Recall with puppy

[Mairyhinge]

I'm going mad with this but thought I might get some advice.
My dog is 4 months and will come back to me IF....
We are in a big open area
There are NO other dogs, people, children,
If I let him off and anything or anyone else appears they are FAR more interesting than me. He followed a man and his child almost home the other day. Would not enetertain me At all
Thing is I know we've to practice but how can I practice when I feel so scared to let him go?
We did do off lead the other day in a big field, there were other dogs but I walked and he ( eventually) came after me but after the following home someone else incident it scares me.
I've been told to have yummy treats and/ or jump up and down and make me seem very interesting. But he's not bothered!
The biggest issue is that I have a very weak voice so cantshout him.
Advice? Ideas?? PLEASE

Buy “Total Recall” by Pippa Mattison and a whistle.

Have you tried to train him to come to you with a whistle as that will at least mitigate the ‘weak voice’? What high value treats do you reward him with? Does he have a favourite toy that you could reserve for recall?

Some people use long leads so they can stamp on them if pup ignores and goes to far but I haven’t used them.

He’s very young yet!

Been through this but didn’t start tackling it till my dog was quite a lot older. My command word is “here” but obviously a whistle works. But the whistle must only mean “come here”.

I started by practising at home, in the house, with no distractions. Then moved onto the garden. Then off-lead on a walk but when I was sure no one was there. Every time you want him to succeed, so don’t do it when he might fail (e.g. with a dog there or when he’s sniffing and not listening). Then when’s he’s improved, finally do it with distractions.

The treats have to be high-value and something he doesn’t have at other times.

I also tried being interesting and unpredictable, for example getting a hidden squeaky toy out of my pocket or running away unexpectedly. Anything to make him think he needs to pay attention to me! And to make him believe the fun is with me, not other dogs!

My dog is nearly 2 and it’s still not a foolproof system, but loads better than it was. Still working on it.

I tried a long lead but couldn’t get on with it at all.

Hope this helps.

Food. Warm chicken, cheese, sausage... anything that is really tasty.

And practice recall before they run off, reward when they are close and come back to you.

And watch for the distractions before she sees them. I will recall her before she gets the notion to run off to greet dogs/people. Sometimes she'll get 2 or 3 treats until they have passed.

Fortunately at 9 months, she's become ball obsessed, so will bring ball back and is always fairly close to me or under my supervision.

Thanks for all the suggestions. Tried a long line but ended up a tangled mess!!
I'll try the high value treat thing. He does come back if no distractions, and I look for them constantly but as soon as I see them, so does he! And he's off.
Think I'll see how we get on with a whistle too,
Thanks all. I could weep with the times I have to put him back on because I'm so scared he will run!

High value treats definitely and clicker training. It is a good idea to go to training classes to make sure that you are doing the right things and to teach your pooch what to do.

Another vote for 'Total Recall' it's a great book.

It's also worth looking into renting a secure field if you can. They're great for practising recall somewhere that's away from home but still safe and also just for having a worry free walk when you've got a dog whose recall is a bit iffy. This site has got a database of available fields and more are popping up all the time.

We do training classes!! Also I know of a field that's rented out for £10 per hour, might just give that a go.
Thanks again all :)

I posted on another thread recently. Our puppy was 4 months when he ran out of a park.
I got a massive scare. Bought total recall and a whistle. He's good now pretty reliable (unless in pursuit of a squirrel or another dog!)