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How do you teach recall to an older dog?



 
 
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  #1  
Old August 12th 05, 03:15 PM
Janet Puistonen
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Default How do you teach recall to an older dog?

I'm about to launch into this in earnest with my rescue dog, who is about 16
months old and has no idea of it at all. In fact, usually the reverse. (Her
previous owners taught her to beg on her hind legs and shake hands, but not
to sit, down, stay, heel, or come. Grrrrrr...) I've read about various
methods over the years, but always had the benefit of puppyhood when
teaching it.

What does everyone else do with an older dog, especially a spooky, wilfull,
not-too-bright one who regards most things with suspicion G? At the moment
she'll come when she knows there's a treat to be had, but only occasionally
otherwise. (The "occasionally otherwise" actually represents a significant
amount of progress, believe it or not.)


  #2  
Old August 12th 05, 06:38 PM
Ronna
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Janet Puistonen wrote:
I'm about to launch into this in earnest with my rescue dog, who is about 16
months old and has no idea of it at all. In fact, usually the reverse. (Her
previous owners taught her to beg on her hind legs and shake hands, but not
to sit, down, stay, heel, or come. Grrrrrr...) I've read about various
methods over the years, but always had the benefit of puppyhood when
teaching it.

What does everyone else do with an older dog, especially a spooky, wilfull,
not-too-bright one who regards most things with suspicion G? At the moment
she'll come when she knows there's a treat to be had, but only occasionally
otherwise. (The "occasionally otherwise" actually represents a significant
amount of progress, believe it or not.)


One way is to teach her to come to a whistle. Blow the whistle then
drop a piece of hot dog (or whatever treat she loves). Do this
repeatedly until she gets the idea that whistle means treat. Then
practice in the back yard when she is loose. You have to be consistent
and reward everytime she comes to you. You can also use your voice the
same way, tell her to COME, then drop the hot dog for her

  #3  
Old August 12th 05, 06:57 PM
Perry Templeton
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Default

I am watching this thread...I am curious.
How do you deal with a dog that looks to see if there is a treat present,
then sometines makes the decision to "come" based on that. My recall is
about 90%, but I live on a busy road and I really would like to develop 100%
recall. I am completely fenced and secure, but twice in two years, company
has left the door open. (I know, that's a whole training issue there, too.
We do really well with the door thing, but we have a lot of company all the
time, and these two instances, the door was left invitingly open tooooo
long.)

Perry
"Ronna" wrote in message
ps.com...

Janet Puistonen wrote:
I'm about to launch into this in earnest with my rescue dog, who is about
16
months old and has no idea of it at all. In fact, usually the reverse.
(Her
previous owners taught her to beg on her hind legs and shake hands, but
not
to sit, down, stay, heel, or come. Grrrrrr...) I've read about various
methods over the years, but always had the benefit of puppyhood when
teaching it.

What does everyone else do with an older dog, especially a spooky,
wilfull,
not-too-bright one who regards most things with suspicion G? At the
moment
she'll come when she knows there's a treat to be had, but only
occasionally
otherwise. (The "occasionally otherwise" actually represents a
significant
amount of progress, believe it or not.)


One way is to teach her to come to a whistle. Blow the whistle then
drop a piece of hot dog (or whatever treat she loves). Do this
repeatedly until she gets the idea that whistle means treat. Then
practice in the back yard when she is loose. You have to be consistent
and reward everytime she comes to you. You can also use your voice the
same way, tell her to COME, then drop the hot dog for her



  #4  
Old August 12th 05, 07:04 PM
shelly
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Default

on 2005-08-12 at 12:57 wrote:

I am watching this thread...I am curious. How do you deal
with a dog that looks to see if there is a treat present,
then sometines makes the decision to "come" based on that.


don't let them see the treat. sometimes harriet gets a
regular treat, sometimes she gets Really Good Treat, and
sometimes she gets bupkis (well, not exactly bupkis--she
always gets praised, regardless). she never knows which of
those three it'll be, which is a good reinforcement.

My recall is about 90%, but I live on a busy road and I
really would like to develop 100% recall. I am completely
fenced and secure, but twice in two years, company has left
the door open. (I know, that's a whole training issue there,
too. We do really well with the door thing, but we have a
lot of company all the time, and these two instances, the
door was left invitingly open tooooo long.)


work on teaching them that they are *notnotnot* allowed to
cross the threshold without permission. it's a lot easier
than you might think.

--
shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net
http://cat-sidh.blogspot.com/
http://letters-to-esther.blogspot.com/ (updated 7/10/05)
  #5  
Old August 12th 05, 07:23 PM
Perry Templeton
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Default

"work on teaching them that they are *notnotnot* allowed to cross the
threshold without permission. it's a lot easier
than you might think."

I do just that...but somehow, I think the dog percieved permission from the
company.

I also do the variety thing with the treats. Just looking for more tips and
pointers.

Perry

"shelly" wrote in message
arble.net...
on 2005-08-12 at 12:57 wrote:

I am watching this thread...I am curious. How do you deal
with a dog that looks to see if there is a treat present,
then sometines makes the decision to "come" based on that.


don't let them see the treat. sometimes harriet gets a
regular treat, sometimes she gets Really Good Treat, and
sometimes she gets bupkis (well, not exactly bupkis--she
always gets praised, regardless). she never knows which of
those three it'll be, which is a good reinforcement.

My recall is about 90%, but I live on a busy road and I
really would like to develop 100% recall. I am completely
fenced and secure, but twice in two years, company has left
the door open. (I know, that's a whole training issue there,
too. We do really well with the door thing, but we have a
lot of company all the time, and these two instances, the
door was left invitingly open tooooo long.)


work on teaching them that they are *notnotnot* allowed to
cross the threshold without permission. it's a lot easier
than you might think.

