SSD Lucky Had How Many New Experiences?

Wait! Don’t read this blog post if you haven’t already read yesterday’s post about SSD Lucky and his new experiences.

If you already read yesterday’s post, thank you! How many different experiences did you count from our tale of Lucky’s weekend?

Here are the ones we counted:

1. New house
2. Sleeping in the guest room
3. Crate located at the foot of the bed
4. Can’t see his raiser from his crate
5. Two other dogs in the house
6. Sounds from other dogs at night
7. Yard sale (This could probably fill up 12+ experiences alone!)
8. Down-stays on different surfaces
9. New children
10. New adults
11. Wooden deck
12. Down the wooden open riser stairs
13. Up the wooden open riser stairs
14. New backyard

Look for the next post about SSD Lucky in the coming weeks! 

Practicing Recalls with Golf

Our puppies in training play golf to practice their recalls. No, they don’t grab a golf club and hit the links, although some of our puppies in training might be at Keystone Human Services’ annual golf tournament on September 12. Our puppies and their raisers play our own version of golf during puppy class. (For our current raisers, we’re playing golf in our green puppy classes.)

We place two hula hoops several meters apart. The raiser asks the dog to “down” inside one of the hoops. The dog must then stay there while their raiser moves to the other hoop. When they’re ready, the raiser calls the dog to “come.”

If the dog runs right to their raiser, they score a hole in one! Raisers and dogs rack up additional for every time the raiser uses the word “come” beyond the initial cue. They also earn strokes if the dog stops to greet another dog along the way.

Sounds easy enough, right? Well, just like the sand traps in golf, there are obstacles in this version of golf. In each puppy class, we introduce a new obstacle. The first time it was a water dish between the two hoops. Dogs had to run by the dish without stopping for a drink.

At our last puppy class, it was tennis balls. Watch SSD Chickadee sprint right through them!

In the video, Chickadee completely ignored the tennis balls. But what would you do if you know your dog gets really distracted by tennis balls (or whatever the obstacle is)?

Set your dog up for success. Instead of trying for a hole in one, only walk a few feet away from your dog before calling them to you. Make the recall as easy as possible. It’s okay if it takes you two, three, even four or more short recalls to make it to the other hoop, as long as you’re making sure your dog can be successful with each recall.

What if your dog stops to play with a tennis ball? Don’t worry! Just go get your dog and re-cue them into a “down” somewhere where you know your dog won’t get distracted by the tennis balls (or the other dogs in training near the course). Walk as far away as you think you can go and still have your dog be successful, then call your dog.

A good recall can potentially save your dog’s life, so it’s important to practice often in many different environments with different distractions. Start small and build up so your dog can be successful. And don’t forget to give your dog a jackpot of treats when they do come to you so they learn that good things happen when they come running to you! 

How to Train Your Dog to Heel

All of our dogs learn the cue “heel.” On cue, the dog should pivot counter-clockwise until they’re parallel with their handler’s left side. Among other things, “heel” can position the dog for forward movement. It can also be used to create space between their handler and another person.

We use clicker training, shaping, and a box to teach our puppies to heel. By having the dogs anchor their front paws on the box, they learn to move just their hind legs.

One of our volunteers, Revenda Bierley, filmed each step in the process as she trained SSD Sabor to heel. Watch the video to see how Sabor goes from simply stepping on the box to pivoting into the heel position without the box. At the end of the video, SSD Aunt Laura, who’s going through Team Training with her new partner right now, demonstrates the completed behavior.

Thank you, Revenda, for the awesome video! 

5 Tips for a Successful Farm Show Outing with your Service Dog in Training

For a dog, paying attention to their handler can be challenging, especially if there lots of distractions in the environment. The Pennsylvania Farm Show is coming up on January 7-14 (food court opens January 6), and many of our dogs in training will attend. It’s a great training experience! However, between the crowds, the delicious food, and all the animals, it can be hard for puppy raisers to keep their dog’s attention.

Here are five tips to help you set your puppy up for a successful outing.

