Teaching come

[luvmypitties]

Well I am having a hard time with the pup wanting to come to me. When we let him out or in the house, when I call him he doesnt even think about coming to me, not for treats, toys or any kind of interesting noises. So what are the best ways to teach something this young to come to you without using any of the named above that didnt work? I talked to the trainer I work for and she told me to put him on a long leash and snatch at the leash until he came to me, kind of like reeling him in. He would then jump around and cry out like that was hurting him but was it just him getting mad?( for a side note, this is the trainer who trains field labs using fear based training and some other ridiculous methods) We have also noticed with him he is not as people interested.. He would much rather be with the other dogs and is excited to see then after he has been gone but never excited to see me... not even when I use my baby voice and get excited! Not sure what to do...

[mnp13]

do you feed kibble?

if yes, don't feed him at any set meal times - put the food in a treat bag and feed him as the day goes. He'll be hungry and more than willing to come when you call him. Give him a few pieces and then walk away. He'll learn that coming when he is called is a good thing, but you need to have him a little hungry. I think he is too young to actually skip meals, but you'll be feeding him his normal amount, just spread out.

And from what you have said about your employer, I wouldn't ask her a darn thing.

[luvmypitties]

Yes he eats kibble and at night he gets a bit of raw too. He gets fed twice a day. So in the evening before his last meal for the day is when I have been trying to do come with him. He wouldnt even come for the raw. i gave him a bit and moved away and called to him, put the food down in front of me and he still wouldnt come.. And he was hungry because like 20 minutes of trying to get him to come he finally got his food and he ate it very quickly.

[puppycop]

Okay if I am understanding you right, he is more excited to see the other dogs in your house right? I would say if that was the case I would restrict his play time with them and do alot more training time or play time with just the two of you. From the sounds of it he is more bonded to the other dogs then to humans. This is often the case (not saying yours, but in general) when two people get puppies from the same litter. They tend to bond to each other more then the owners. If I am wrong about the other dogs living with you then I wouldn't allow anything more then a quick hello with other dogs until he becomes more interested in you. He has to think you are more fun then other dogs before you will ever get the coming when called down. I would also at this point skip using the coming when called command unless you are going to beable to go get him. Use something else like do you want a treat, if he ignores that you won't be teaching him to ignore the actual command.

Hope this helps some

[katiek0417]

I often use one of the other dogs to get my 6-month old puppy to come....when he does come, I praise him up and give him love, etc. When I am first teaching come, I worry about getting him to come to me....later on, I work on making it pretty (come to front and sit, then finish or come directly to heel). I let him know that just coming to me is fun.

Tina, when you work the come, do you use a leash? Have you tried turning away and running from him?

[InBearsMemory]

You can try training your pup using target training. In this case you would use your hand as the target. Put your pups favorite treat or something very exciting like a piece of chicken nugget in your hand without your pup seeing you do this. Call your pups name followed by "here" or "touch" or whatever command you would like to use, hold your left or right hand (whichever has the treat) by your side and wiggle the hand around until you get your pups attention. Your pup will probably smell the treat in your hand and will come to investigate. As soon as his nose touches your hand praise the living hell out of him and give him the treat. Repeat this a few times and probably after the fourth or fifth try you won't even need to wiggle your hand anymore and your pup will come to you no matter what.
My Loki is 4 1/2 month old and there could be food, toys, dogs whatever around. As soon as I say here and hold my hand by my side he comes running.

I have two videos of training Loki on YouTube that show the "here" command. Please feel free to check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rC74J8QQuY4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8Sq5myTj0M

[luvmypitties]

We have just started using a leash when doing come... and when I say come it is not the command perse... it is more anyway for him to come to me. So now I kind of reeel him in but he doesnt want to come to me at all so he fights it. He wont come for any kind of treat no matter how long I sit there. He wont come for raw meat, kibble, steak, fish, puperonis, NOTHING!!!!

I am worried about seperating him from the other dogs too much for two reasons, Jake is finally ok with the puppy out most of the time and they actually play together and I dont want to ruin that. Then what if I seperate him from the other dogs and he isnt as socialized with them? I have a total of 10 dogs so socialization is a must!!!! He spends most of his time though with Ellie, Jake and Noah. I take him everywhere I go usually with Ellie too. So he spends lots of time with me but Ellie is with him too. So where do I draw the line? How much is too little time to make him unsocialized with dogs?

[luvmypitties]

And that video of Loki is just too cute! The problem I have is I cant even get his attention!!!

