# Sprollie chases joggers and bikes



## CliffandDi (Apr 23, 2013)

Well we're at the six month stage with Millie and we enjoy long walks along the bridle paths and public footpaths locally.

Her recall is pretty good and we use a whistle and tasty treats as part of the training regime.

The issue that we are trying to deal with at the moment, is that she wants to chase joggers and bikes. If I get her on the lead in time it's ok, but even then she growls and wants to be after them. I try to take her to remote places when I think there will be no joggers or bikes around, but of course, they like the peace and tranquility as much as we do.

With bikes she runs alongside and I'm worried she will get under the wheels. Some cyclists stop and pet her until I catch up and apologise. Some cyclists just want to ride on, but obviously I can't run that fast, even if Millie can! Most joggers have the shades and the earphones and don't hear me say. "Slow down until I get her on the lead please." This often leads to her jumping up at them and getting under their feet. Much to their annoyance and my embarrassment.

It is with joggers I'm becoming concerned because she might develop into nipping them, in an attempt to 'herd', hence the request for best advice.


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## HLT93 (Aug 14, 2013)

One of my labs used to do this, its a very annoying and dangerous behaviour. 

What I did was keep him on a long line, I didn't like it but its the only way I could train in a safe way. I taught a watch me command, and also worked double hard on re-call because if I did have him off lead when I met a jogger or cyclist I could get him back. 

If you are in a position where you meet a jogger or cyclist and your dog is off lead what I would do is run the opposite way, and really shout with excitement. It works for a lot of dogs, and gets them back a bit faster and is more of a distractment for them. 

Also when you have the dog on lead and are going past someone, have a bag of treats a shake them and keep feeding him them. This is a way you can get them to learn the watch me command.


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## smokeybear (Oct 19, 2011)

CliffandDi said:


> Well we're at the six month stage with Millie and we enjoy long walks along the bridle paths and public footpaths locally.
> 
> Her recall is pretty good and we use a whistle and tasty treats as part of the training regime.
> 
> ...


It is entirely forseeable that either your dog will injury someone, whether intentionally or not (the outcome will be the same for them and you and the dog) and/or that your dog will be injured by an irate jogger/cyclist.

Therefore until and unless you are able to control your dog it should either be on a lead/long line or exercised off lead in a secure area.


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## smokeybear (Oct 19, 2011)

*Why can't I get a reliable recall?*

'Come' is no harder to train than any other behaviour but in real life it has a huge number of criteria that have to be raised one at a time in order to guarantee success.

Often when puppies are brought home to their new owners this is the first time they have ever been separated from their dam and siblings and so they naturally attach themselves to their new family by following them about everywhere. Owners find this quite attractive and wrongly assume that this trait will continue into adolescence/adulthood, whatever the circumstances. A dangerous trap to fall into…

At some point in time, usually from around 6 - 10 months, depending on the individual, "Velcro" dog will morph into "Bog off" dog (this is especially true of a breed that has been developed to exhibit a high degree of initiative). This is the time when owners suddenly realize that their dog will not recall when it sees another dog/person etc. Not only is this inconvenient but potentially dangerous as the dog could be at risk of injury from a car/train/another dog etc.

*How and when do I start with a puppy?*

My advice is to prepare for this inevitability from the day you take your puppy home. If you are lucky the breeder will have started this process whilst still in the nest by conditioning the puppies to a whistle blown immediately before putting the food bowl down during weaning.

Dogs learn by cause and effect ie sound of whistle = food. If you, the new owner, continue this from the moment your puppy arrives you will lay down strong foundations for the future.

By using the whistle in association with meals/food you need to establish the following criteria:

• Come from across the room. 
• Come from out of sight 
• Come no matter who calls
• Come even if you are busy doing something else
• Come even if you are asleep. 
• Come even if you are playing with something/someone else
• Come even if you are eating

Once this goal has been realized in the house, drop all the criteria to zero and establish the same measures, one at a time, in the garden.

Once this goal has been realized in the garden, drop all the criteria to zero and establish the same measures, one at a time, in the park/field etc.