Awesome Power Treats

One way is to make sure you have power treats, really good power treats. You might even want to go beyond hot dogs, especially if hot dogs are your typical power treat. Think chicken or leftover steak.

Keep the Outing Short

If you’re planning to spend hours at the Farm Show, you may not want to bring your puppy in training with you. Set your dog up for success by planning a short outing. If your dog is doing great, you can consider staying a little longer, but try to leave while your dog is still being successful.

Have a Plan

There’s a lot to see and do at the Farm Show, so having a plan can help you set your dog up for success. Check out the schedule of events and pick out a few things you think your dog will be able to handle. If your dog does well, you can always check out other exhibits. Make sure you also have plan in case your dog is having a challenging time and you need to leave, especially if you’re attending with friends and family.

Know the Stress Signs

Make sure you know your dog’s stress signals. By recognizing the early signs of stress and then removing your dog from the stressor, you can help your dog have a more successful outing. For example, if you’re walking near the cows and your dog starts to yawn, scratch, pant, or shake themselves, they might be telling you they’re stressed. Move your dog away from the cows (or whatever the stressor is) and find a quiet corner where your dog can relax. If you need to, take your dog outside and give them a sniff break. If your dog becomes too stressed, leave the Farm Show entirely.

Don’t forget to pay attention to the other end of the leash, too! If you become stressed, your dog will pick up on it, and it will affect their behavior.

Don’t Expect Perfection

The Farm Show is a difficult outing! Cues that your dog knows perfectly at home will suddenly become very challenging at the Farm Show. For example, your dog may have mastered “go on through” and walk perfectly through doorways at home and out in the general public, but at the Farm Show, you may have to use a lure to get your dog to walk through a doorway correctly. That’s okay!

You may also find that you need to click and treat much more frequently to keep your dog walking with a nice loose leash. That’s okay, too! You’re helping your dog be successful.

If you’re taken a service dog in training to the Farm Show before, what other tips do you have?

Service Dogs in Training Visit Harrisburg International Airport

Fifty of our service dogs in training now know how to fly on a plane!

On December 3, we took our puppies in training to HarrisburgInternational Airport for a training outing. After parking in long-term parking, the dogs and their raisers took the shuttle to the terminal. Once in the terminal, the dogs practiced loose leash walking around the other travelers, as well as taking elevators and stairs.

Navigating stairs and elevators are important skills for service dogs. The dogs need to walk right next to their handler on the stairs. The dog should take the stairs one at a time and not charge to the top or bottom. This skill becomes especially important when a service dog is working with a child or someone with mobility issues. If the dog were to charge ahead, they could injure their partner.

Elevators are equally important. To correctly enter an elevator, the dog must wait while their handler blocks the doors with their body to prevent the doors from closing and hitting the dog. The handler then cues the dog to “go on through.” Once the dog is complete inside, the handler follows the dog into the elevator. We usually encourage our puppy raisers to move their puppy in training to one of the back corners of the elevator to keep the dog out of the way and reduce the risk of the puppy trying to dash out of the elevator doors when the open. Getting off the elevator is a similar process, with the handler once again blocking the door.

Each of our puppies in training had the opportunity to go through airport security and practice getting patted down by a TSA agent. By law, service dogs cannot be separated from their partner, nor can any of their equipment (leash, harness, etc.) be removed. The dogs can be patted down, which can be very exciting for the dogs. Our puppies in training practiced staying focused on their raisers while the TSA agent patted them down.

In the past our outings to the airport usually ended after walking through security. But this time, we got to practice boarding a plane! Thanks to American Airlines, our puppies in training learned how to navigate the aisles of the plane and curl up beneath the seat in front of their raisers. This is such an important skill for our puppies to practice because service dogs can travel in the cabin with the partners. However, they are required to ride in small space at their partner’s feet or under the seat in front of them. This can be challenging for a dog who has never done it before.

Other tips for preparing your service dog for traveling by plane:

Avoid giving the dog food or water before traveling

Give them lots of playtime and exercise to tire them out

Bring something for them to chew on, which will keep them occupied if it’s a long flight

Check out this video from HIA about our adventure!

