# Long line and recall advice please!!



## DB1 (Jan 20, 2012)

As Dudley's recall seems to have gone out of the window and his chase instinct is overtaking everything else I invested in a long line recently, I've just used it as an alternative to being off lead really, he loves running round me in massive circles so I'm getting fitter having to jump over it! he doesn't often get to the end of it (its 50ft) except when he chases something - birds usually, or tries to run to another dog across the park, I do let him off to play if I meet other dogs that are friendly and obedient. When I call him to me now he will sort of come to me (though not often if other dogs are there), he runs towards me then either swerves to the side or goes past! he was doing a lovely recall before. Have any of you done any specific training when using a long line and do any of you have any advice on improving recall, I use lots of yummy treats already. sorry - gone on a bit!!


----------



## Fiver (Nov 26, 2011)

DB1 said:


> As Dudley's recall seems to have gone out of the window and his chase instinct is overtaking everything else I invested in a long line recently, I've just used it as an alternative to being off lead really, he loves running round me in massive circles so I'm getting fitter having to jump over it! he doesn't often get to the end of it (its 50ft) except when he chases something - birds usually, or tries to run to another dog across the park, I do let him off to play if I meet other dogs that are friendly and obedient. When I call him to me now he will sort of come to me (though not often if other dogs are there), he runs towards me then either swerves to the side or goes past! he was doing a lovely recall before. Have any of you done any specific training when using a long line and do any of you have any advice on improving recall, I use lots of yummy treats already. sorry - gone on a bit!!


Dawn how funny,Milo and me did this long lead training on Tues.As you may know Milo is very bouncy (naughty) and has selective hearing especially in the company of other dogs and people.He is let off his lead daily by my hubby and obviously has reasonable recall because we still have him (joking) I love him really even with all his faults.He is good in quiet areas but a little more difficult around other dogs, he just wants to meet and greet and run. So at training this week when the trainer said we were doing long lead training outside in a field with the other pups, I thought this is going to be a disaster....but it wasn't. The idea is not to hold the end of the lead but to let him run with the lead attached to his collar.I was told to walk away from him and call his name, he comes bounding up and I was to drop treats on the floor,not to attempt to catch but to walk away from him and repeat with the treats on the ground.Keep doing it and he will follow,change direction and do not go after him and it does work.Milo did get distracted by a couple of pups and a huge pile of horse poo but I just kept walking and calling and he followed me:whoo: The idea of the treats on the ground is that it takes time for them to find and eat and you can put your foot on the long lead when the training is over.


----------



## tessybear (May 1, 2011)

Dexter went through exactly the same at 6 months. I was so worried that he would end up being a dog who I couldnt recall. Thanks to advice from this forum I made up some liver treats ( fresh liver fried, chopped and then frozen) and always took him on his walks hungry with them my pocket. It really did the trick, the smell of the liver was just too tempting and he always came to me when called. Now he is good as gold when we are out. 
Ordinary treats didn't work, there is something special about the smell of liver in fact every dog in the park would be a sniffing around me!


----------



## DB1 (Jan 20, 2012)

Thank you Val and Tess, Val it does sound as if our boys are quite similar, the throwing treats around sounds interesting although I'm not sure it would work on Dudley with distractions around, he is pretty good at coming back to me when I do the running the other way thing anyway as long as he hasn't spotted another dog (or a low flying bird!), but any distractions are much more interesting to him at the moment than me even when I have liver!! although funny enough Tess I did use liver yesterday and when the park was empty it did bring him right back to me, so I guess it is just practice. I do leave the line trailing half the time but try to stay in reach of it, as if he goes off on a chase there would be no benefit if I couldn't reach the end! He did chase a cat out of a small park and onto a street recently which is what I want to be able to stop. A little story to show treats don't work well with him... I'm still going to training classes with him, we were doing an activity where we showed them that we put a treat under a plastic tub, walked away with them then sent them back with the find it command, of course all the other dogs did brilliantly, getting the treat then returning to their owners - Dudley ignored the treat and ran off with the plastic tub!! you have to laugh.


----------



## tessybear (May 1, 2011)

Exactly, Dexter doesn't care a jot about normal treats that's why I go to the trouble of making the liver ones!


