It’s beautiful to watch. The dog is off the leash, up ahead of his owner, excited and relishing his independence he’s jumping, running in sort bursts, plunging with his nose into anything that looks interesting. And then his owner gently but firmly calls down the wind, “Here boy!” The dog drops what he’s doing, turns to look, then breaks into a happy run right back to his master’s side where he sits, looking him in the eye, tail wagging.

Isn’t this was we all want? But how do we get that? How do we move from shouting and demanding that the dog return, and having to put up with only half-hearted canine obedience that brings the dog most of the way back, but never to heel. Well there are some simple ideas that will help.

(1) Use rewards.

This is the basis for all success with dog training. No need to punish for disobedience when you can reward for obedience and get a better result!

Training your dog to come to you is best done by rewarding him each time he makes a move in your direction. So find a food reward at your pet show that’s cheap, effective and portable. And get ready to supplement that with lots of genuine pleasure in your pet’s steps towards obedience.

(2) Use a leash.

Take your dog into a fenced, exercise area with a long leash. Let him explore and sniff the area, and then get down to training.

Let your dog out on the full leash, say up to 25 meters, get his attention with a quiet word (perhaps the dog’s name) and then introduce the command you intend to use each time you want him to come (most people simply use ‘come’). He will start to over towards you. Even a step or two, the first time, is good. Reward him with encouragement and laughing. If he doesn’t get the idea, then try stepping backwards a few paces. If he still does not come, then gently draw him to you with the leash.

Reward him when he’s at your side, and release him quickly.

Then do it again. And again. And again.

Most dogs need a lot of training before they can be relied on to come off the leash. But keep training. A well-trained dog, coming to heel, is a sight to behold and well worth any effort required.

Len McGrane writes about dog training books at his website http://www.dogtraining-books.info Len’s basic training philosophy says, The most important thing you can do for your dog is develop a warm, friendly relationship with him.

Tags: dog training, dog training books, teach a dog to come

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