Thank you to Harrisburg International Airport, the TSA agents, and American Airlines for giving our dogs in training this valuable experience! They’ll be ready to fly with their future partners someday!

The Importance of a Good "Leave It"

The snow from the massive snow storm is starting to melt, but it can still be slippery out there. Floors and stairs inside can also become slick from snow that gets tracked inside on your shoes. While you’re out with your puppy in training during this time of year, one cue can mean the difference between staying on your feet and falling to the ground.

 

That cue is “leave it.”

 

SSD Elwood’s puppy raiser, Kelly Slabonik, knows the value of a good “leave it.” As she and Elwood were walking down the stairs at work, clicking and treating, one of Elwood’s treats fell out of his mouth and rolled down the stairs. Kelly immediately said, “Leave it.”

 

Instead of lunging down the stairs and possibly taking Kelly down with him, Elwood continued to walk calmly by her side. When they reached the step with the treat, he waiting while Kelly picked it up.

 

No one fell down the stairs. No one got hurt.

 

And Elwood got a jackpot of treats to reinforce his excellent behavior!

 

All of our puppies in training start learning “leave it” soon after they join their puppy raisers. It’s one of the more difficult behaviors for a dog to learn and needs to be reinforced constantly.

 

We start training “leave it” by holding a piece of dog food in a closed hand in front of the puppy. We click and treat when the puppy ignores the closed hand and makes eye contact with their raiser. Once the puppy is consistently doing this behavior, we make it harder by holding the food in an open hand, again clicking and treating when the puppy ignores the food.

 

We continue to make the behavior harder by putting the food in different places, such as on the floor, on a coffee table, or on a chair. We use different types of food and objects. The dogs practice walking past food on the floor, table, etc., both on and off leash. And then we work on ignoring food that falls to the ground in front of them.

 

We also train our dogs not to lunge after treats that fall out of their mouth. Dropped treats are lost treats. This is especially important for when the dog is working with their partner. We don’t want the dog to injure their partner because they were chasing after a treat.

 

Do you have a “leave it” story about your service dog or dog in training? Feel free to share it in the comments!

Why Raise an SSD Puppy?

“The best part about raising a dog with SSD is the moment they put that puppy in your arms for the first time,” says Meghan Miller. “It’s incredible to know this little pudge is going to do something amazing, even if you don’t know what it is.”

Meghan is one of our puppy raisers. She and her husband Kyle raised SSD London, who was just placed with his partner in October, and they are currently raising SSD Garnet and SSD Slider.

Garnet and London

Sharon Medford, another puppy raiser, received her first “little pudge” SSD Uncle Cameron just over nine months ago. “The best part about raising an SSD dog is watching them grow and learn, turning into an amazing dog that will change someone’s life,” she says.

Cameron

We have 103 dogs being raised in our program right now, and we’re continuing to grow. That means that we’re going to need many more puppy raisers to train our puppies, love them, and give them the solid foundation of skills that they’ll need to be service dogs.

Our puppy raisers come from a variety of backgrounds. Some have years of experience with dogs, others have never really been around them. They live in houses, apartments, and row homes in the city, in the country, and in suburban neighborhoods. They’re single individuals and families, some with kids and some with all kinds of pets.

The reasons people choose to become puppy raisers are just as varied. Shanne Keeny is a veteran and has many friends who are veterans. “I was fortunate that I didn’t get sent to serve on foreign soil,” she says, “but many of my friends did, so veterans with PTSD are close to my heart. I wanted to raise a puppy that might help a veteran someday (but of course, I will be happy if a puppy I raise helps someone else, as well).”

Shanne raised Lagoon, who was discharged, and is currently raising SSD Grantville, who is in advanced training.

Grantville

Kelly Slabonik wanted to do something together with her daughter so she could learn the joys of giving back. She says, “At first I didn’t think I could give up the dog, so I started as a sitter. And then a trip to a Team Training and meeting and becoming friends with individuals with service dogs made the hard part of giving the dog up seem not so hard.” Kelly and her daughter Nikki soon became puppy raisers. Together, they have raised Taz, Rizzo, and Drizzle, who were all discharged, and SSD Nitro, who will be going to Team Training with his new partner in February.

