- Location
- Sydney, Australia
We failed at general recall with Maxx due to having different ideas about how to train him so he is always on lead apart from when he is at the beach at the river where there is only one exit.
I have been working on an emergency recall word for well over a year. Steve knows that he will be decapitated (or worse) if he mutters it under his breath, let alone uses it on Maxx! It is COOOOOEEEEEEE three times. I started in the house and slowly slowly slowly built it up. I reinforce it periodically when we are out and he always runs to me immediately. However he is always on the long lead so I wondered if it would work if he was off lead and heading towards the road. I hoped I never had to find out
And then I did. We did our normal short-lead walk around the Como gardens that has lots of nice paths and a lovely walk along the river. Maxx loves it as there are lots of very nice places to sit and have coffee in the sun where it is sheltered and many of the locals know Maxx so he goes and has a wag at them and leaves some drool on their laps. Then we went to the big rugby field with the 15m lead so he can trot around the trees but still be in our control
We walked past the tennis courts and there was a friendly dog on the inside standing at the wire fence so Maxx went up and they had a nose to nose greeting. All of a sudden Maxx took off like lightening and Steve was taken by surprise and the lead slipped from his hand. Oh boy. He wasn't heading for the road thankfully but to his favourite bushes where he once found a dead kookaburra. I yelled COOOOOEEEEEEEE at the top of my lungs and our gorgeous boy turned on a dime and bolted back to me like his life depended on it. I emptied the treat bag! I use extra smelly footy frankfurts (kind of like hot dog frankfurts only worse. Apparently for human consumption but YICK) for this and they are never used elsewhere and I think that helps 'cos he loves them.
PHEW!
I have been working on an emergency recall word for well over a year. Steve knows that he will be decapitated (or worse) if he mutters it under his breath, let alone uses it on Maxx! It is COOOOOEEEEEEE three times. I started in the house and slowly slowly slowly built it up. I reinforce it periodically when we are out and he always runs to me immediately. However he is always on the long lead so I wondered if it would work if he was off lead and heading towards the road. I hoped I never had to find out
And then I did. We did our normal short-lead walk around the Como gardens that has lots of nice paths and a lovely walk along the river. Maxx loves it as there are lots of very nice places to sit and have coffee in the sun where it is sheltered and many of the locals know Maxx so he goes and has a wag at them and leaves some drool on their laps. Then we went to the big rugby field with the 15m lead so he can trot around the trees but still be in our control
We walked past the tennis courts and there was a friendly dog on the inside standing at the wire fence so Maxx went up and they had a nose to nose greeting. All of a sudden Maxx took off like lightening and Steve was taken by surprise and the lead slipped from his hand. Oh boy. He wasn't heading for the road thankfully but to his favourite bushes where he once found a dead kookaburra. I yelled COOOOOEEEEEEEE at the top of my lungs and our gorgeous boy turned on a dime and bolted back to me like his life depended on it. I emptied the treat bag! I use extra smelly footy frankfurts (kind of like hot dog frankfurts only worse. Apparently for human consumption but YICK) for this and they are never used elsewhere and I think that helps 'cos he loves them.
PHEW!
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