Got A Question

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#1
Okay ive had my dog brownie for about 6 months found her on the side of the road and fell madly in love after just one day lol and shes usually well-behaved but if she accidently gets out shes gone cant get her back in for hours we go on a walk eveyday usually a couple....just wanted some advice on how to train her to caome back to the house....any suggestions would be greatly appreciated
 

bridey_01

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#2
Sounds like your dog is a bit of an escape artist! Firstly i think you should develope a really reliable recall, as this will definetly help if you can get within earshot of her when she has run away. Many stray dogs or dogs from shelters display this kind of behaviour (i know i've had a billion) and if you have a really strong recall then it isn't quite so big a problem.
 
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#3
i usually say brownie come....shes been pretty good at training im no expert but i try....she knows the basic sit,lay sit stay but when she gets loose its like she forgets all our hard work ....what is a really strong recall? and what is the best way to teach heel and halt....thanks for the advice bridey its appreciated :)
 

mrose_s

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#4
buster used to get that when he saw a dog, tunnel vision and you just couldnt control him. I had to walk him twice a day for about a month and a half to be able to control him at all. Now he listens a little but i didnt keep up the consistency and now he is back to his old ways and i have to reboot the program.
also, NILIF and boundry training are probably a good idea
 

Doberluv

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#5
http://www.uwsp.edu/psych/dog/dog.htm

Don't let your dog run free until it has a reliable recall. Once they get the idea of freedom, it's harder to convince them that coming is better. You have to find something that's better than what they're doing at the time for them to come.

In addition, never give your dog a command that you can't enforce. Don't say "come" if you aren't positive the dog is coming or if you can't make him come. Never, never, ever. Entice the dog to come and when it's just a few feet away and very obviously coming, then attach the word. Then praise like mad and give yummy treats. Make it fun and keep the fun going for a while.

Here's a good library in that link that will help you with lots of training questions and everything else you could possibly want to know about dogs. It's a good site. I like most of the stuff on there.
 

bridey_01

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#6
Doberluv pretty much spelled out the whole RRR issue. Never call brownie to come unless you would bet a hundred dollars that he/she would. Calling "come, come, come" just wears out the command and teaches the dog she can ignore you. Try practising the come over and over again during the day ie come for dinner, come for a treat, come for some fun play, come for a walk. You can build up the distraction bit by bit. This may take a while, especially the first time you introduce a big distraction like another dog. If Brownie does refuse to come after the first calling, go and get her yourself, don't wear out the command.
Teaching Heel is much more difficult than teaching come, in fact in my experience it would be the hardest excercise to teach. Heel requires 100% concentration from both handler and dog. Old schools taught this method with a joke collar and alot of yanking. Positive methods, however, produce better heeling and a much more attentive dog. Start with your dog on your left side, prefferably in a distraction free room or passageway. Have your left hand loaded with treats, the lead in your right. As you start off, do not say heel, use only your bridge words such as "yes!", or click if you use a clicker. Some dogs require near constant feeding when they first start out, this is ok though as you will eventually have them off the food and following an empty hand.
 

poeluvr

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#7
if i were you i would reinforce the stay...when i had a beagle(you can probably guess)prone to escaping, when i told him to sit, he would get praised, same with all the other commands but stay then after come...i would give him his fav treat. this way when hes running away from you and you say stay, he'll think this is the only command i get a treat for i want a treat! i know it worked for my dog
 
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#8
thanks alot everyone i will try some of these in our daily training sessions....and that website is great...has lots of good suggestions....im 27 and this is me and hubbys first dog(was a cat person till i found my brownie)lol....glad i popped in to this great site....thanks all ~~Smilz~~
 
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#9
Certain Cities

I don't know where exactly you live, but I learned something new this week about my city.

In certain cities, it is illegal to have your dog off leash unless it is in a fenced in or designated "off leash" area. You can get fined for it. YIKES! So practice recall in the back yard, not front, if this applies to your city.

I learned this after my two dogs figured out how to undo the latch and open the gate in the back yard and got out into the neighborhood. My neighbor saw them, brought them back, and told us about the law. Oops! We have a padlock on it now.
 

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