Drizzle (yellow) and Nitro

Lisa Slater is one of our newer puppy raisers. She and her husband are raising 10-week-old SSD Hotchee. They decided to become puppy raisers when they were thinking about getting another dog. “I wanted to do something more meaningful than just getting a puppy for my own selfish reasons. While rolling through Facebook, I stumbled upon SSD and began researching. After sharing with my husband, his response was ‘sounds like a great fit for us.’ I know every day with every interaction I have with this pup that we are creating a solid foundation for the dog that will provide a service to someone with needs much greater than my own.”

Hotchee

However, giving up a puppy who is ready to move on to the next part of their journey is hard. In fact, one of the most frequent things our puppy raisers hear from people is “I would never be able to give up the dog.”

Becky Lamb, our puppy raiser coordinator, understands what our puppy raisers go through when they raise and give up their puppy. She began raising SSD Scotia in September 2010 as the best way to learn her new job. Scotia went on to become one of our breeders (she was recently retired), and Becky welcomed SSD Bridge (now in advanced training) and now SSD Jade into her home.

Bridge

Becky often says to our volunteers, “If you have children, you don’t raise them with the intent to have them live at home forever. You want the best for your kids. You want them to go out there and change the world! It’s the same for the dogs. I want them to go out there and change the world for someone.”

Giving up SSD London was one of the most difficult things Meghan ever did. “But seeing him work with his new partner was the most rewarding moment I think I will ever have,” she says. “You have to keep in mind that this dog was never yours, not truly. They are always meant for a much larger purpose. It’s by no means easy. But the first time I saw our dog with his partner, the first and only thought that came into my mind was ‘worth it.’”

Our next Team Training, where people receive their new service dog and learn to work together as a team, is coming up on February 2-18. If all continues to go as planned, five dogs will be placed with their new partners.

“Nitro, my Pony Boyo, is working toward a February Team Training,” says Kelly. “And I can’t wait to see him go off with his partner to do great things! When one journey ends, a whole new journey is right around the corner. I think the new journey also helps make the journey that’s ending a little easier to handle. Becky always likes to call and say ‘I have a puppy for you!’”

It’s true that when one dog is finishing his journey with his puppy raiser, there are several new puppies who are just beginning. Around that same time that five dogs will be entering Team Training in February, 15 nine-week-old puppies will be just starting their journeys to become service dogs.

Wouldn’t you like to take home your own pudgy, wrinkly-faced puppy and help shape him or her into an amazing service dog who will change someone’s life?

If you would like to raise a future service dog, apply online today or call us at 717-599-5920 to learn more!

Training Tip: Keeping Your Dog Safe, Part 2

Training tip from Nancy Fierer, SSD’s founder and director

In October, I wrote about Fear and Keeping Your Dog Safe, and I would like to revisit it because I consider it so important.

Our dogs look to us for support and consistency. At Susquehanna Service Dogs, we do this through clear clicker training techniques and consistent rules and expectations in the home, as well as by providing love, food, and shelter. I know we all do these things (or strive to) and our dogs count on us for it.

But there is more to keeping your dog safe. When you’re out and about in the world with your dog in training or even with your pet—no matter where you go—you encounter many situations that can be stressful, cause fear, or actually be physically harmful for the dog.

For example, we all watch where we’re walking and if we see broken glass or a dangerous surface, we make sure our dog avoids the area. This may mean we don’t enter, we pick up our pup, or we take a detour. If we miss seeing the broken glass, the dog is at risk of getting cut. Will the dog always be cut, need a vet visit, or have permanent damage as a result? You all know the answer. Mostly likely no, but once in a while, yes.