To train this, or any other behaviour:

1. Make it easy for the dog to get it right
2. Provide sufficient reward

Do not expect a dog to come away from distractions in the park until you have trained it to come to you in the park when no diversions are around. Be realistic and manage your expectations; your sphere of influence/control over your dog may be only 20m to begin with, therefore do not hazard a guess that the dog, at this level of training, will successfully recall from 50m or more away. Distance, like every other criterion, must be built up over time.

Some simple rules to follow when training the recall:

• Whistle/signal/call only once (why train the dog to deliberately ignore your first command?)
• Do not reinforce slow responses for the dog coming eventually after it has cocked its leg, sniffed the tree etc (you get what you train!)
• If you know that the dog will not come back to you in a certain situation, go and get him rather than risk teaching him that he can ignore you. (If you have followed the programme correctly you will never put your dog in a position to fail).
• Practise recalling the dog, putting him on the lead for a few seconds, reinforce with food/toy etc and immediately release the dog. Do this several times during a walk etc so that the dog does not associate a recall with going on the lead and ending the walk or being put on the lead with the cessation of fun.
• Eventually, when the behaviour is very strong, alternate rewards ie verbal praise, physical praise, food, toy and also vary the "value" of the rewards, sometimes a plain piece of biscuit, sometimes a piece of cooked liver etc so that you become a walking slot machine (and we all know how addictive gambling can be)!

In my experience recall training should be consistent and relentless for the first two years of a dog's life before it can be considered truly dependable. You should look on it as a series of incremental steps, rather than a single simple behaviour, and something that will require lifelong maintenance.

*What about an older or rescue dog?*

Follow the same programme as outlined above however for recalcitrant dogs that have received little or no training, I would recommend dispensing with the food bowl and feeding a dog only during recalls to establish a strong behaviour quickly.

Your training should be over several sessions a day, which means you can avoid the risk of bloat. It is essential that the dog learns that there will be consequences for failure as well as success.

Divide the day's food ration up into small bags (between10 - 30), if the dog recalls first time, it gets food, if it does not, you can make a big show of saying "too bad" and disposing of that portion of food (either throw it away or put aside for the next day).

Again, raise the criteria slowly as outlined in puppy training.

Hunger is very motivating!

For those of you who believe it unfair/unhealthy to deprive a dog of its full daily ration, not having a reliable recall is potentially life threatening for the dog ……………

*How do I stop my dog chasing joggers/cyclists/skateboarders/rabbits/deer?*

Chasing something that is moving is a management issue. Do not put your dog in a position where it can make a mistake. Again you need to start training from a pup but if you have already allowed your dog to learn and practise this behaviour you may need to rely on a trailing line until your dog is desensitised to these distractions and knows that listening to you results in a great reinforcement. Chasing is a behaviour much better never learned as it is naturally reinforcing to the dog, which makes it hard for you to offer a better reinforcement. If you want to have a bombproof recall while your dog is running away from you then use the following approach:

Your goal is to train so that your dog is totally used to running away from you at top speed, and then turning on a sixpence to run toward you when you give the recall cue.

You need to set up the training situation so that you have total control over the triggers. For this you will need to gain the co-operation of a helper. If you have a toy crazy dog you can practice this exercise by throwing a toy away from the dog towards someone standing 30 or 40 feet away. At the instant the toy is thrown, recall your dog! If the dog turns toward you, back up several steps quickly, creating even more distance between the you and the toy and then throw another toy in the opposite direction (same value as one thrown)..

If the dog ignores you and continues toward the thrown object, your "helper" simply picks the ball up and ignores dog. When dog eventually returns (which it will because it's getting no reinforcement from anyone or anything), praise only. Pretty soon the dog will start to respond to a recall off a thrown toy. You will need to mix in occasions the toy is thrown and the dog is allowed to get it ie you do NOT recall if you want to make sure it does not lose enthusiasm for retrieving.

For the food obsessed dog, you can get your helper to wave a food bowl with something the dog loves in it and then recall the dog as soon as you let it go to run towards the food; again if the dog ignores you and continues to the food, your helper simply ensures the dog cannot access the food and start again. (It is extremely important that the helper does not use your dog's name to call it for obvious reasons).

