Coming back to the owner when called or by the command „come to me“ – is the most important behavior of your Australian Shepherd. This is a skill that can even save a dog‘s life. Imagine a dog is not attached to the leash and run to a dangerous place. Then the only goal of the owner is for the dog to run back to him very quickly.
The dog‘s rapid coming to the owner when he runs unleashed shows the relationship between the dog and the owner. Your Aussie desire to come to you every time depends on the dog‘s confidence that returning at that moment will be extremely pleasant for him.
Remember that whatever you ask, the dog will first think – what i will get for that? It is wrong to think that dogs live only to please us. Australian Shepherds like any other breed live to feel happy and satisfied. They do what they do best and what the owner constantly encourages. The sooner you realize, the sooner you will become a better owner of your dog.
How To Teach Australian Shepherd To Come Every Time When Called
This can be taught through constant practice and repetition of the same call rules. Your goal in training the desired command is to create so many successful repetitions that what you require becomes a normal reflex for the dog. When your Australian Shepherd hears the command „come to me“, he immediately must come to you, without any hesitation.
Teaching Methods
The first step is to introduce your Australian Shepherd to the pattern of behavior. Tie the dog on a leash, pull away from the dog, say his name and command that you decided to use. When he comes – give him a treat.
Get back as soon as possible, invite him cheerfully. At the beginning of trainings, give him plenty of small bites for at least 15 seconds, and repeat this three or four times a day for several series in a row. And always use the same command (word) that you decided to use!
After about one week of such practice, stop holding the treats in your hands. Instead of that, give it out of the basket of treats when dog comes to you. When your Aussie comes to you, do not forget to praise him as well. Each repetition of such an exercise will strengthen your connection with the dog. Once the dog starts responding confidently to the command, start using outside your own place. Go for a walk, use it walking in the neighborhood or at the park. Of course, at the beginning it will be more difficult because of distractions, but do not worry as the dog will get used to any environment, sooner or later. Be patient!
6 Rules To Train Australian Shepherd To Come
- Choose clear words for the command that you will not use unnecessarily on a daily basis. Avoid commands such as „hey“, „go“ and so on. You use these commands in daily communication with family members and often with your dog, hoping that he or she understands its meaning. The invitation command should be used very rarely in everyday communication, you only use it to invite a dog. Good example, and quite often used command is „come to me“. First, teach the dog what the command means and only then will you positively encourage as much performance as possible. Every dog is different and not equally obedient, so you need patience to train your Australian Shepherd.
- Never invite Australian Shepherd by threatening, shouting or otherwise speaking angrily. Never shout or moralize at a dog (e.g., if it came too slowly, too late, etc.). If your Aussie did not follow the command „come to me“ quickly, then you did not interest the dog enough.
- If the dog has misbehaved, calmly approach him, sit him down, attach him to the leash and take him where he should go. If the dog has come to you after a long catch time, do not get angry, otherwise the dog will realize that at that moment of your anger he has done something wrong and will come next time with even less enthusiasm.
Encourage your Australian Shepherd when he come to you
- Caress, praise, give treats to your puppy, only when he comes to you. Advised to use soft and high nutritional value products, such as meat, cheese, because the dog swallows them quickly and they are easy to cut into small pieces. No need to give much at once! The size of the bite does not matter, cut the treats into small pieces, so that the dog does not get overeat. Give treats and praise the dog at the same time. Give the dog a positive, huge impression for about half a minute.
- Don‘t abuse the dog‘s invitation. Don‘t call a dog if you‘re not sure there‘s at least a 90 percent chance he‘ll come. If you use the command incorrectly, you will need extra time to correct and strengthen the command. You should give the treats anyway, even for one misused command. If someone from the family does not follow these rules, you can teach the dog to come to you under another verbal, but much stronger, command. Let‘s call this command a „critical“. You should use the critical command when the dog walks without a leash in the meadows or forest and you want to invite him to come. This is a contingency command, after which the dog has to run to you urgently. It takes a lot of time to train and validate a critical command.
- Train the dog not only in static positions. You start teaching the dog to come to you from a static position, when the dog is lying or sitting (calm position). You look the dog in the eye, show a bite, step back and say the command. In this situation, your Australian Shepherd comes to you without any problems, but the dog does not return to you when you walk without a leash or follow someone‘s footsteps. How to train Aussie to come back when there many temptations around?
The successful call when the dog is unleashed depends on your Aussie‘s ability to distance itself from temptations. Remember that dogs like to chase, so always retreat when invited. Standing and doing nothing slows down the dog coming to you. Step back and run away from the dog as if you wanted to be caught. Start training at short distances and little by little to get the dog used to it.
Final Thoughts
Try to connect new command with pleasant associations. For example, associate the dog‘s invitation command with the food. When it‘s time to feed your Australian Shepherd, say the command before placing the bowl with the food. Your Aussie hears the command and that‘s where the bowl of food appears – how he could not come?