Like with the broken glass on the ground, we need to recognize when to take action to keep our dogs safe and how exactly to do that. There are two things to keep an eye out for:

·         Fear of other dogs and animals

·         Newly developed fear or an object or situation

I’m only going to cover fear of other dogs and animals here, because I’ve already covered newly developed fears in a previous post, but here are a few extra tips. Consider going to potentially scary places for just a few minutes or looking at it from a distance. A good example is fireworks. Distance and short duration are key here. For example, don’t go downtown Harrisburg on the 4^th of July with your pup to sit by the river and watch the fireworks. Prepare for success by looking for possible failure, stressors, and “danger.”

Your dog could show signs of fear around any other dog. These could be dogs in your home, from puppy class, from your neighborhood, or strange dogs. When this happens, do not allow on-leash greetings or unsupervised play, especially in smaller enclosures, and don’t allow dominant behavior, whether it’s your dog or the other dog. Remove your dog immediately and then think about the situation. Sometimes, everyone was just too excited and when all are calm, play can resume. However, if there was any fear on the part of your dog, don’t let the dogs play together again.

Ultimately, when a dog is fearful of a situation, it has two options—fight or flight. If the dog cannot leave (flight), then the only option they’re left with is fight. Do I mean a dog fight? Sometimes that may happen, but more likely, the dog will give a warning that any smart, confident dog will listen to. Your dog may resort to growling, snapping, or a hard stare. Each time your dog successfully deters the other dog, your dog is rewarded for its “aggressive” behavior. If your dog actually barks or snarls significantly, adrenaline is released, and this good feeling is a strong reinforcer that has a huge impact on your dog’s future behavior. It creates a strong reinforcement history and then next time, the dog may choose to use this aggressive, inappropriate behavior sooner. This behavior can easily become generalized and then it becomes a problem.

Don’t try to fix aggressive behavior. Simply avoid it. Keep the dog from practicing the behavior because you don’t want to make it stronger. If you have an SSD dog, this is the perfect time to ask the trainers for help, because you can reverse a little problem before it turns into a big one.

This is all part of keeping your dog safe. Remember, your dog is being fearful when they’re acting aggressively and wants to be safe. 

Eva Settles in to Life in Pennsylvania

SSD Eva has been living in her new home with her new family in State College for a little over a week, after spending time with other puppy sitters. She will be staying with them for a while, and then she’ll move into her whelping home closer to Harrisburg.

Eva is definitely settling in well. She has excellent manners and house behavior. At first, she was a little hesitant, but now she’s getting used to her sitters. She’s still quite a “velcro” dog, but after a week of adjusting to the apartment, she has stopped waking up to follow her sitters whenever they leave the room. She loves to cuddle and will curl up at her sitters’ feet or anywhere close to them. 

During her first few days, she thought she was supposed to sleep in bed with her sitters. Now, however, she knows the bedtime drill. They have a crate for her with a soft bed made out of a sheet stuffed with old clothes. Eva is very comfortable in her new bed—and she’s as reliable as an alarm clock in the morning. She wakes up her sitters every morning at 7 a.m. with a funny whine-grunt noise.

Living in an apartment usually involves some adjustment for dogs. They need to get used to hearing the other occupants of the building. Right now, Eva barks at the dogs she sees out the window. She also barks when she hears the neighbors through the walls. Her puppy sitters are working with her on it.

Monday through Friday, Eva’s puppy sitter Daisy takes her to work on campus. Eva is great at sleeping in her crate or under the desk. She seems to like the snow, but she doesn’t go crazy in it.

Eva came from Guide Dogs of Queensland, and she was fully trained as a guide dog. Service dog training is different than guide dog training, so Eva has some new things to learn. When she was walking with Daisy, she would scan ahead for obstacles, just like a guide dog is supposed to do. As a service dog, however, we want her to be checking in with her handler every so often. She’s learning quickly that she should watch the person with the treats. She and Daisy can usually walk all the way across the Penn State campus with the leash nice and loose.

They’ve also been practicing walking up and down the stairs. Entering, exiting, and riding in an elevator is an important skill, too, so they’ve also been practicing that.

Her sitters are getting her acquainted with clicker training and the cues that SSD uses. So far, she’s learning “go to bed,” “stand,” and “leave it.” She’s almost ready to put these behaviors on cue. 

