Will not come when called

[DonnaKarman]

I am at my wits end. I have a fairly new dog almost 4 years old. We have worked on all the basic commands and she is very smart and has been coming when called up to recently. We live in a rural area and my lot is very wooded. Behind me is a small farm with dog,cows, and horses which she recently has found. This morning she ran off as I called her back without any hesitation she kept going causing havoc with the animals chasing them in their pen. I had to get her leash and bring her home. I cannot have a dog that won't come when called (which she had been). She has become more comfortable here and now less nervous to venture off her property. I tried walking the property several times. She is given treats for coming but that does not compete with penned animals to chase. We do walk every day and play catch or freebie so she does get a lot of exercise. She is a mix breed dog part Pit Bull and Shepard, high energy. Her previous owner did not have the time to work with her or exercise her, but if I cannot break her of this habit I will be forced to take her back, as I cannot keep her from the neighbors yard. It seems as though as soon as I let her out she runs. Please help with some suggestions as to methods I may try, not willing to throw in the towel yet, I have become attached. 

Thank you, Donna

[Adrienne]

Hi Donna Karman,

I am sure this is very upsetting, and you also don't want her to upset your neighbor's farm animals. Not to mention, she can endanger herself as well being kicked/run over by the farm animals or maybe eating something toxic there or being run over by some car. 

Is she left outside alone during the day or is she always outside with you?

Would you consider erecting some type of fencing? 

Is she spayed?

 

 

 

 

[DonnaKarman]

The property is over an acre and is in the woods so a fence would not be an option. She is spade. I usually go out with her and she for the most part has come when I called; except for recently she stopped at the top if the hill when I called then darted off to the neighbors.  No matter how much I called I could not get her back. I tried everything to intise her back, had to get her leash. 

I have grown attached and want her to stay. My background is in behavioral science so I am aware of reward/punishment, cause and effect basis. I have two scenarios 1. She does not do this in the morning as she gets fed after going out to relieve herself. What if I divide all her food for the day and feed her from her bowl everytime she comes in? Risking her erge to constantly wanting to go out. Or 2. Never have I tried this but what do you think of a shock collar?

She is high energy and I do spend time with playing and allowing her to run the property and play frisbee.  She does not seem to like her walks. She has a lot of nervous energy and while walking she walks with her tail between her legs. Not sure why except occasionally they have been known to fire guns around during hunting. 

I am a senior and love the challenge of making her a comfortable happy dog. She has never been trained and in the month that I have had her she has come a long way. Knows her commands sit,stay,come,leave it,down, drop, working on heal. This is not my first crazy dog. 

Any suggestions?

[Adrienne]

Thank you for the extra details, they are very helpful!

That's good if you usually go out with her, because you'll have the opportunity to have her more under control. Here's the thing, we don't want to allow rehearsal of the problematic behavior because, as you already may know, repeated access to anything reinforcing makes the behavior become stronger and much more difficult to extinguish. You are battling against ingrained instincts here, and controlling such instincts requires an advanced level of training and a good level of impulse control. This doesn't happen overnight, so you will need to manage your dog in the meanwhile (actually, long-term management may be best solution and the ultimate safest option), preventing rehearsal of the chasing behavior as much as possible.  

On top of this, we need to consider safety. While cows and horses look like rather peaceful animals, when they are in a state of panic, they can potentially injure and even kill a dog. This is especially true when there are calves to protect, turning these pacific animals into threatening should they feel their babies are at risk. A study found that cows find dogs more threatening than unfamiliar humans, and this is possibly because dogs resemble potential predators. Dogs can therefore be attacked by cows and risk being easily crushed, butted or trampled to death.

Not to mention, if a dog manages to escape and starts chasing a farmer's livestock such as sheep, horses or cows, a farmer has the legal right to shoot and kill the dog. This law is present in many USA States and it goes back to over a hundred years.  Also, many livestock guarding dogs will not accept another dog in their properties and messing with livestock. So we really need to have this behavior under control to prevent rehearsal and protecting your dog and your neighbor's livestock.

