Doggy won't come back!

Newsgirl

Hi there!
I have a one-year-old Yorkie who I walk every day in the local park near Dublin city centre. I got her about two months ago and she's great but has a real streak of devilment:-) She's very sociable so I let her off the lead so she can play with other dogs and it appears to be the highlight of her day.
However, I cannot for the life of me get her to come back to me when it's time to leave. I work from home and bring her to the park at lunchtime for a runaround. But I usually spend about 15 minutes trying to trick her back onto the lead, which is a bit of a bother.
It's probably my own fault because I when I got her first, I would chase her around. Now she thinks it's a game when I try to catch her:-) I call her in my sternest voice but she won't come to me when it's time to go.
I'd really appreciate any suggestions to resolve this little problem. Thanks!

ISDW

Unfortunately she's not going to want to come near you if you're using your sternest voice, think of when you were a child, if an adult called you over nicely, you'd want to go to them, if they called you in a tone that you knew you were in trouble, you would drag your heels:D She sounds clever, she knows now that when you call her, you're going to put her on the lead and end her funtime.

Take her to the park after work, and let her have a good run around, leave a trailing line on her if necessary, something like a clothes line that she can still run around, but you can get hold of her. Call her to you, if she doesn't come, then pull her in by the line, give her a treat, then let her go off again. Do that a few times, and do it for a few days, she will hopefully then learn that coming to you is a good thing:D I suggest you do it after work because you'll have more time than the lunchtime play. If you don't have much time during your lunchbreak, then until she's more obedient, I think you should keep her on the lead for that walk.

Oranage2

Have the same problem - I'm gonna start training this weekend - I'm gonna take some dog biscuits with me - put him on the long leed and say 'come' then give him a biscuit, do that a few times - then gonna let him off the lead and say 'come' and hopefully he comes back. When i say 'come' I'm not gonna always put him on the leed so the dog doesnt assiotate the word 'come' with being put on the leed.

I'm also open to suggestions

rebel10

Op, we used to have the same problem when our dog was a puppy, then we got him neutered and literally about two weeks later he jumped back into the car after his walks no problem.
Has he been neutered?

LucyBliss

I have to go down on my hunkers and call my dogs Meg & Rosie in my sweetest voice, otherwise they either sit down and ignore me or wander off again. And with Jack, I have to feign hyper-excitement like I'm a pepped up cheerleader on crack cocaine to get him to come over and I have to pretend to run away to get him after me.

I second the long lead idea. It's a a great training aid for these kinds of things.

mymo

Start with an extension lead and go to the park at a quiet time with a pocket full of treats.
Let her walk and sniff around, when she's a few feet away bend down and called her in a happy cutesy voice and offer a treat. When she comes back for the treat praise her and give the treat.
Repeat over and over, letting the lead longer each time.
Once she gets this move on to next step, when no dogs around, let her off and try the same, repeat over and over again, then try with one dog around. Repeat and repeat. in a few weeks she should be pretty good.
Also if she doesn't want to come back try walking the other way looking back and calling over your shoulder "this way".
It will work but takes time and patience.

Sorry ISDW just read your post!

Newsgirl

Thanks everyone. The long lead and treats sound like good ideas.
She is neutered, though that doesn't seem to stop her trying to have a relationship with my leg:-)
I have tried the stern authoratitive voice and the sweet voice and she appears just to be laughing at me. Walking off and ignoring her is sometimes effective as she runs after me. Most effective is waiting until she is engrossed in meeting another dog and then snatching her away.
Will employ the long lead/treats strategy as soon as possible and report back.

portgirl123

try little pieces of hot dog or chicken much tastier than plain old dog treats

trio

Hot dogs. They're like crack for dogs. I don't know any dog that wouldn't come back to you if called if you had a piece of hot dog in your hand!

goat2

Newsgirl wrote: »

Hi there!
I have a one-year-old Yorkie who I walk every day in the local park near Dublin city centre. I got her about two months ago and she's great but has a real streak of devilment:-) She's very sociable so I let her off the lead so she can play with other dogs and it appears to be the highlight of her day.
However, I cannot for the life of me get her to come back to me when it's time to leave. I work from home and bring her to the park at lunchtime for a runaround. But I usually spend about 15 minutes trying to trick her back onto the lead, which is a bit of a bother.
It's probably my own fault because I when I got her first, I would chase her around. Now she thinks it's a game when I try to catch her:-) I call her in my sternest voice but she won't come to me when it's time to go.
I'd really appreciate any suggestions to resolve this little problem. Thanks!

i know it make for a miserable walk if you dread this everytime you take your little yorkie out for a walk, i have a little jrt like that and it is a pain, using a stern voice will bring only more problems when you are trying to get her to come to you, the best answer to this, get her the longest retractable lead you can buy and then both of you will enjoy it much more,