How to Train a Reliable Recall for Your Dog

One of the most important skills your dog can learn is to come when called, or recall. But teaching your dog a recall cue can be challenging, since dogs find so many other things so interesting—sniffing around on a trail, playing with another dog, and a million other possible things. Whenever we ask our dog to come to us, we are asking them to stop what they are doing and turn away from something else they’re interested in. So to build a reliable recall, we have to teach our dogs that being near us is the most fun and rewarding thing they can possibly imagine.

What Is “Reliable” Recall?

“Reliable recall” means that when you call your dog to come, you are 99.99% sure they are going to enthusiastically respond and actually come to you. Dogs aren’t robots, so there is never a guarantee that they will listen to your cue. But with a lifesaving skill like recall, we are working towards them being as consistent as possible.

Having a reliable recall is especially important if you are planning to allow your dog off-leash outside of a fenced yard or inside a dog park. Reliable recall is also critically important in the event of an emergency where you absolutely need your dog to come to you so they can be safely secured.

Using a Leash to Work Toward Off-Leash Confidence

If you’re not confident in your dog’s recall, there’s no rule that says that you ever need to allow them to be off-leash. In fact, keeping your dog leashed as you work on your skills is the far more responsible option. You may choose to never allow your dog offleash outside your own home or yard, and that’s also completely okay. Your dog’s safety is paramount, and so is the safety of other dogs, people, and other animals in your neighborhood.

Let your dog play off-leash only in safely secured areas, and practice your recall within that safe perimeter. Once you’re ready to venture into a larger (and more distracting) area like a park, use a long-line leash (15 to 20 feet long) that gives your dog more room to explore while still keeping them and others safe (and following leash laws).

No matter how strong your dog’s recall is, responsible dog ownership always means respecting all local leash laws. Even in your own front yard or areas of your yard that aren’t fenced, leash laws can apply. Local, state, and national parks will have their own set of leash rules in effect.

Find your ideal recall training spaces, and build your skills there before you try and venture anywhere offleash. Practicing where it’s less-distracting and safe lets both you and your dog be more relaxed, and being relaxed leads to better training sessions.

How to Teach Your Dog to Recall

An important part of teaching your dog to recall is to make training a game for your dog. Start your training in a slow, low-distraction environment, like inside your house. First, show your dog a favorite dog toy or a tasty treat, praise them as they are coming toward you, and make sure to reward them. After a few repetitions, whenever your dog looks at you and starts to move towards you, add in your chosen verbal cue (“come,” “here,” etc.). Make sure to only add in the cue when you are confident your dog is moving towards you.

You can slowly up the ante by asking your dog to recall before showing them the treat. But be sure to reward with a high-value treat like chicken, cheese, or freeze-dried beef liver when they get to you. Also, try slowly adding distance within your low-distraction environment.

Recall Games to Play With Your Dog

• Catch Me: While walking your dog on-leash, get their attention, then turn around and run a few steps. As your pup moves with you, say “Come!” or whatever verbal cue you’ve picked for your recall. After a few steps, stop and reward with a treat or a toy. Before you run, make sure your dog is paying attention to ensure the leash does not yank at them.
• Find Me: Once your dog has gotten the hang of recall, you can build speed by calling them from another room. When your dog finds you, offer lots of praise and rewards. This hide-and-seek-like game is a lot of fun for both pets and people!
• Hot Potato: Gather up two or more family members or friends and give them high-value treats. Next, stand apart and take turns calling your dog between you. Reward your dog each time they come to the person who called them.

A common training mistake is to only recall your dog when it’s time for the fun to end. If the only time you use your recall cue is when the leash clips on and you head home from the park, your dog will start to associate recall with something they don’t enjoy, which can make them less likely to recall in the future.

Instead, try randomly recalling your dog while fun is happening. While they are off playing with a favorite friend in the yard, use your recall, praise them profusely for coming to you, reward them with their favorite treat, and then release them to go off and play again. Do this a few times during a play session so they don’t start to think recall only means “time to go home.”

Poisoning the Cue

“Bailey, here! Here! Bailey, here! Here, Bailey! Bailey, here please!”

If this sounds like your dog’s current recall, you may have a “poisoned cue.” This usually happens unintentionally either when the cue has an unclear meaning, or it takes on a negative association for the dog, so they ignore it. The easiest way to poison a cue is to overuse it, repeating the word over and over without your dog responding.

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In this case, the best thing to do is to change your verbal cue to something new and start fresh. For example, if you had previously used “come,” you could shift to something like “here” or “close.” Go back to basics and start at the beginning when introducing the new recall cue.

Recall Training Tips

• Avoid repeating yourself: If you have to repeat your recall cue, the environment may be too distracting. Alternatively, your dog may not understand the skill well enough for the level at which you are trying to train them.
• Reward eye contact: When you notice your dog is looking at you or has self-selected to be close to you, verbally praise and give them their favorite treat. You may use a lot of treats or play sessions at first, but that’s the point. You are reinforcing an important lesson to your dog: when your dog is near you and paying attention to you, good things happen. Think of these training “payments” as money in the bank saving up for an excellent recall.
• Never punish your dog for coming to you: Even if you are frustrated because your dog took their time before coming, always, always praise a recall.
• Reward!: When training recalls, use high-value treats and toys for your dog. This is especially true when your dog is learning. Always reward the recall, because you want them to associate coming with getting something great.
• Practice recalls daily: Slowly increase the difficulty and level of distraction. Moving too quickly is likely to confuse your dog and may lead to less reliability.
• If you require recall in an emergency, don’t chase your dog: That is likely to make them continue the “game” by moving away from you. Instead, try running away from your dog to inspire them to chase after you.