Want to support SSD Eva? We're over halfway to meeting our goal to raise $3,300 for Eva. There are 21 days left. Will you help? 

Training Tip: Fear and Keeping Your Dog Safe

Service dogs need to be able to go almost anywhere with their partner, and that means that the dog needs to be confident about going into potentially scary situations. (Scary for a dog, that is.)  A dog could exhibit fear in a variety of situations. How do you train a dog to not be afraid?

At Susquehanna Service Dogs, we used to have a saying: “Remember the back door and keep your dog safe.” This “back door” is your escape route if your dog is looking or acting fearful.

Some fears are small and don’t necessarily require you to use back door and leave. Let’s say that you and your dog are visiting a farm. Your dog sees a cow and starts to act fearful, maybe even barking a little bit. You can let your dog know that it’s okay and there’s no reason to fear the cow by using treats. Give your dog a treat for looking at the cow (and not barking). The dog should learn to associate the cow with treats, and they will see that there’s nothing to fear. Then the next time they see a cow, give them treats as soon as they look at it. This method works well for small fears in the environment.

But what do you do when your dog has bigger fears or they’re still afraid of the same thing the third time they’ve encountered it?

If your dog sees another dog or a person who looks scary to them, and starts acting terrified, your best option is to leave and not return. Why is it a good idea to take the back door and leave in this situation? Every time your dog experiences extreme worry and starts barking or growling, that barking and growling is releasing adrenaline, which makes the dog feel better and rewards the dog each time for this aggressive behavior. Each time the dog barks or growls with this adrenaline rush reward, the behavior becomes stronger. This means that it’s harder and maybe even impossible to remove the aggression with absolute security. By leaving, you prevent your dog from being rewarded for barking at the scary dog or person. If they’re not rewarded with that adrenaline rush, it will be easier the next time the dogs sees that scary dog or person.

Now, sometimes dogs are afraid of objects, like an elevator. If this is the case, just stop riding elevators for a while, especially if you have a puppy. It’s possible that the puppy may be going through a fear period which they will outgrow. Once the puppy has matured a bit, you can try taking an elevator again. (If you have an SSD dog, make sure you’ve talked to a trainer about the proper way for service dogs to enter and exit an elevator.) When you do return to the elevator, make sure you have lots of yummy power treats with you and only plan on riding the elevator once. Sometimes this will end the fear and the dog will be recovered. However, be careful not to try different elevators while your dog is fearful of them. You don’t want to create a generalized fear of elevators.

When it’s time to introduce a dog to a situation, place, object, person, or animal that caused the initial fearfulness, try to set it up in the best possible situation. If your dog is meeting another dog, follow appropriate dog greeting procedure and make sure that the other dog is sweet, nice, and never a threat to other dogs. Always start with something easy and avoid challenging situations.

And remember, if your dog still shows fear, do not press the point. Take the back door and leave.

What happens if your dog shows fear and worry, and you don’t have the choice to leave? Just pick the safest option for you and your dog. For example, if your dog is afraid of the vet’s office, just try to get your dog inside and use lots of treats. Sometime when you don’t have an appointment, go back to the vet and just sit in the car and give your dog lots of treats. When your dog is okay with that, try going inside, give them lots of treats, and leave. But if you have an appointment, just take the easiest, fastest, and safest way possible to get your dog inside, so the experience is over as soon as possible.

If you take your dog somewhere and your dog becomes fearful of a location that that you must go through in order to leave, use the same method that you would with the vet. Use lots of treats and even lure your dog with the treats. Get through the fearful location as quickly as possible so you don’t increase the length of time your dog is anxious. Don’t worry about clicking. Just give your dog treats. Then the next time you need to go to this location, make sure you have another plan in place in case your dog still exhibits fear.

Remember, keep your dog safe and use that back door. When in doubt, be safe and leave. Don’t practice over and over hoping to acclimate your dog to the thing they fear. You will most likely just end up making your dog even more fearful, and that fear will become cemented. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice and find a new approach. And never net your dog practice aggressive, fear-based behavior. Every time you let your dog act aggressively, they are reinforced for the aggression.

