Recallers delight
With the summer upon us and us all seeking out lovely dog walking spots to enjoy the countryside and our pooches, it’s so important that we continue to work on and maintain a good recall with our dogs. More importantly we must be vigilant for those around us that might not have as a strong of a recall as we would like. We’ve popped some top tips below to ensure you can recall your dog away from distraction and make sure your walks stay enjoyable as well as some pointers on how to avoid altercations with other off lead dogs you might meet.
Practice recall throughout every walk wherever you may go and whatever you might see. Recall shouldn’t only be used when an absolute necessity but should be practiced consistently with your pups so that they just find it a routine behaviour they perform throughout day to day life
Recall should be fun! Avoid those moments where we’re shouting out dogs name to no avail - play recall games, use various motivators as rewards for recall and play around with your method of delivery. Use food, toys, praise and anything else you can think off to encourage and reward a recall and keep mixing it up for your pooches so they can’t predict what they receive. A treat search in the grass, a treat chase across the ground, a tuggy game, a chase the toy game, a touch game, a chase my owner game......,you get the idea!
When you see off lead dogs always recall your dog and if their recall isn’t bomb proof pop them in the lead. Give the off lead dogs lots of space to pass unless you know them and know they are well socialised to interact with your dog
If an off lead dog is making a bee line for you and your pup keep moving in the opposite direction quick and calm with your dog and keep them focussed on you by using your voice and food or a toy to keep them interested in you and not the other dog. If the other dog just won’t let up try stamping your feet to interrupt their chase and point and shout “away” to attempt to direct them in the opposite direction to you. Try to keep moving away from the dog whilst doing this - most dogs will only go so far from their owners before returning to the area their owner is in. If the dog appears aggressive in any way make your way quickly and calmly to an area of safety (car/house) as soon as possible whilst stamping, pointing and calling away to the dog.
Enjoy the summer with your lovely pooches!
