Train Your Dog to Come

This is one of the hardest commands to teach to a dog.  It involves lots of work over a long period of time.  The come command requires lots of patience.  When teaching come, don't go after your dog, you should simply wait on your dog to come to you.  NEVER punish your dog during the training of come, even if they don't come at first, just hold your ground and be patient.  DO NOT tell your dog to come to put them in their crate, give them a bath or punish them for using the bathroom in the house.  They will associate come with a negative thing and will not do it.  Instead, use the come command when you feed your dog or want to give it love and affection or a treat.  It is very important to do this.  When training and trying to teach come, always use the command for a positive thing, nothing negative for the dog. Starting from day one, make sure your dog is rewarded every time they come to you on command.  Start out by kneeling down in your house and calling your dog over to you using come.  The come command should always be said warmly in the same voice you use when you are rewarding your dog.  You can reward your dog by giving them a treat or just lots of love and affection whenever they come to you.  It is important to begin this training from day one (puppies will follow you around anyway and love the attention!!).  Keep practicing the come command at random times all throughout the day.  Be sure to do it every day to try and imprint it in your dog's mind.  It is also good to try to train the "come" command outside with your dog on a leash.  The extendable leashes are a good tool to use because your dog has more freedom to run further away from you.  When walking your dog simply stop and let them walk away from you.  Before they hit the end of the leash call their name and tell them to come.  If they turn around and come back to you reward them with a treat and give them love and affection.  You can also try walking in a different direction than your dog is going and tell them to come.  If they follow you without hitting the end of the leash, or without you pulling them; then reward them with love and a treat.  It is also good to play ball with your dog so they can learn the come command.  Go to a fenced in area like a baseball field or a basketball court.  If you don't have access to an enclosed area you can still keep your dog on an extendable leash; just don't throw the ball outside the radius of the leash.  Throw a ball out for your dog to fetch.  Once they pick-up the ball call them back to you using the come command.  Hold a treat out for them at first.  They should come running back to you to get the treat.  Continue doing this with treats until they start to learn to come.  Once they begin to grasp it you can start giving them treats less and less.  Eventually they will come back to you with no treat at all.  This game is also good because it can allow you to play fetch off the leash and you won't have to worry about your dog running away as soon as they get the ball.  Practice come everyday with your dog.  If you keep it fun for them and keep the reason they come to you positive and rewarding; your dog will eventually learn to come on command every time.  Once your dog learns the command and listens 100% of the time it will give you freedom to let them off the leash and explore a little more.  Just make sure you keep them in sight and close by.