Gradually increase the difficulty of the recall by letting the dog get closer and closer to the toy/food. Praise the moment the dog turns away from the toy/food in the early stages of training. Don't wait until the dog returns to you; the dog must have instant feedback.

Once the dog is fluent at switching directions in the middle of a chase, try setting up the situation so that it is more like real life. Have someone ride a bike/run/skate past. (It is unrealistic to factor in deer/rabbits however if your training is thorough the dog will eventually be conditioned to return to you whatever the temptation in most contexts).

Until your training gets to this level, don't let the dog off-lead in a situation in which you don't have control over the chase triggers. Don't set the dog up to fail, and don't allow it to rehearse the problem behaviour. Remember, every time a dog is able to practise an undesirable behaviour it will get better at it!

Most people do not play with toys correctly and therefore the dog is not interested in them or, if it gets them, fails to bring it back to the owner.

Play the two ball game, once you have a dog ball crazy. Have two balls the same, throw one to the left, when the dog gets it, call him like crazy waving the next ball; as he comes back throw the other ball to the right and keep going left right so that YOU are the centre of the game and the dog gets conditioned to return to you for the toy. Once this behaviour is established you can then introduce the cues for out and then make control part of the game ie the game is contingent on the dog sitting and then progress to a sequence of behaviours.


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## smokeybear (Oct 19, 2011)

*Courses*

How to Change Predatory Chase Behaviour in Dogs with David Ryan

When: Saturday 28 Sep 2013

Where: Otterbourne Village Hall, Otterbourne, Winchester SO21 2ET

Details: 10am- 4pm registration from 9.30am. £40 per person, lunch included

Throwing a ball for a game of chase is an enjoyable and rewarding experience for many owners and their dogs. For other owners canine chase behaviour turns into a nightmare when their dog chases cyclists, cars or sheep. When their dogs choose what to chase it can compromise owners financially, cause the target severe injury or even death, and threaten the life of the dog. This seminar looks at the reasons for the problem, the more effective solutions and how to control the behaviour.

David Ryan followed 26 years as a police dog handler and Home Office accredited training instructor with a postgraduate Diploma in Companion Animal Behaviour Counselling, with distinction, from Southampton University, an internationally recognised centre of excellence for animal behaviour studies. In 2008 he was certificated as a Clinical Animal Behaviourist by the prestigious Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.

He was chair of the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors from 2009 to March 2012 and currently works as a companion animal behaviour consultant, being an independently vetted member of the UK Register of Expert Witnesses since 2008.

David has appeared in the internationally scheduled television series Crimefighters focusing on his remarkable and fascinating work with police dogs, and as a guest on the BBC 4 programme Its only a theory, discussing how dogs have evolved to bark. His dog behaviour articles have appeared in publications as diverse as the Daily Telegraph, Womans Own, Your Dog and Veterinary Times.

He has been invited at various times to lecture to the Companion Animal Behaviour Therapy Study Group, BSc Animal Behaviour Students at Bishop Burton College and Myerscough College, and Pet Rescue/rehoming Centres, including Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, Merseyside Dogs Trust and Wood Green Animal Shelter. He is currently a guest lecturer on Newcastle Universitys MSc in Applied Animal Behaviour and Welfare.

Davids unique blend of practical experience and theoretical knowledge of canine behaviour fuel his particular interest in inherited predatory motor patterns and the lengths to which pets will go to find a way to express them, usually despite their owners best efforts

Events | Dog Events| Winchester | Positive Training for Canines

How to Change Predatory Chase Behaviour in Dogs with David Ryan

Date: Saturday 30th November
Time: 9:30am - 4:30pm
Cost: £40 per person
Venue: Weston Primary School, Runcorn, WA7 4RA 
Limited spaces. Must be pre-booked. 
For more information or to book:
email [email protected] or call 07825 119 188.

*Books*

Line Training for Dogs
By Monika Gutman

Chase! Managing Your Dog's Predatory Instincts 
By Clarissa Von Reinhardt

Stop! How to control predatory Chasing in Dogs
by David Ryan

Teach your Dog to Come When Called
By Erica Peachey

Training your Dog to Come When Called
By John Rogerson

Total Recall
By Pippa Mattinson

*DVDs*

Line Training for Dogs
By Monika Gutman

Really Reliable Recall 
By Leslie Nelson

Training the Recall
By Michael Ellis

Your clever dog: Getting your dog to come when called 
By Sarah Whitehead

Does your dog whizz back to you as soon as you call his name?