----------



## theaccessman (Mar 12, 2012)

When we took class we performed recall with the long lead in place
First a Sit-stay
Then walk away the length of the lead if possible ( sometimes a puppy in class would need a second person to hold their collar to keep them in place)
Recall the puppy (name and come only once) and when they start to you praise all along the wayo you use their collar to stop a run by and have your other hand full of the best treat you can think of
While praising them like you just won the lotto feed them at least ten treats in a row
It seemed to work quite well for all of the puppies in class and as the weeks passed distractions were introduced with no negative effects on the recall


----------



## Lozzie (Apr 1, 2012)

I have exactly this problem too!! The only thing that is slightly different is that Willow will recall perfectly to me in the house and most of the time at training (sometimes she's so excited that she gets up too much speed and skid past me!!) but nothing will make her come back in the field! I have to be very careful with treats because she has a dodgy tum and those that smell the best (which she loves to eat when given the chance) like cheese and liver cake are the treats that make her runs the worst! I even had one occasion where I had her recalling really well with some treats but then she saw some people and there was no getting her back, even though she knew I had the treats! I feel like I'm resigned to keeping her on a lead unless she's with other dogs who will recall  Birds, dogs and people are my downfall.


----------



## DONNA (Jan 7, 2011)

Trust me 50% of the problem is his age they all seem to go through similar.

I tried the longline with Buddy but i kept getting tangled up and he would always seem to manage to drag the lead through some sort of poo (yuck)

So i went back to lots of lead walks and recall practice in the garden ,then after a week we went to his local field again with the long line and just kept doing lots and lots of recall and treating again i did this for a week.

Then i went onto an extension lead so he had a bit of freedom in the field everytime we met a friendly dog i would let him off lead let them play then recall and treat pop the lead back on and off we'd go,for his second walk of the day it was always on a short lead.

He now is allowed off lead again and 99% of the time his recall is great i always recall and treat though i think i always will just to keep reinforcing the positive.And i always do a short lead walk i use a gentle leader and Buddy walks perfectly with it.


----------



## Fiver (Nov 26, 2011)

DB1 said:


> Thank you Val and Tess, Val it does sound as if our boys are quite similar, the throwing treats around sounds interesting although I'm not sure it would work on Dudley with distractions around, he is pretty good at coming back to me when I do the running the other way thing anyway as long as he hasn't spotted another dog (or a low flying bird!), but any distractions are much more interesting to him at the moment than me even when I have liver!! although funny enough Tess I did use liver yesterday and when the park was empty it did bring him right back to me, so I guess it is just practice. I do leave the line trailing half the time but try to stay in reach of it, as if he goes off on a chase there would be no benefit if I couldn't reach the end! He did chase a cat out of a small park and onto a street recently which is what I want to be able to stop. A little story to show treats don't work well with him... I'm still going to training classes with him, we were doing an activity where we showed them that we put a treat under a plastic tub, walked away with them then sent them back with the find it command, of course all the other dogs did brilliantly, getting the treat then returning to their owners - Dudley ignored the treat and ran off with the plastic tub!! you have to laugh.


Oh Dawn 
Forget any advice I've given on this thread. I was obviously too smug about Milo and his daily recalls with my hubby.I really thought he was getting better and I can't believe I was handing out advice to you yesterday and today he has been a horror....could think of a stronger word to use,but not allowed to swear on the forum.I came home from work today to a angry moody husband complaining about our delinquent disobedient dog. He had taken Milo on his usual walk which finishes in the park for Milo to have a run off lead.All was going well until he recalled him....nothing! The little s-d wouldn't come back, he would come to within 5ft of him and then run off.After spending ages in the park and getting more and more annoyed my hubby decided to walk home. Milo followed off lead about 6ft behind all the way home.I can't tell you how sick it made me feel,anything could have happened.Needless to say Milo will not be off lead again and I shall practise what I preach and invest in a long lead.Our house tonight is a very annoying house,hubby is still annoyed with Milo and his antics and I'm annoyed with him for leaving the park with Milo off lead I am beginning to think I've got the naughtiest cockerpoo ever

Val


----------



## DB1 (Jan 20, 2012)

Oh Val - they do try us don't they - Cockapoo's and husbands!! I wonder if the recall when other dogs are around only gets better as they get a little older and are not so desperate to play with everything! Dudley isn't too bad when its just us and no distractions,
William thanks, but to honest Dudley used to be good and we did similar training but its gone out of the window now!(do you use that expression over there?!).
Thanks everyone but I guess its just lots of practice, actually Dudley is getting better walks with the long line as when I used to let him off lead I was always thinking 'well he's had a run - lets quit whilst we're ahead' now he's on the long line unless its a road walk. Yes Donna it has been dragged through a few yukky things and been soaked in a bucket of washing powder when we have got home! Val I would say definitely get one, mine's 50ft, I don't think the 30ft ones would be worth it (may as well just have a retractor lead) - got mine off e-bay, what did we do before that was around!!


----------

