Here we are...back for our Lesson #2 in "Teach me to Come!". After working on Lesson #1 techniques for approximately one week, you are ready to progress. By now, your dog is probably looking forward to this exercise every time you grab his leash because he is now thinking that you are playing "a really fun game where tons of treats are involved". You have set the stage for the following equation:
COME = PRAISE , COME = TREAT
Now that you have a foundation, we are moving to the next level and this will involve having a partner, preferably someone that the dog knows.
LESSON TWO:
- Inside your home, find a place where you and another person can stand approximately 10 feet apart. Each person should take 4-5 treats. One person begins the exercise by placing the dog next to them with their leash dropped. Show the dog the treat (again, small soft treats work best). Have the other person use the same command you have been using, only this time the dog is across the room with their leash dropped. Make sure you instruct this person to use a very deliberate tone by belting out " Dolly - Come". Most likely the dog will respond on the first call. If not, have the person go toward the dog and pick up the leash and pull them back to where they were standing , repeating the command. Treat the dog.
- Immediately after the dog gets their treat, you will do the same thing. Give command, "Dolly - Come". Most likely the dog will now come back to you. If not, go get leash and repeat what the first person did, pulling the dog back to you as you did in lesson one. Keep repeating and the dog will suddenly realize the "back and forth" nature of the game. They keep getting called to come and when the do...Treat Time!
- If your dog has a hard time catching on, move the two people closer together. Once the dog begins to catch on, move further apart. Try this exercise several times a day and by day #3, begin moving further apart. By the end of the week, the goal would be to have the two people move far enough apart into different areas of the house where the dog can't see the other person. The dog will go and seek that person out. By now, we are moving right along and just about to really put them to the test in Lesson #3!! Keep up the good work.
FOOTNOTE: Once your dogs starts actively playing the "back and forth", sometimes they get ahead of themselves. If the dog turns to run to the other person before they are called, have that other person just ignore them as they sniff around looking for their treat. Have the opposite person who just treated the dog call them back to them and then treat them again. Make sure they ONLY get the treat as a result of someone commanding them to come. If your dog has a day when his attention is taken away and he wanders off, simply go find him and pull him toward you and get him back into the game! Good luck this week.