Can you call him to you even when there are other dogs or distractions? Teaching your dog to come to you when you call is the cornerstone of training and the gateway to allowing him more freedom in the park.

If your dog has selective deafness, ignores you in the garden or the park, or would rather play with other dogs than come when you call, this specially designed training session is for you.

Ideal for starting out with puppies or rehomed dogs, and also for dogs that ignore you or are slow to come when called, despite previous training.

Including:
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 Five times when you shouldnt call your dog!
 Using your voice to call versus using a whistle
 What to do if you call and your dog doesnt come to you
The pack contains: A clicker, long line (worth £10), training manual, instructional DVD: 55 mins approx running time including Bonus trick, Bonus Training Session, Intro to Clicker Training, Q & A with Sarah

Dogtrain.co.uk

*Website articles:*

How to use a long line properly here (under information to download)

www.dogspsyche.co.uk

http://www.apdt.co.uk/content/files/training-tips/RECALL.pdf

http://www.deesdogs.com/documents/reliable_recall.pdf

Deposits into the Perfect Recall Account

List of Reinforcers

http://www.clickerdogs.com/distracti...yourrecall.htm

http://susangarrettdogagility.com/20...call-collapse/

How to Create a Motivating Toy

http://www.cleverdogcompany.com/tl_f...e recall.pdf

Teaching Come | Ahimsa Dog Blog

http://www.dog-secrets.co.uk/how-do-...y-dog-chasing/

Train a

http://drsophiayin.com/blog/entry/te..._to_you_on_cue

http://drsophiayin.com/blog/entry/be...me-when-called


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## CliffandDi (Apr 23, 2013)

Hmmm....

I wasn't expecting to have the law quoted at me and then a cut and paste straight out of a book. Third post is better.

Personal experiences are often more helpful.


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## labradrk (Dec 10, 2012)

One of mine does the same but only when taken by surprise (aka they come up behind or around a sharp corner). I just manage the problem by being very vigilant and/or putting her on a lead or calling her to heel if I'm going around blind bends. It is hard to train for something you cannot control or predict so this is the easiest option. 

If yours is taking off after any biker or jogger that comes into sight, you have a much larger problem. As mentioned it isn't really fair or reasonable for you to ask joggers or cyclists to stop while you collect your dog as she shouldn't be put in that position in the first place.


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## smokeybear (Oct 19, 2011)

CliffandDi said:


> Hmmm....
> 
> I wasn't expecting to have the law quoted at me and then a cut and paste straight out of a book. Third post is better.
> 
> Personal experiences are often more helpful.


Well I expect joggers and cylcists are not expecting to be chased by an out of control dog.

As for the cut and paste job straight out of a book; ROFLMAO

I am afraid you are sadly mistaken. That is an original article written by me and shared FREELY for the benefit of those like you who have a problem with recall.

But thank you for your critique, although you are certainly in NO position to give one are you?

Feel free to ignore.

And when your dog gets run over, or kicked by an irate cyclist or jogger, you can come back and rant on here..................

Some people (and unfortunately their dogs) have to learn the hard way..................


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## Sarah1983 (Nov 2, 2011)

Not sure why personal experiences from other pet owners are often more helpful than articles and advice from actual dog trainers  Like it or not, Smokeybears posts on getting a reliable recall are pretty damn helpful and I think several here have used them to help teach a recall.

I have both Chase! and Total Recall from the books list. Both good books and well worth a read imo.


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## Jobeth (May 23, 2010)

My 70 year old dad is one of those irate joggers that has been nipped by a dog whilst he's been out jogging as well as being chased a few times. His response to the owner is that if he trips over the dog, then the dog is the one that will probably come off worst. 

My 4kg yorkie would love to be the dog chasing the jogger or any dog that runs (thankfully hates bikes) and so I have to be extra vigilant and she goes straight back on lead to prevent it. I know the distance that she would likely go from and her ears prick up and her body goes stiff before 'stalking/chasing' so that also helps me know when she needs to be recalled.