About fencing, it doesn't have to include the whole acreage, you can just fence up a small portion enough for leading your home's back door to an enclosed area and having the peace of mind that your dog won't escape. Your dog can sniff around, play games with you and you can practice recalls there. One of my neighbors has a shepherd mix and Aussie and these dogs are always driving him nuts as they are super high energy and last time they took off after a group of javalina (pig-looking animals quite common in Arizona) He had the scare of his life as they took off and these animals walk in large groups and are aggressive towards dogs when they have babies. 

I invited him over to my 1-acre yard and we worked on some recall training and he was impressed on how great it felt to finally relax knowing that his dogs weren't going to chase after animals or take off and have him wondering where they went. My 1 acre chain-link fence cost me back in time $ 6,000 and he wasn't interested in spending that much, so after some time of thinking things over, he decided to go smaller and got only 1/4 acre for less than $2,000. He made it high enough to prevent escape and of a gauge suitable for large dogs. The peace of mind for him has been priceless. 

If fencing is not an option, there are other ways to keep dogs outside without a fence such as building an outdoor dog kennel, installing an outdoor dog pen and gate to section off areas on a deck, patio, and lawn and using tie-outs such as stake tie-outs or trolley tie-outs, however these latter need to be crafted specifically for dogs of your weight and size and supervision is always recommended as no tie-outs are entirely dog-proof. It goes without saying that they should be used for limited amounts of time. Stakes can work their way out, trolleys may snap and dogs may get tangled. You'll therefore need to ensure these options will withstand a determined dog.

Invisible fences consist of underground wire set around the perimeter of an area and a collar equipped with a transmitter which provides a signal (under the form of shock) to deter the dog from advancing towards the perimeter. Although invisible fences are very popular nowadays, they come with several risks that need to be outlined. First of all, with dogs who love to chase things, their arousal levels may be so high that they'll just run right through the shock without flinching. Secondly, invisible fences may contain dogs up to a certain extent, but they won't do anything to prevent other dogs, animals, people or children from entering their territory. This may put the dog at risk and people at risk if your dog doesn't do well with people entering her property.

Thirdly, there are cases where dogs become traumatized by the invisible fences due to the shock they emit. Some dogs start becoming fearful of being in the yard and some even won't go potty any more outside. These dogs are referred to as '"porch sitters" by those in the industry. Not to mention, countless dogs once they escape from an invisible fence will be scared to return back in fear of the shock. Animal control is very well aware of this phenomenon as they often see stray dogs wearing their collars lingering around their properties but too scared to return. Because of these risks, more and more dog trainers no longer recommend these fences. Shock collars risk having the same effect since it's avoidance training. 

If fencing is not an option, you can find a good compromise by using a long line.  A long line is like a long leash that is often used for horses who need to be trained and exercised. You can find long lines in horse tack stores, but nowadays more and more places sell them specifically made for dogs.

A long line is typically made of nylon and is advertised to be used for distance training and training recalls,  going on hikes, camping sites or for hunting or for simply letting dogs romp around the yard or your land. In order to use a long line, you will need to hold the other end of the line and therefore need to always be out with your dog. If you are usually out with your dog anyhow, this may be a good option. Simply clip it on before opening the door and your dog is free to romp around, sniff and be a dog. 

With the long line on, you can work on foundation work for a good recall.  It's important though to emphasize that no dog training can be ever 100 percent effective, so a day may come where your dog won't come to you when called for various reasons, such as you haven't trained to a certain level of distraction, you call your dog too late (once she already took off) or windy conditions muffle your voice over long distances. Also, you must always be there with your dog when she's off-leash and you must always pay attention to her.

All dogs should be trained a reliable recall. This cue can save your dog's life and keep her out of trouble. You cannot expect though to have a dog respond to your recall in presence of livestock if she struggles coming when called when out in the yard with nothing going on or when  she sees birds or squirrels.

