Dog won't come when called. Dog ignores me or runs away. How can I train my dog to come when I call her?

Question

I know that the dog can hear and I have tried treats. For some reason treats have not worked. What else can I try?

The dog's name is Katie for those of you that were under the assumption that it did not have a name. Also, Katie is treated exceptionally well by our family. She gets yummy treats on a regular basis whenever "she" finally decides to come. We also give her lots of affection, love, and attention...so she is not lacking in any of those areas. So...for those of you who think that Katie hates me...well that just isn't true. I just think that the dog is willful and wants to do things on her own terms. So far I have receive some insulting answers (Ex: "maybe you smell" or "maybe your dog hates you"). I really do not appreciate answers like these. So...if any of you actually want to provide me with some HELPFUL training tips, then please respond. If not, please do not waste my time.

Answer 1

Call her and reward her with a treat and praise when she comes to you...:) Lot's of good dog, good girl, then reward her...:)

Answer 2

The most important thing in training a dog to come is to make the dog WANT to come to you. Start out in a controled space -- a fenced in yard or a large, fairly empty room in your home. Use a short lead at first, and call her name in a very cheerful voice.

Gently tug on the lead, and take a couple of steps backward. This is important because you are "baiting" her into coming to you. The harder you chase a dog, the faster it will run away from you -- that's just the nature of the dog's play drive. If you're the one who's backing off, the dog is more apt to come to you because it thinks you're playing with it.

When she does come, praise her and reward her with her favorite treat -- a cube of cheese, a tiny dog cookie, or a session with her favorite toy. Repeat this several times two or three times a day.

Gradually increase the length of the lead and add distractions such as other people walking by or someone tossing a toy near her. If she breaks training, gently correct her and repeat the command with a soft tug on the lead. Again, don't shout at her or be harsh. That's counterproductive.

If you do this on a regular basis and she's still not responding, it's time to call in a professional trainer. Also, please be aware that any dog can break training unexpectedly, but some breeds are more apt to do it than others. That's why it's not a good idea to let a dog off lead in an open area. . .that lead can be the difference between life and death, even with the best trained dog in the world.

Sorry this is so long, but I hope it helps. If there's anything else I can do, email me here.

Answer 3

You have to make the dog think that there will always be something good in it for her if she comes to you when called. So you need to start with food. You can cut a hot dog into tiny pieces or use cheese cut into tiny pieces. The pieces should be small so you don't feed the dog too much. Wave the food in front of the dog and call her and when she comes to get the treat give it to her and tell her in a high voice "Good girl, good Trixie" or whatever her name is. Do this a bunch of times, maybe 10. Then try and increase the distance between you and the dog. You might have to wait a bit because by now the dog may be following you around for the treats. So repeat the same procedure increasing the distance between you and the dog. If you do it a few times a day for a few days she should eventually come when you call her. Always praise her when she comes. Eventually it should just become a habit for her to come when you call her and you won't always have to give her a treat. But it is good to do it once in awhile just to keep reinforcing the idea.

Answer 4

"There are a number of things that need to be considered to correct this problem. The electric shock collar is the last on the list and probably not needed.

Every single obedience command follows 3 simple steps. First we teach the dog the meaning of the command. Second, we teach the dog that once he knows a command and then refuses to do what's asked he gets corrected for it. Third, we teach the dog that he must perform the command under distraction or he is corrected.

A dog can never be corrected for not "coming" if it does not know the meaning of the word "come." So the first thing that needs to be determined is if she knows the word. I assume she does because you said that she has gone through basic obedience. So this dog needs to learn that it will be corrected for not coming.

This should not be done in the back yard. There are too many distractions for this dog out there. I would begin by putting a prong collar and a normal leash on the dog in the house. I would put here in a "Down Stay" in the living room and then have someone open the door like they were going outside. At that moment I would call her to me. If she goes to the door rather than to you (your assistant does not allow her to go outside), you calmly (without screaming or raising your voice) walk over pick up the leash and give her a level 10 (on a scale of 1 to 10) correction for not "coming." In these circumstances I correct several times as I back up to the point where I was when I called her. All the while saying "Come !!!- You Come!!!"

The key is to sound firm and not mad. There is a big big difference here and novice trainers a have a problem not sounding mad.

When you get back to the point where you were when you called her, you stop (she should be considerably upset if the corrections were firm or hard enough). Wait a second or two and then praise her and show her that you do not hold a grudge.