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## Dogless (Feb 26, 2010)

Keep Millie on a lead or longline until you have trained a better recall from chase / managed to get her disinterested in bikes and joggers would be my advice. The more she practises the behaviour, the better she will get at it. My oldest dog used to really want to chase them too.

I have also had a lot of runs and bike rides spoilt by dogs chasing me - I have been bitten, knocked over, barked at, had clothes ruined and been run alongside. It is annoying and can be fairly frightening no matter how much owners say "He only wants to run with you" etc so can see it from their perspective too.


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## SleepyBones (Apr 17, 2011)

> I wasn't expecting to have the law quoted at me and then a cut and paste straight out of a book.


I think that is not a good attitude for any dog owner to take after someone posts a very helpful information post which is directly relevant to your post, you do have very, VERY, serious legal & life threatening dog problems yourself which simply do not begin & end with owner 'inconvienience' due to an unreliable recall.

Just my opinion.
.


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## MirandaA1 (Jan 12, 2012)

I have the same problem as the OP with Scout, so I keep her on a long-line and am continually scanning the horizon for bikes/joggers/skateboards/kids on scooters. I would be mortified if she managed to chase and jump up - and probably nip (and actually have been mortified when she first came back to us, before I realised the extent of her desire to chase, jump, nip!). 

We try and train ... sit and watch me, treats in hand, ball as distraction (depending on situation and where we are) ... but I never ever let her off her lead/flexi/long line. We are in London, where the parks are full of people exercising and having fun, and it's not fair on them to have Scout off the lead and ready to leap at anyone. She is learning (I think), she is getting older (18 months now), but I'm not sure she'll ever be free of her excitement when someone runs past. Our local park is small, and she's never more than a few yards from a runner/child-scooter/etc, so I keep her on the flexi and reel her in when I spot something that's chaseable. In the bigger parks, I use the long line, but still keep a weather eye open. 

When we go out to the country, it's a bit different, and I'm (slightly) happier to let her off the lead, but then there's livestock ... rabbits ... horses ... so again, we tend to keep her on the flexi unless we really know the area and what we're likely to encounter. I do worry that her recall is not fully tested because of this, but it seems more sensible really, rather than risk an accident or her learning to do something that she thinks is fun but we humans know is BAD!


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## Mollyspringer (Aug 16, 2011)

Off the subject I know-gorgeous dog x


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## Dogless (Feb 26, 2010)

MirandaA1 said:


> I have the same problem as the OP with Scout, so I keep her on a long-line and am continually scanning the horizon for bikes/joggers/skateboards/kids on scooters. I would be mortified if she managed to chase and jump up - and probably nip (and actually have been mortified when she first came back to us, before I realised the extent of her desire to chase, jump, nip!).
> 
> We try and train ... sit and watch me, treats in hand, ball as distraction (depending on situation and where we are) ... but I never ever let her off her lead/flexi/long line. We are in London, where the parks are full of people exercising and having fun, and it's not fair on them to have Scout off the lead and ready to leap at anyone. She is learning (I think), she is getting older (18 months now), but I'm not sure she'll ever be free of her excitement when someone runs past. Our local park is small, and she's never more than a few yards from a runner/child-scooter/etc, so I keep her on the flexi and reel her in when I spot something that's chaseable. In the bigger parks, I use the long line, but still keep a weather eye open.
> 
> When we go out to the country, it's a bit different, and I'm (slightly) happier to let her off the lead, but then there's livestock ... rabbits ... horses ... so again, we tend to keep her on the flexi unless we really know the area and what we're likely to encounter. I do worry that her recall is not fully tested because of this, but it seems more sensible really, rather than risk an accident or her learning to do something that she thinks is fun but we humans know is BAD!


Presuming Scout will chase toys have you tried some impulse control exercises with them? I found harnessing Kilo's strong, strong desire to chase onto "allowed" things helped enormously. It also taught me how to manage him when "in drive".


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## Meezey (Jan 29, 2013)

CliffandDi said:


> Hmmm....
> 
> I wasn't expecting to have the law quoted at me and then a cut and paste straight out of a book. Third post is better.
> 
> Personal experiences are often more helpful.


