How To Teach a Dog To Come: Recall Training Guide
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Teaching your dog to come when called can be a lifesaver—and a strong recall helps keep your relationship with your dog frustration-free.
It's easy to learn how to train a dog to come when called, but it takes dedication, patience, and practice to get your dog to respond. It helps if you make teaching dog recall easy and fun, so your dog learns that coming to you is a positive experience.
Key Takeaways
- Teaching your dog to come when called is an essential safety skill.
- Use a unique cue word that isn’t associated with other skills or tricks.
- Positive reinforcement—treats and praise—helps build a strong recall response.
- Practice in progressively more challenging environments, starting indoors.
- Avoid off-leash training in unsecured areas until your dog reliably responds.
How To Teach a Dog To Come
You can teach your dog to come by following these steps:
1. Choose a Unique Recall Word
Pick a word that is unique to your dog and not associated with another cue. If they've learned to ignore the word “come” use something like “here” instead.
Don’t use your dog’s name as your recall word—you probably say it all the time and the word you use for this cue needs to be special.
2. Set Up for Success
To teach this skill, you’ll need a partner and dog treats.
Start your training in a quiet room in your house where your dog is unlikely to be distracted.
3. Call Your Dog to You
Kneel and say your recall word once with a happy tone of voice.
If your dog won’t come when called, whistle, clap your hands, or make kissy noises to encourage them to run to you. They won’t know what “here” means at first, so the noises will help them to understand.
4. Reward Immediately
When your dog comes to you, give them a treat and a lot of praise. This is the cornerstone of positive reinforcement training, which uses things your dog loves to teach them how to behave.
5. Repeat With a Partner
Have your partner call your dog back and give another treat and more praise.
6. Keep at It
Repeat this process until your dog is racing from person to person each time you call.
Dog Recall Games
You can make it more challenging for your dog by hiding in another room. You’ll probably have to whistle a bit more to help give them clues. At this point training will seem like a game of hide and seek, which is exactly the idea. Have fun with it!
Once your dog seems comfortable with these exercises, move out to your yard or a safe, enclosed area. Working outside means you’ll be competing with distractions, so use a high-value treat. Depending on your outside set up, a training leash may be an effective and safe way to practice recall.
Tips for Dog Recall Training
When practicing recall training, safety is the most important factor.
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You can begin teaching this skill as soon as you bring your dog home, as early as 8 weeks of age. The process of training a puppy to come is the same as for adult dogs.
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Do not try to test your call by placing your pet off leash in unfenced situations, as they could run away or get hurt. Recall should be practiced indoors, in a fenced-in area, or with a training leash.
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Remember to make it fun. Do not lose your patience if your dog takes a few sessions to really get the hang of it or if they struggle with distractions. Practice makes perfect, so stay at it and keep it fun and full of treats.
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Make sure to work together as a team frequently to master your dog’s recall ability, and eventually your dog will come to you whenever they're called.