There are many other ways to deal with fear. There is Constructional Aggression Treatment (CAT), Behavior Adjustment Training (BAT), the “look at that game,” and of course, classical conditioning.

If you have an SSD dog, please call a trainer for advice.

How to Train a Reliable Recall

Do you enjoy hiking, visiting a neighbor’s fenced-in yard, or just want the safety insurance of a great recall? Our director, Nancy Fierer, explains how to train a reliable recall.

I enjoy taking long walks or hikes in remote areas with my dogs off leash. It’s dog heaven for them to explore smells, take giant runs, roll, leap for joy, and possibly swim. It also lets me enjoy the scenery without having to work on loose leash walking. Then, of course, there’s my house. I live on five acres, which is located .6 miles from the road. I’m lucky that I can open the door and let my dogs free. (However, if I feel that danger is nearby, my dogs are always on leash.)

It takes a reliable dog to do any of this—a reliable, trained dog with a solid recall. I start training recalls when the dog is very young, but the training methods also work with older dogs.

Most dog owners expect their dogs to come when called, simply because they told them to and the dog should listen. But let’s put this into perspective. When you’re calling your dog, the dog is out there in the world, making their own decisions. You ask the dog to come, and the dog decides whether to come to you of its own freewill. Usually, when you call your dog, you’re competing with many other interesting things, such as squirrels, great smells, birds, other dogs, other people, noises, etc. If you’re asking your dog to ignore all those interesting things and come directly to you, you better be prepared to make it worth their while so your dog wants to continue to come to you.

There are several rules that must be followed:

1. Every time you call your dog, whether you're inside or outside, the dog gets reinforced. Every time.
2. The reinforcer must be something really good because things in the environment are competing for your dog's attention. A reinforcer is defined as something the dog wants enough to repeat the behavior that resulted in the first reinforcement.
3. If it takes a long time for your dog to respond or if they actively ignore you, you still need to reinforce them when they actually come to you. Setting criteria to improve latency (speed of response) should only be done in a controlled environment.
4. A reliable recall needs to be practiced over and over and reinforced during the lifetime of the dog.

SSD has guidelines on how to train a reliable off-leash recall using the cue “come.” These directions are very specific and helpful, especially with an older dog or when the dog is in a new or challenging environment.

In order to get a solid recall, you need to commit to practicing at least three times a day. The more you practice, the better and faster the results will be. Tip: Practice right before you feed your dog, so they’re really hungry. You can even use recall practice as a way to feed your dog its meals.

Definition

The dog comes quickly and immediately when called, either on or off-leash and in any situation.

Cue

Verbal: “come”

How to Train It

Equipment Needed

1 long rope at least 100 feet long (for use outside)

Treats your dog thinks are awesome

Someone to hold the end of the rope

1 hungry dog

Start by working in a place with minimum of distractions, like your backyard. Attach the long rope to your dog’s leash and allow the dog to have 20 feet of rope. Wait until your dog starts paying attention to something else. When you feel your dog is sufficiently distracted, say your dog’s name loud and clear and then say “come.” Have your treats ready, and as soon as your dog decides to come click and praise them. When they get to you, take out a handful of bite-sized treats and feed them to your dog one at a time for 30 seconds, praising them the entire time.

This is the “fine dining” method of reinforcement. With clicker training, we typically only give the dog one treat. The dog usually inhales the treat and it’s over quickly. But with fine dining, the sheer number of treats makes a huge impression on the dog’s brain and they think “Wow! How do I make this happen again?” They’re much more likely to come the next time they’re called.

If your dog doesn’t come to you when you call, don’t yell or get angry. Just hold on to the rope, count to 5, and try again. Even if it takes your dog a long time to decide to come, you still need to reward the dog for ultimately making the right decision.

After your dog has come, let them turn their attention elsewhere, then call them to come again, repeating the fine dining experience when they do. Remember to wait until your dog is no longer interested in you before calling their name. Slowly increase the amount of time between each recall, allowing your dog to get more and more distracted. When your dog is doing it perfectly every time, it’s time to increase the amount of rope to 40 feet. Keep increasing the rope length until the dog has the entire 100 feet of rope. 

