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Permalink Reply by Beth on June 15, 2012 at 6:53pm

At 4 months, you should NEVER say the word "come" (or sit) unless you are 99.5% sure he will listen.  He is much too young to recall off of something he is even mildly interested in.

First step, most pups this age naturally come over to you when you crouch down and clap your hands happily.  Crouch down, clap hands, say "Tonka!" and if he starts moving towards you, say "come come come" in a happy, upbeat voice while he moves towards you.  Praise lavishly, and give treats (at this state, you should have treats in your pockets whenever you are around Tonka and look for opportunities to praise and reward for nice behavior).   This is called "capturing", which is catching Tonka in the act of doing something good and then rewarding/naming it.

Second step, play the recall game.  In an environment with NO distractions (hallway, big room, backyard after he's done exploring) get a partner and have the partner hold Tonka.  Make a big show of getting really yummy treats out.  Wave them around so he can see them.  Wait til he is trying to come to you.  Have the partner release Tonka and Tonka should be running to you full-speed to get those treats.  As he comes to you, say "come come come" in a happy voice, and then GOOD BOY TONKA! and give four or five or ten little tiny treats right in a row.  Now your friend calls Tonka's name, waves equally yummy treats around, while you hold Tonka and wait til he's excited and wants to run.  Then release, and after he's already running, the partner says "come come come".   After a couple weeks of doing this for a minute or two several times a week, you can switch to saying "come come come" FIRST and then producing the treats after he arrives.  This is known as "luring" which is using the reward to elicit the desired behavior.  

A few rules:  NEVER use come to call the dog away from something he'd rather be doing unless you have no other options.  So if you are giving him a bath, don't call him: go get him.  Leashing him up after an off-leash play session? Don't use "come" but go get him.  

Don't expect a puppy to listen in a distracting situation til he is around a year or 18 months and has practiced in areas of increasing distraction (inside the house, inside the yard when done playing, inside the yard when he just went out, on a walk while leashed and nothing is going on, in a park when he's done playing, would be examples of increasing distraction; for a 4 month old, I would only expect him to master the first and maybe the second).  

Keep training fun and for a pup this young, think of it as a game.  Only do it when he's not doing something he's more interested in.  Use a leash and picking him up to control him in situations when he wants to do something else.   Minimize situations where you would need to correct him and manage him physically instead by keeping him in safe areas.

Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by John Wolff on June 15, 2012 at 8:29pm

google "really reliable recall"  Laurie Nelson (?),  also check the FAQ.  "Emergency Recall" (although this is slightly different from your standard "come" command).

get a dedicated dog fanny pack for bags & dog tools.  keep TINY treats in a screw-cap bottle like a prescription pill container.

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Permalink Reply by Kaitlyn & Chase on June 15, 2012 at 10:41pm

Chris and I made a game out of teaching Chase to come. He is 8 months old now and he responds when called about 90% of the time.
I don't use to standard "come" command. I occationally say "come here Chase" but not often. Instead I call him by saying "Chase, HURRY HURRY HURRY!!" in an upbeat tone and excited tone.
I took Chase to our backyard and let him sniff around. Then I called him with my very excited tone "Hurry hurry hurry!!" and as he started running to me I showed him the treat and gave it to him when he made it to me. I would also shower him with praise.
As long as you make it a fun game, he will respond quickly and eagerly. But don't over do it, keep the lesson short (about 5-10 minutes)
Those short attention spans will work against you if you work with them too long!! Good Luck!

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Permalink Reply by Samantha & Tonka on June 16, 2012 at 7:08pm

Thanks for the great feedback, everyone! We appreciate it :)

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