An apology might go a long way 

The law is quoted to protect your dog.. Your dog is at risk...


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## tattoogirl73 (Jun 25, 2011)

Sarah1983 said:


> Not sure why personal experiences from other pet owners are often more helpful than articles and advice from actual dog trainers  Like it or not, Smokeybears posts on getting a reliable recall are pretty damn helpful and I think several here have used them to help teach a recall.
> 
> I have both Chase! and Total Recall from the books list. Both good books and well worth a read imo.


I taught tricky recall us in smokeybear's method from the first day of fetching her home and I have fantastic recall with her. she's ten months old now but I make sure we practice every day.


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## MirandaA1 (Jan 12, 2012)

Dogless said:


> Presuming Scout will chase toys have you tried some impulse control exercises with them? I found harnessing Kilo's strong, strong desire to chase onto "allowed" things helped enormously. It also taught me how to manage him when "in drive".


Yes, we've done a bit, I think, if I understand you correctly - she has a flirt pole which she loves, and we take out to the park sometimes, and she's allowed to "kill" the rat for a while; we do a lot of "leave it" at home; she can sit and not chase a biscuit if I throw it. I have to say I'm finding it hard to work out what to do to teach impulse control - in fact I started a thread on it last year, which was helpful but ... everyone recommends Crate Games, but it's very expensive, and I can't quite run to that at the moment, so I'm feeling a little hopeless about it all. She chases her frisbee (on the long line). I ask her to sit and wait before I throw it, I don't know whether this counts. She won't do anything else - I try asking for a down, and she just looks at me, and stays sitting. And I don't know really what you mean about managing when "in drive" - on the long line, I just grab it if it seems like she's going somewhere. Which she never does with the frisbee or the ball, because she's so focussed on them. Sorry, this seems like a rather depressive answer, but they've both behaved appallingly this evening, and I'm a bit fed up with them both (Fly and Scout).


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## Dogless (Feb 26, 2010)

MirandaA1 said:


> Yes, we've done a bit, I think, if I understand you correctly - she has a flirt pole which she loves, and we take out to the park sometimes, and she's allowed to "kill" the rat for a while; we do a lot of "leave it" at home; she can sit and not chase a biscuit if I throw it. I have to say I'm finding it hard to work out what to do to teach impulse control - in fact I started a thread on it last year, which was helpful but ... everyone recommends Crate Games, but it's very expensive, and I can't quite run to that at the moment, so I'm feeling a little hopeless about it all. She chases her frisbee (on the long line). I ask her to sit and wait before I throw it, I don't know whether this counts. She won't do anything else - I try asking for a down, and she just looks at me, and stays sitting. And I don't know really what you mean about managing when "in drive" - on the long line, I just grab it if it seems like she's going somewhere. Which she never does with the frisbee or the ball, because she's so focussed on them. Sorry, this seems like a rather depressive answer, but they've both behaved appallingly this evening, and I'm a bit fed up with them both (Fly and Scout).


Sorry you've had a bad evening.

I always use a toy that I can tug with with Kilo and can throw - so a large tug rope or toy on a strong rope. Briefly what I do is I play tug with him until he's really worked up, really wants the toy and "goes up a gear" (in drive). I started off with him on a longline with just being sat waiting to be released to chase the toy when it was thrown and have built up to emergency stops, chase recalls, downs at a distance, sitting or lying whilst I throw the toy and run around and being randomly released for it. We walk with another dog and train around him - he is a very barky, wired little dog and Kilo will now sit and wait calmly when told whilst I kick the other dog's ball for him to chase and then come to me for his tuggy when released - that sort of stuff.

Poor explanation I am sure, but do you get the general idea? I have found that being allowed to chase gives Kilo a safe outlet, he loves a few toys so much that they are my emergency redirection thing - I take them on walks and if he goes to chase I can get his attention and divert his chase onto the toy instead. Or now I have had a few months' of successful recalls from chasing rabbits and wild goats which has been amazing but I am not counting my chickens just yet .

An example is when Kilo needed to be on lead walks only following an op. After about 5 days he started to lunge at traffic which was a problem that last reared it's head when he was 7 - 8 months old I think. If he doesn't get to indulge his desire to chase it is redirected onto inappropriate things.

