Calling Your Dog Away from Critters

by Nancy Frensley,
CPDT-KA,CAP2, AKC Evaluator, CGC/Trick Dog/Fit Dog

Encounters with other animals can be dangerous to dogs. Even the most seemingly benign critters pose some hazards, such as bites, disease, or (in the case of dead animals) harmful bones. And most folks simply don’t enjoy watching their dog eat, say, a bloody squirrel. A consistent response to your voice, whistle, or signal can be a blessing. But it does take work.

Baby steps are the key to success. Begin with several recall-training sessions a day in your house or yard. Once the dog is totally stuck on getting to you in those settings, start training in other locations, beginning with ones that are familiar to your dog. Even a small change of venue from a floor or concrete surface to vegetation can present a giant challenge for your pet. Return to a previous level if you get even one failure in the new place. You can achieve great recall if you are willing to proceed by these small increments. In the meantime, don’t use your chosen cue in any places where you are likely to get failures. 

I am currently taking a rigorous snake-avoidance class with my little critter-oriented beast. Not that we expect to run into many snakes, but she is highly predatory and, as with most prey driven dogs, her brain turns off to anything else. The class requires a near-perfect recall even before we can proceed to snake recognition. I’m using a whistle so that my changing voice and moods are not reflected in my communication to my dog. (I’m fond of the Silent Whistle and will change to it once I have the recall I want with the audible one.) I reward my dog for a successful recall with the finest of cheese, hot dogs, and other delicacies. After all, I am competing with what is dearest to her heart. I can’t let a distraction win even once, so I must carefully weigh when to venture into a new practice space. 

The ability to get a reliable recall response under distractions is one of the most difficult operations for my students to achieve. Still, even a small amount of daily work will improve your dog’s recall. The result could be life-saving one day. 

Nancy Frensley is a dog trainer at the Berkeley Humane Society