Train Your Dog to Come When Called

Control Him from a Distance

Training your dog to come when called is simple, as long as your dog trusts you and sees you as his leader.  If a dog knows that you are dominant over him and that he must follow your rule, then the dog is more apt to learn to come when called.  If the dog does not see you as his leader, then you will have to work on establishing leadership before the dog will follow the come command one hundred percent of the time. 

 The main problem that people have with dogs is that the dog only comes on command when they feel like it.  The come command has a lot to do with how the dog feels about you as his leader.  This means that the dog must first trust you.  In order to establish dominance you must show the dog that you are in control of his livelihood.  This means that the dog must come to you for everything that he needs.  If he needs food, you must provide it.  If he needs exercise, you must provide it.  For many dog owners, they must spend some time ensuring that their dog understands that they are their sole provider for everything they need.  Once this is established you can begin working on the mechanics of the come command.

In other words, You must be the Alpha Dog!

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To teach your dog to come when called you will need to begin with the dog on a long leash.  A horse lunging line is excellent for this as they are about 30 feet long and will allow your dog to go quite far with you still having control over him.  You will also want to take your dog to a slightly distracting area, such as a park with very few people and other dogs around. 

You will begin with small steps.  Allow the dog to wander around on the long leash.  Every time the dog looks back at you, praise the dog.  Repeat this until the dog no longer looks away.  Next, move to an area that is a little more distracting and repeat the same steps.  If the dog doesn’t look back to you in thirty seconds or less, move away from the distractions until the dog will look at you in thirty seconds or less.

When the dog is looking at you, run backwards and drop treats to encourage the dog to come towards you.  At the same time use your verbal command of “come” or the dog’s name as your dog comes towards you to receive the treats.  Change the distractions around the dog gradually as well as the distance.  With practice you will be able to call your dog and he will come to you despite the distractions around him.

Do not practice this command off-leash until your dog is reliable.  If you are training a puppy, you may wish to begin in the backyard.  The backyard is also a good place to start building your dog’s reliability off-leash.  Eventually you will want to be able to drop the leash in the park and have your dog come back to you on command.  Always practice off-leash commands in an area that is secure.  Remember, your dog must respect you as their leader in order to trust you enough to drop what they are doing and come to you. 

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