Praising Paws

WHY YOUR DOG DOESN’T COME WHEN CALLED
Dogs not listening and ignoring their owners when called is something I see so often and it’s not surprising that these dogs don’t want to come back to their owners.
Why would a dog want to come back to their owner if they are being screamed at, chased, or even punished for not listening when they do come back? Sometimes returning to their owner will spoil their fun, signal an end to a walk or interrupt a really exciting new smell. That’s why coming back when called must always be a rewarding experience for a dog. Good things need to happen when they listen and return to you. Even just checking in with you when out walking should be rewarded.
This is something I practice repeatedly with my dogs when we are out walking. Even in the middle of a walk, I will call them, put on the lead for a minute, praise and treat and then let them off again. This way, they never know when the walk is going to end, always want to come back to me because it’s a rewarding experience and now even come back to me and wait for the lead to be put back on when it’s time to leave the park.
It’s really simple to implement and is such an important skill to teach. Here are some of the reasons that dogs don’t come when called and some ideas of how to prevent this.