YOU BETTER COME WHEN YOUR MOMMA CALLS YOU! – 01.16.2011

One of the great things that Mary Majchrowski of Bravo Dog Training taught Orso was a recall.  This is different from your traditional “come” command that we use in formal obedience.  The recall for us is more of a “get your butt over here NOW” for times that we need Orso to hustle to us.  This comes in handy if a car is coming and he is not right at our side or if he gets loose unexpectedly or decides to chase the neighbor’s dog, etc. 

Orso has learned to be recalled in one of two ways: 1 – blowing a whistle or 2 – using the word “here” in a high/urgent pitch.  He responds very well to both and we NEVER use these recall methods unless we have food in our hands and are ready to reward him enthusiastically. 

Below is a video compilation of us working the recall with him today for a few minutes.  Since it involves Orso having to come to us quickly – usually galloping from a distance – and therefore can be pretty strenuous, we only work on this command for a few minutes at a time and only a few times per week.  We also intentionally work the recall in an environment that has a lot of distractions so we can test him in settings that would usually cause a dog to disobey.  In the video below, we are in the back of our house with our dogs locked in our yard and the neighbors’ dogs going crazy barking at us.  You can see how well he is doing with this command, especially when you consider how many distractions there are.  Enjoy!