Unreliable recall.

[rascallyrascal]

Hello! I have two 2 year old golden retrievers. One is fab, walks well on lead 99% reliable recall. The other is a confirmed flight risk!! Any tips or funny stories to make me feel less alone in this would be welcome!! Thank you !!

Silly pup! Is this any help?

Ugh, my dog is about 75%, so she's walked in areas where similarly unreliable dogs are routinely walked!

What have you tried with the unreliable one?

I have a pocket full of very high value treats, and run away from her, calling her in a high pitch to get her attention. Unfortunately, I'm rarely as interesting as other dogs.

I'm planning to go to a recall class (all day) next month at a dedicated training place.

If my Goldie spots something (usually another dog or a human ) I could be waving a fillet steak at him and he would give no shits at all, he is off.
Once he’s annoyed the hell out of them he’s happy to come back though

My spaniels recall went completely during his teenage months. It was awful and I hated taking him for walks.

Fortunately he grew up and it came back otherwise I think I would have lost my mind.

I still remember blowing my whistle and praying I would hear him rustling through the forest on his way back. Once he spooked a deer and took off. About 10 mins later I was almost in tears about to phone DH and tell him I had lost our dog when he came hurtling back behind me looking a bit shocked (I think he thought he had lost me so we were both very relieved to be reunited).

I now have the opposite issue as mine is so ball obsessed he spends all his time on walks joined to my hip wanting me to throw him a ball

My spaniel has zero recall. My dog walker once slipped and dropped his lead. 2.5 hours spent chasing him later...she now walks him on 2 leads! I made the mistake of letting him off without a long line on in a small, enclosed park. Could not get him back - hid behind some playground equipment, went and sat in the car, shut him in and walked round the corner so he couldn’t see me, drove away and parked outside on the road. He didn’t even notice, the little shit

We have done a 4 week ‘really reliable recall’ course THREE TIMES. I feel like I deserve my money back.

Theres a really good chapter on recall in the book Train your dog like a Pro. [unfortunate title!] It's available immediately on Kindle and has worked with lots of dogs/owners that I've trained.

We had a golden retriever before our spaniel.

Absolute nightmare as far as recall, well any training really. Very obstinate and stubborn. We used to exercise him on a field nearby, which had an entry/exit gate leading off the road. Flight risk? you said it!! If the fancy took him he would wait until he was a reasonable distance away from me, and then without any indication or warning decide to calmly saunter off the field and take himself home, at a speed just sufficient for me not to catch up with him . The final occasion he did it, he got as far as the middle of the road and them calmly laid down. As I came huffing and puffing off the field, a passing woman chuckled and said ''ahh bless him, just like a toddler having a tantrum''

"characters", golden retrievers

Thanks all! Reassuring to know it's not just mine!!! His brother is ball obsessed so we keep another ball on standby just in case. The unreliable one couldn't care less and just wants to make friends with anyone and everyone! I will look up the info you have given me and try it out! He is aptly named though (Loki) so maybe it's our fault!!!

Resident Collie is mostly great with her recall. She does have the odd moment when she decides that she really can't come back until she's herded a leaf back to the tree it fell from
The best one was when she was around 18 months old. She was refusing to come back (there were a lot of leaves that needed herding back to trees, apparently), so after going through the usual tactics to get recall: Calling her, walking away, whistle, lead across the front of me. I decided to try the last resort: lie down. It was a muddy field and I was rewarded with a mouthful of muddy Resident Collie paw within a few seconds.
Thankfully, I've never had to do that since.

rascal that’s like ours, loves everyone and everything but doesn’t understand it may not be mutual!!

I have tried every treat available but our 2 yr old lab doesnt seem to care. She was very ill last August and lost 4kg mostly muscle so exercise has been limited for a few months until her weight and condition were back to pre illness. I have discovered that she has perfect recall when we take her favourite retrieving toy ( cricket ball in sons old sports sock) she never leaves my side and has even started to ignore other dogs. She may just be growing up though.

There is hope yet then!! My fear is that he will be shot by a farmer- there are sheep everywhere round here!

You can rent safe spaces in many areas. I found the book total recall really helpful. Mine is coming up to 18 months and I'm only just starting to feel a bit more confident that she won't bomb off. (Still won't venture out without a whistle and dried liver or lung in my pocket! )