On our walk this morning I was formulating a lovely post about recalls and what Delilah and I have learned and applied in the last eight weeks.
The Key Lies in Repetition
It is naive to think your dog will come back to you from an enticing situation if you only recall occasionally. I have been working Delilah constantly. In the course of a 30 minute walk I probably recall her at least 30 times.
I reward her each time she returns to me with a piece of liverwurst. I even reward her when she comes to me without being called. Sometimes it is with a piece of liverwurst, sometimes with a lesser food reward and sometimes I give her a rub on the head and tell her what a good girl she is.
Our recall word is HERE. I say it loudly and clearly. When she turns toward me I say, YES in an excited voice, sometimes I encourage her, come on, you’re such a good girl.
On the rare occasion she doesn’t respond immediately, I’ve found if I say YES and continue to chatter while rewarding Sampson, curiosity will compel her to come and see what Sampson is getting.
Know Your Dog And His/Her Limitations
With Delilah, I know there are areas where the lure of what else is out there, is greater than the lure of what is in my treat bag. When I am approaching these areas, I will call her to me and either leash her, or I will hold a treat in my hand down by my side and keep her in a heel position.
Once we have passed that danger zone, I will release her again.
Sometimes Even With All We’ve Learned, We Fail Our Dogs
In the last week I have been giving her a lot more freedom, in fact about 98% of her walks have been off-leash. She’s done spectacularly…..until today.
Let me be clear, it is I who failed, not Delilah.
I gave her too much freedom in an area that is far too tempting for her. Today as we approached a danger zone I recalled her, but I failed to secure her on leash or use a heel treat. She ran out into a neighborhood and investigated Tia’s yard.
I tried to recall her, but the lure of the yard was far more interesting than what I had in my pouch. Sampson and I had to go out and get her.
Yes, she spent the rest of the walk (about 40 minutes) on leash.
2 Plus 2 Do Not Equal Four To Delilah
At first I was angry with Delilah, she did not respond to my call and I’m ashamed to say when I finally got her back I called her a dumb dog.
I stewed about it for a while on the walk, but then I realized that Delilah does not know how to add, she does not understand, I ran off so I got put back on leash.
Back To Square One
I know she’s capable of learning. Whenever she is on leash and we approach a steep downhill area, I say easy Delilah, easy. She’s gotten to the point that even when she is off leash, she walks slowly down these hills.
If I continue to request a heel from her in the danger zones, before long she will automatically heel and stay close even if she is off leash.
Right?
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