Once the dog has a perfect recall on the 100 foot rope, it’s time to try moving around the yard and calling your dog from different locations. Move to your front yard to practice or to go a park. Practice a lot! If your dog doesn’t come even once, you’re not ready to move on to the next step.

Now it’s time to take away the rope. You may want to start in a large fenced in or partially fenced in area. Practice a few times with the rope, just to warm your dog up. Then drop the rope. Let your dog wander away, then call them and give them lots of treats.

After several sessions of just dropping the rope, you’re ready to take the rope away completely. Continue practicing as you have been. If your dog doesn’t come to you, don’t panic! Count to 5 in your head, then call them again. If the dog still doesn’t come, turn your back to the dog and move away. Never yell and do not chase the dog. Your dog will eventually come to you, and when they do, give them lots of treats and go back to practicing with the rope. 

If you’re patient and practice every day, your dog will have a GREAT recall.

Recalls Inside your Home or Other Buildings

Remember, you will need to call your dog in many situations, not just outdoors. Make sure you practice inside, too. You won’t need the rope, but make sure you have lots of treats for fine dining. Every time you call your dog and they come to you, you’ll need to give them lots of treats.

Notes about Reinforcers

The treats you use as reinforcers must be more exciting to your dog than the things in the environment. This is very important because if your dog doesn’t think your treats are better than the great smells in the grass, they’re not going to come to you.

Dog food is good. It’s what we use on a daily basis for treats. Dog treats are even better. Real, cooked meat is better still, and people food (like a hamburger or hotdog, bun and all) may be best of all. Use whatever your dog really likes, but don’t think that a carrot is as good as a warm, juicy steak. Also, variety is always good, and challenging environments need highly reinforcing rewards.

If you don’t have any treats with you, a “Good dog!” and a nice pet might work once in a while, but don’t rely on it. You want build a good history with your dog so they associate the word “come” with something really great (like lots of tasty treats).

Stories from the Fierer House

A reliable recall is so important to my lifestyle, so I’ve built up a lot of experience training this behavior. I’m highly motivated to be consistent throughout the lives of my dogs. This is key to a great recall.

At one point, I had a young dog in my house, SSD Terra, and my grandchildren were here for a visit. They used my van, went to McDonalds, and returned. When I was cleaning out the van later that day, I found half a hamburger and realized that it would be a huge training reward. Terra was outside and totally focused on playtime with the children. I took the burger inside, then stepped outside to call her. She came reluctantly and then WOW!—she got a burger, bun and all, and she couldn’t believe her luck. Her recall was spectacular for months afterward.

On a recent hike, my three dogs were off leash on a deserted trail. Along came a hiker with a dog on a leash. I called the dogs over, and they easily stayed while the dog passed by. They had done over 15 recalls with treats during the first 45 minutes of the hike, so when I called them because of the hiker and dog, they came just as they had practiced. The message here is to reinforce your dog every time. A reliable recall needs to be practiced forever.

Even at 11 years old, Gideon will enter the house and stand in front of the pantry door (3 steps away from the front door). Inside is a can with treats—recall treats—that they get every time I call them into the house. Terra will even run out the door and run back in to stand by the pantry as if to say “Look, I came back. Don’t you remember calling me?”

Sometimes you need to change the reinforcers throughout the dog’s life. When SSD Meade, one of our breeding dogs that I raised, turned two, he discovered girls and other delights, and his recalls were suffering. I changed his recall treats to freshly cooked chicken and sometimes steak that was slightly warmed. After several sessions, he improved, but I still throw in a great surprise every now and then. Sometimes on the trail, he is very rewarded with just a kibble or two and an “okay” to release him to go sniff and explore again. As his arousal level or energy level returns to normal, the “okay” release loses its power and I need to give him better treats. Reinforcers can be variable, depending on the dog’s mood.

Take the time to be consistent. Start with great treats, and enjoy the progress you make.