesn’t, use the longline to reel her back in, but do not reward her with a treat. If she repeatedly fails to come back, return to Step 2 and keep practicing in lower distraction environments using the longline. Don’t get discouraged if you need to slow things down!
Competing with nature is a monumental task and needs to be approached with sense of humility and patience. Focus on enjoying this bonding time with your pup and don’t get discouraged if you need to take a step back.
If your pup is consistently returning to the recall cue after multiple repetitions, it’s time to take off the longline. Wait until your pup is distracted in her own adventure and use the recall cue to call her back to you. Stay within a few feet of her the first few rounds and if she keeps returning, slowly increase the distance between you. As her recall skills increase, you can begin to refine the recall by using the verbal marker and rewarding her only when she returns to you fully.
If you are consistent and practice recall exercises daily, you will have a pup that happily returns to you no matter what, because you have carefully installed a conditioned response to the recall cue.
When practiced and rewarded consistently, recall becomes a reflex like response that could one day save your dog's life. Make an investment in your dog’s wellbeing and take the time to teach them this crucial life skill.
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