When I first started assisting in dog training classes, the first thing we taught our clients is the recall command. It really can't be emphasized enough. The recall command for your dog like I have said before you can save the life of your dog.
We let our dog loose in the school yard as me and Neilynne played a recall game with Shy. She was great for the first couple times and then she started to wander off towards the soccer field. Me and Neilynne were both inexperienced at the time and Shy's recall was weak especially with distractions. Our dog started to walk towards the sidewalk, oblivious to our calls. Perhaps it was a game now as we started to slowly pick up pace. With tension in our voices, our recalls became stressful yelling. "Shy! Get back her now! Stop!!!" Before we knew it Shy was on the street! Recall, what recall? We sure weren't doing a good job of that one. Shy ended up in the intersection, our hearts racing as the thought of a car hitting her was evident. Luckily the cars could see what was going on and they slowed down and Shy crossed the road and stopped. We were so angry with Shy. Really we should have been angry with ourselves.
Looking back now, I can say a strong recall is necessary for any dog. We were really naive to let her off leash at that young age too in such an open area. It was a really bad mistake that could have cost us. Here's a video of Neilynne training the recall command with some distractions. Shy's finish around to the side of the body needs a lot of work but if we just look at the recall, she has improved a lot. Bottom line, the recall command for your dog is one of great importance in the house or outdoors.
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