Reliable Recall Case Study  

Perry was a dog with a big back yard and a great personality. He enjoyed playing fetch, running long distances—and refusing to come back when he was called. It wasn’t long before his owner got tired of screaming his name and chasing after him and decided to give Independence Dog Training a call.

I arrived at the small, well-kept home and was immediately greeted by Perry, who pushed past his owner to sniff my shoes and hop excitedly at the prospect of getting attention from a newcomer. He was about two years old at this point and surprisingly well-behaved on the surface. I observed some basic obedience commands like sit and lay down, which were effective. However, stay and, of course, come were ignored. And these do tend to be the tricky commands because it’s difficult to associate these commands with an immediate reward, like a treat.

After getting to know Perry a little better and making sure I understood the owner’s expectations, I got to work designing Perry’s training plan. We started off with small goals—practicing recall first in the house, then in the backyard close to the house, and finally the backyard far from the house.

Once we believed Perry understood what was expected him, we tried out his newfound skill at the dog park, where there were plenty of other dogs and distractions. This is a must when developing any type of new behavior in a dog—they must prove themselves reliable whether they’re in the quiet of their own home or in a busy train station.

The dog park was Perry’s busy train station.

The afternoon admittedly started off a bit rough, but after just a few reminders to both dog and owner, Perry actually came back when he was called! I can’t describe the excitement I felt to see that success, to see the pure relief in his owner’s eyes. I knew they’d be okay, as long as they continued practicing with the tools I provided.

Does any part of this story sound familiar to you? Are you wondering if I can help your dog the way I helped Perry? Let’s talk about it. Give me a call at 215.709.2560 today.