This training continues until the dog minds under every distraction in the house. We want her to mind when the back door is wide open and she needs to run by it to get to you. When you get to that stage of training it is best to put a 30 foot line on her and not a leash. If the dog bolts outside it is always easier to catch her again if she is dragging a 30 foot line. They never know where the end of the line is. But again, when you catch her, the corrections are severe. I have one simple way to look at corrections: "ONE GOOD CORRECTION IS WORTH 100 NAGGING CORRECTIONS."

A point not to forget is that the correction is actually a series of corrections all the way back to the point where you originally were when you first called the dog. Also this process can take days to accomplish. Do not try and rush through this in one or two training sessions. Then when you get to the point where you are outside, you always have her drag the 30 foot line. When she is 100% with the line on, you can shorten it to 10 feet, then 3 feet, then a foot long line attached to the collar."

I got this off the leerburg site. Figured it was easier to copy and paste than type it all again. I did this with my dog who used to BOLT away every chance he got and now I can walk him off leash. Bottom line, you need to make the reward for coming better than the reward for running off. Never chase them, that is usually a reward. Not getting a harsh correction can be a reward. Don't call them to you and then correct. Do not think of this as cruel.......would it be more cruel to correct your dog (a natural thing) or have him run away and get hit by a car or lost? YOu can also use a shock collar, I have tried that and it worked great! leerburg.com has an article on there about shock collars too.

Haha, no you dog certianly doesn't hate you.......lots of people have this problem. I had it with my cocker spaniel that I've owned since I was 11 and had pretty the run of my house and was spoiled to death. And that is where I went wrong--I wasn't being a leader to him so he stepped up to fill that spot. Therefore, he did not believe for a second that he had to listen to me when I told him to come.........to him, it was more like a question.

Answer 5

My dog did the same thing, only thing that worked was a shocker collar I did not want to use it but was talked into trying it. I would use it again and use it to this day. You do not have to shock the dog constantly and they learn so quick to come. You just have to have someone who has a shock collar to give you a few lessons. They cost close to $100 but well worth it. Mine is Innotek one of the best. Bought it at Petsmart.. Good Luck..they have free help and toll free numbers.. I tired the long rope and the give a treat etc..that worked as long as she was on a long lead..once I let her off it was the same old Lucy she was not going to come..You do NOT fry the dog in order to make her/him listen. They must learn COME it can save their lives and yes I do reward with a small treat when she comes.

Answer 6

Don't give her a chance to disobey until you are positive she will come. This means don't call her if you can't reinforce the command. Dogs learn quickly that they don't have to come back, so you have to start the training process again. Keep her on a long leash and reel her in if she does not come after the first command. Then reward. You have to make coming to you worthwhile. Never discipline your dog when it finally comes back if it has been running rampant; you're teaching it not to come to you if you do that.

OR (and this is going to get me in trouble with all the Chi-poo-poo owners, but the Come command can save a dog's life...)

Don't train the dog unless it is hungry. Try training it at its usual dinner time, and if that doesn't work, don't feed it for 24 hrs. Small portions of its dinner are the reward for coming to you. This should reinforce the point.

Answer 7

A dog should be trained on how to eat, walk with you, not to bark, potty training and sleep on its place etc. You can teach anything to your puppy, dogs get trained easily with some good instructions. If you want some good training tips visit https://tr.im/IpVEu

If properly trained, they should also understand whistle and gesture equivalents for all the relevant commands, e.g. short whistle or finger raised sit, long whistle or flat hand lay down, and so on.

It's important that they also get gestures and whistles as voice may not be sufficient over long distances and under certain circumstances.

Answer 8

Squat down and say it in a extreme-high quality, happy "your no longer in difficulty voice". Dont enable her comprehend your unhappy. no person taught he any further efficient yet so she wont comprehend why your getting mad. purchase a clicker @ the puppy save. They make a "click" like a tumbler bottle cap kinda noise. You squat, tell her to stay, lower back up some ft then tell her to come back. while she does click the clicker and provide a cope with. do this lower back and lower back including a greater distance every time. Do it at residing house devoid of distraction, then exterior, then the park, then with some distractions like different canines and so on. A take a seat then come skill a click then treats! I used this to coach for each thing! it works and is a hassle-free approach. you basically choose some time...and a clicker. terrific needs

Answer 9

when out doors attach a long leash to her and when you call gently pull on the leash till she comes to you. then praise her and maybe a small treat. Do this for about 5 minutes at a time, for about 20 mins and give her play time in between lessons.
Also when she does run away but starts to come back do not punish her for running cause she will think it's for coming back to you.

Answer 10

Watch Cesar Milan the dog whisperer on the history channel

Answer 11

Say her name in a sweet tone while giving her a tiny treat. Then let her get a small distance from you and give her a treat when she comes at your calling. Keep it up: she will eventually catch on.