--
shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net
http://cat-sidh.blogspot.com/
http://letters-to-esther.blogspot.com/ (updated 7/10/05)



  #6  
Old August 12th 05, 07:32 PM
shelly
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Posts: n/a
Default

on 2005-08-12 at 13:23 wrote:

I do just that...but somehow, I think the dog percieved
permission from the company.


then you aren't being clear with your dogs on the definition
of "permission." i think that's not quite fair on your part.

I also do the variety thing with the treats. Just looking
for more tips and pointers.


and i gave you one: don't let them know whether or not you
have anything to give them, until they've come to you and
you're ready to treat them (or not).

--
shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net
http://cat-sidh.blogspot.com/
http://letters-to-esther.blogspot.com/ (updated 7/10/05)
  #7  
Old August 12th 05, 08:14 PM
Perry Templeton
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Posts: n/a
Default

"and i gave you one: don't let them know whether or not you
have anything to give them, until they've come to you and
you're ready to treat them (or not)"
"shelly"

Ok...this is where my question lies. Not ALL dogs train the same. There
are posters on the group...that proclaim "NOT allowed in my house, yada,
yada". "won't allow a dog to NOT come"...
I have one dog who is 13yo who is 110% recall reliable, I have even shut her
down in full chase after a squirrel. My little mixed terrier is pretty
reliable, but then she's not very bright, but awfully trainable and really
cute.
The negotiator is clever. I do dedicated training, I work on the recall. I
call her from where she can't see me or not to see if I have a treat.
Not all dogs react or train the same way. Like I said, just looking for
some pointers and some tips.
I hear all the "rules" and yes the rules help, but I can't get my girlie dog
to read the rule book. (I know, read it myself and teach it to her) Not
all good dogs go by the rules. It's not because she's the one that gets by
with things...All the dogs have gotten the same training. I get compliments
on how well behaved they are. This particular dog is an independent
thinker. She's a Boston, about 2.5 years old. Female, spayed.

Perry


  #8  
Old August 12th 05, 09:55 PM
Janet Puistonen
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Default

Perry Templeton wrote:
I am watching this thread...I am curious.
How do you deal with a dog that looks to see if there is a treat
present, then sometines makes the decision to "come" based on that. My
recall is about 90%, but I live on a busy road and I really would
like to develop 100% recall. I am completely fenced and secure, but
twice in two years, company has left the door open. (I know, that's
a whole training issue there, too. We do really well with the door
thing, but we have a lot of company all the time, and these two
instances, the door was left invitingly open tooooo long.)

Perry


I live on a road with a fair amount of traffic also, Perry, and I trained my
dog to never go through the door unless given permission. (We're working on
this with the new one.) What I do is this: every time I go to the door with
the dogs, I have them sit. I then step through the door, make eye contact
with the dog, wait a moment, then tell them to come along. Actually, with
the older one I wouldn't go through this routine any more--since he's fully
trained on this,I'd just give him permission to go out--but I'm doing it to
train the younger one.


  #9  
Old August 12th 05, 10:03 PM
Janet Puistonen
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Posts: n/a
Default

Ronna wrote:
Janet Puistonen wrote:
I'm about to launch into this in earnest with my rescue dog, who is
about 16 months old and has no idea of it at all. In fact, usually
the reverse. (Her previous owners taught her to beg on her hind legs
and shake hands, but not to sit, down, stay, heel, or come.
Grrrrrr...) I've read about various methods over the years, but
always had the benefit of puppyhood when teaching it.

What does everyone else do with an older dog, especially a spooky,
wilfull, not-too-bright one who regards most things with suspicion
G? At the moment she'll come when she knows there's a treat to be
had, but only occasionally otherwise. (The "occasionally otherwise"
actually represents a significant amount of progress, believe it or
not.)


One way is to teach her to come to a whistle. Blow the whistle then
drop a piece of hot dog (or whatever treat she loves). Do this
repeatedly until she gets the idea that whistle means treat. Then
practice in the back yard when she is loose. You have to be
consistent and reward everytime she comes to you. You can also use
your voice the same way, tell her to COME, then drop the hot dog for
her


Ooh, I like this one. She is definitely food oriented, so it should work
well. (When we first got her, I used a lot of treating to get her to walk on
a leash, pay attention to me, and so on. She was so keyed up that it was
the only thing that could even semi-capture her attention. If something like
a motorcycle passed us, she lost even the ability to pay attention to
treats. The other day, one passed us and she didn't even give it a glance. I
have to remind myself periodically that she has made progress...)


  #10  
Old August 12th 05, 10:14 PM
shelly
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Posts: n/a
Default

on 2005-08-12 at 14:14 wrote:

The negotiator is clever. I do dedicated training, I work on
the recall. I call her from where she can't see me or not to
see if I have a treat.


then how is she "looking to see" if there's a treat present?
i can only answer based on the information you give. when
that information is that the dog is checking for treats, it
indicates to me that you're allowing her to discern whether or
not a treat will be forthcoming and to tailor her behavior
accordingly.

if you want help with a specific problem, it would be a good
idea to describe the actual problem you're having. otherwise,
we're talking at cross-purposes.

This particular dog is an independent thinker.


yes, well, i wouldn't know anything about independent
thinkers.

--
shelly
http://www.cat-sidh.net
http://cat-sidh.blogspot.com/
http://letters-to-esther.blogspot.com/ (updated 7/10/05)
 




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