Training a reliable recall requires lots of practice and foundational work. You'll need to gradually expose your dog to more and more distracting situations and at increasing distances, raising criteria slowly and at your dog's pace. You'll need to reward your dog super generously for ignoring tempting sights and choosing to come over you. Whatever you offer needs to be very salient to grab her attention. 

Only once the recall is proofed, can you expect a good level of response, although as mentioned there is no such thing as a 100 percent reliable recall. Dogs are not robots, and will always remain dogs and a day may come where they'll be exposed to a situation you haven't yet practiced with. If you are ever not sure on whether your dog will come when called in a specific situation, keep her on leash just to be sure. Every time you call your dog and your recall goes to deaf years, you are weakening it. In some dogs, where the recall has weakened to the point of the dog not even looking, it may work best to start from fresh and change the recall. So if it was "Rover come" it can be something like  "Rover That'll Do!"-

Boundary training is also an option, although as with the recall, you can't get that 100 percent reassurance that you can almost get with a secure fence. Here is a brief guide on how to boundary train a dog.

• Place flags/traffic cones in the area where you don't want your dog to cross over.
• Let your dog outside while on a leash and let her approach the flags/traffic cones. The moment she approaches the flags/traffic cones, tell her "leave it" (here is a guide on how to train your dog leave it) and hand her a treat to reward her for leaving the flag area and moving towards you. Repeat several times.
• Start adding distance. In other words, stay at the very end of the leash and walk her again towards the flags. Once again, tell her to "leave it" and praise and reward her for walking towards you. Repeat several times.
• Add more distance, but this time taking her out on a long line (long leash up to 15 feet). Practice more leave its as the need occurs, always praising and rewarding accordingly.
• Add distractions of different levels now past the flags. Start with small distractions such as placing a plastic bag or a ball past the flags. Practice your leave its. Then, you can increase the difficulty by placing over the boundary some kibble or a toy made with rabbit fur. Say "leave it" when your dog goes too close to the boundary with intent to trespass.  You can further raise criteria by having a helper drag a stuffed animal or fake looking bird on a string while you practice leave its. Make sure that you reward your dog generously with treats/ foods that are higher in value than the items left. Give several in a row to leave an impact on your dog.
• Be consistent. Train this for several reps a day and for several weeks. Only once your dog is very fluent and reliable in her response, you can then start training this off-leash but at your own risk. This training is not meant to keep your dog within the boundary unsupervised. Please note: If your dog ever trespasses the boundary, this means you have worked at a distraction level she wasn't ready for. Call your dog and practice more at the level once again using the long line. 
• Disclaimer: With training, there's no such thing as 100 percent reliability, regardless of the methods or tools you use to train. Use them at your own risk and discretion. 

If you neighbor is friendly, you should give a head's up that you are training. It may be worthy of coordinating your training at a time that you know your neighbor's animals are closed in a barn or whatever. Having your neighbor's phone number may also turn handy in case your dog would escape so that you can give them a head's up and send your dog away should he try to approach. 

On top of training a good recall, we also want to provide outlets. You cannot totally get rid of a dog's instincts, but you can ask for alternate behaviors (always rewarding generously) and provide outlets for their instincts. For example, you can present to a herding dog  "rolling sheep" as seen in the sport of Treibball or you can have her chase "fake ducks" by enrolling in the sport of flyball. Playing with toys can also reduce your dog’s desire to ‘play’ with farm animals while releasing any pent-up energy through exercise. And on top of exercise, don't forget to provide mental stimulation through food puzzles and fun brain games!

Therefore, make your dog's safety and the safety of your neighbor's animals your top concern. These methods are not meant to work when your dog is alone or unsupervised and again there is no training that is entirely fail-proof. Dogs have been compared to having the cognitive abilities of a two-year old so just as one would't leave a two-year-old toddler alone in a yard with a road or other danger nearby, we shouldn't expect that from our dogs. 

I hope this helps!

Let me know if you have any questions!

Best,

Adrienne