[InBearsMemory]

You can try putting him on a leash first and take him in a separate room like your kitchen for example as long as it is away from the other dogs. Let him sniff around or do whatever he wants to do but do not force him to come to you by pulling on the leash. You want him to come to you because it will be rewarding! Once he is doing his thing follow the steps I mentioned previously. You have to make it a point to be very excited about shaking your hand and make it sound like it is the greatest thing in the world since sliced bread. You have to make your dog think that there is really nothing better at this moment than to touch your hand. If he is on a lets say 4 foot leash that should not be a problem at all, even with other dogs around because they probably will get excited as well and come over to investigate what the fuss is all about.

Make sure you use something that you know he will not be able to resist, not just a dry old dogbiscuit or kibble or any of his regular food. It has to be something very high value and very tasty(in your dogs mind that is) like a chicken nugget or even a piece of smoked sausage or something like that. Personally I use Chicken Nuggets, Liver treats and cheese.

It seems that your dog is more excited about meeting the other dogs but if you make it more exciting for him to come to you by using a very excited voice and even dancing around like you are crazy (been there done that, but it works) and then do the touch it will work.

The hardest part about it all is to figure out what exactly it is that excites your dog, this can be food, a toy or whatever. So if your dog really likes to play with other dogs, take him in a separate room and play with him to show him that there is really nothing greater than to play with you. You have to get yourself in that frame of mind that you are the mother of all that is exciting and fun.

I hope this helps.

Rob

[luvmypitties]

Thanks I will try some new things with him tonight and see how things go. I will keep you updated as I am sure i will have some more questions.

[katiek0417]

As far as being socialized with dogs, I never let my young puppies play with the adult dogs. I don't want my adults to be too dominant over my new puppies....As they get older and bigger, then I let them play....as an example, I let my 6 month old puppy out with his father (Jue) and my lab (Sacha) yesterday....Jue got mad, and had the puppy on his back while he was growling...I won't let them play together anymore....

For the come, I always use a leash when i can't get the dog to come to me. Even when I take the dog away from all else, I keep him/her on leash...I give a light tug, and as the dog comes to me, I start praising making a big deal "Good, boy [girl],that's a good come." In a high-pitched mommy voice. When he/she finally gets to me, I totally make a big deal out of it and play, belly rub, treat, etc...

[GregMK9]

A question here that's being over looked is oes your pup spend more time out and playing with the other dogs more then time spent with you?
It's not uncommon for a pup to build a stronger bond with other dogs in the house then it's human. Hence, the pup would want to spend more time with the other dogs then you because of that bond and not come to you when called.
The trick would be to not let the pup out with the other dogs, but as previously stated to make that time out bonding time with just you and the pup. This typically makes a pup want to say near.
Then would come teaching a come command. I always try to use food for this. I know there are people who will say "I don't want my dog to come to me for food, I want im to come because he loves me"! Or what ever other reason. Fact of the matter is dogs are creatures of habit. If you use food to create the habit to come to you when called, eventually the dog will come without the food as long as you first lay a strong foundation.
Some dogs lack a food drive and won't come for food to save there lives. For this type you can either not feed the pup for a day or so (Not recommended. Pups need there nutrients b/c they are still growing), Use a leash, tug/ reel them to you and make a big deal when they get to you. Or, if you have to let the pup out with another dog, make sure it's one that comes to you already. When the older dog gets to you, make a really big deal about it. That should entice the pup to come to over and investigate. When he/she does, praise the hell out of um.
The key is making yourelf more desirable then anything else going on, find a strategy to achieve this goal and stick with it if it's working and stay consistent.

[luvmypitties]

The other dogs do not get aggressive with him at all! Ellie is the one who is with him the most, the other dogs hardly ever see him (Jake and Noah see him everyday but prefer not to play with him so they dont go near each other). Ellie and the puppy go everywhere with me. the puppy sleeps in my lap and spends a good amount of time with me but because Ellie is a shadow she is always there too.

I had lots of extra time today at work so we worked on some things. I got some yummy treats and gave him a couple while he was standing there, then I asked him to come to me by making noises and calling to him in a baby voice. He didnt come right away and it took me a while to get him to come to me by starting off small...like 3 feet away and making it longer. By the end of the night he was coming to me. I have carried around treats in my pocket so whenever i think about it I call to him and give him a treat! He is doing very good. I guess I was going about it the wrong way to begin with. He is a difficult dog, not like Ellie who was easy as pie to train!! Now does anyone know where I can get those treat pouches at?? This pastic baggie thing isnt working too good..

[InBearsMemory]

That sounds great! You can get the treat pouches from

http://www.collarmania.com

[mnp13]

just about any pet store has treat pouches. "fanny packs" work was well.