Perfecting the Recall Part 3 — The Middle

Today we present the final post in our series on recall training. If you missed the first 2 posts, we encourage you to go back and read them.

As we’ve talked about, the perfect recall can be broken down into 3 sections including a beginning, a middle and an end. For the beginning, the dog must be able to turn off of any distraction. We’ve detailed this in our first recall post: The Turn. A perfect recall ending means the dog is engaged with their owner and under control until released again. That way, you can take control of the dog and clip on a leash. We’ve talked about the recall ending in our second recall post: The Ending.

Today, we will talk about the middle. The perfect middle would have your dog run straight to you, ignoring all distractions on route. Can your dog run by other dogs, humans or squirrels? Will they ignore any temptations that cross their paths? Don’t feel bad if you’ve answered no to any of these challenges. Most dogs can’t until you’ve put in the work and proofed the recall.

The middle is all about proofing. You need to set up distractions that are far in excess of anything you’ll encounter in the real world when it comes to the temptation level for your dog. As always, you want to start small and build on success. A good leave it command is very handy to have for your recall exercise. It’s a…