Pop onto waywo if you need better ideas than mine - tons of ideas on there!!


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## Lauren5159 (May 28, 2013)

Please take advantage of Smokeybear's posts... I had a very rude puppy who would jump all over other dogs, regardless of whether or not that other dog wanted to play... I studied and used Smokeybear's techniques and my eight month old terrier has learned impulse control and if he sees another dog, I call him, change direction and he follows me... I NEVER thought that was possible!

Don't shoot it down, accept it, appreciate it and learn from it.

My Border Collie, when I first got him, was the exact same... Joggers and bikes were his favourite. I kept him on a long line at all times and done training in the back garden. My sister would ride around on a bike, and I would teach Dexter impulse control and focus games... Techniques like 'watch me' and distraction games worked amazingly... I even managed to build him up so that my sister and I could run around the garden and Dexter would lie in the middle and watch us... I'm a jogger, so building up and taking Dexter with me, showed him jiggers from another perspective and now, when he is off leash and see's a jogger, he doesn't chase or heard. He wonders why we aren't jogging  

To start though, work on impulse, distraction techniques and focus in the house. Build it up slowly (on a long line) whilst outside... Start in quieter areas and build up to more populated areas... I found with Dexter, that flirt poles and squeaky toys worked brilliantly (tennis balls are his favourite but rather hard when you're working with a long line). Praise him for ignoring bikers/joggers by playing...

Good luck, your pooch is gorgeous!


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## CliffandDi (Apr 23, 2013)

Thanks to Sarah1983 for her personal recommendations for reference. I shall seek those items out and study them.

Thanks to Lauren5159, Dogless, HLT93, MirandaA1, Tattoogirl73, Jobeth and Labradrk for the personal experiences and advice. I fully accept your feedback and will test those methods with enthusiasm.

I have Millie trained to the point that I can give the command "Stop" or one blow of the whistle and she hits the deck. I will read up and consider which other methods we can progress with stay and recall. "Come" or two blows of the whistle, works under controlled conditions, but as mentioned more practice is necessary. 

"Watch me" is a method that we are currently practicing. Something which we trained at puppy class before the summer break. This works really well with people or other dogs. I have her on the lead with the 'watch me' - 'good watch' technique and it works every time to the point that she never moves whenever a dog or another person walks past.

I have her on the lead or an extendable line on all of the paths or areas where a jogger or cyclist might appear. As soon as she started to take an unhealthy interest in these things, as a responsible dog owner I did the right thing. Made her safe and sought advice. I have a very intelligent and trainable dog, still young enough to learn. (Myself included). We shall have fun trying. :thumbsup:


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## Barcode (Mar 7, 2011)

A good recall is not a dog who comes to you in the absence of distractions, but one that can be reliably recalled _from_ distractions.

Scrabble became entangled with a bike ... ONCE. That was enough. Smokeybear's recall advice was a massive help. What I did at the time:

- Sat on a bench with Scrabble near a cycle path and treated for not doing anything as the cyclists whizzed past.
- Put her in a SIT-STAY as they went past, treated for calmness.
- OH and I would ride our bikes in the garden so she could get used to them.

It took a while, but ... I now have a Border (a breed known for chasing things!) who plods next to the cycle path without doing _anything_. All our training was done on-lead, progressing to the long-line, and now off-lead.

Don't be the annoying dog owner who can't control their dog, and do follow Smokeybear's advice - it's sound.


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## CliffandDi (Apr 23, 2013)

Barcode said:


> A good recall is not a dog who comes to you in the absence of distractions, but one that can be reliably recalled _from_ distractions.


Good point. That's what we're working towards.



Barcode said:


> Scrabble became entangled with a bike ... ONCE. That was enough. What I did at the time:
> 
> - Sat on a bench with Scrabble near a cycle path and treated for not doing anything as the cyclists whizzed past.
> - Put her in a SIT-STAY as they went past, treated for calmness.
> ...


Thank you. I can see that working for us. We will certainly be trying that one with the 'good watch'.



Barcode said:


> Don't be the annoying dog owner who can't control their dog,


Pfft! Not a chance! Hence the requests and thanks for help and advice.


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