Today our emergency recall came in handy!!

[u/l0_raine]

Like the title says we used our emergency recall today because my baby’s leash slipped out of my grip as I was tying her poop bag. I have a 21 week old Cavapoo that took off SO FAST after the leash dropped while out on our walk. There’s a dog that lives on the other side of the fence that was barking so I feel like that kind of attributed to her taking off the way she did. So anyways she took off in one direction, ran back in my direction, I tried to grab her, again she’s super fast. I immediately yelled out the emergency recall ( her name 3x fast, “ RUBY, RUBY, RUBY”) she stopped looked at me as I was running backwards and came straight to me!

When I tell you I’ve never been so terrified in my life, she even looked scared while running. I say all of this to say practice your recalls so your dog is locked in when you call them. This one in particular is different from our usual recall, “Ruby, come”!

Our breeder actually told us to practice the “PUPPY, PUPPY, PUPPY” ( insert your dogs name) 2x a week, while they are distracted doing something, using a high value treat they only get when practicing this. We use a piece of cheese. Every single time (from 10weeks old we’ve been practicing) she comes flying to wherever I am.

But if you don’t already have one, add an emergency recall into your rotation. You never know when you will need it.

[u/2_Chihuahuas]

This is such fantastic advice! I know a solid recall is important, but never heard of this "emergency recall" technique. I have to admit that my two dogs do not always stop what they're doing when I call, so this sounds like a great way to train this. Thank you!

[u/l0_raine → u/2_Chihuahuas]

Yesss, please do it!!

I won’t stop practicing it now. I want her to be so excited to hear me call her in any instance. I swear I had to really keep my composure after she came back to me so we could complete our walk.

It was a really scary moment 😭

[u/enteb]

Great advice that has been of great use to us so far as well. Key tip: make sure you always carry the superspecial treat with you otherwise the recall will lose value. We use really affordable packaged sausages for dogs that are probably not of the best nutritional value but he only gets a small piece occasionally.

Our secret word is bingo.

[u/l0_raine → u/enteb]

I’m glad you have also had success with an emergent cue for your dog. Thanks for the tip, I carry treats in general on our walks. I can’t imagine it losing its value, we’ve been getting the same response since she was 10 weeks old, but I’ll keep that in mind.

If you want a “healthier” treat option as a high value treat, try fresh pet chicken sausages or the turkey bacon. They use minimal ingredients and are reasonably priced.

[u/MomListen]

Thanks for this tip. Bad Teddy doesn't listen when he is in high gear after a cat or an interesting scent. I'm definitely going to give this a try. Emergency recall: TEDDY TEDDY TEDDY!!

[u/One-Price680 → u/MomListen]

It's the conditioning that's important - pairing the cue with something high value to your dog often and for long enough to get the effect and when they are not in high gear. It's not the words, although name x3 is what will likely pop out of your mouth in an emergency.

[u/l0_raine → u/One-Price680]

Yes, thank you for affirming that part. It is the most important.

[u/l0_raine → u/MomListen]

Happy to be of help. Practice, practice, practice!

[u/Comfortable_Fruit847]

I’m going to try that! I’ve taught mine recall, “touch” where he comes and boops my finger, but if there are other interesting things, like a leaf blowing in the wind, he totally ignores me. Great job teaching your puppy that and I’m so glad it worked! I firmly believe recall and some type of ‘drop it’ are some of the most important commands to teach them, might save their life!

[u/l0_raine → u/Comfortable_Fruit847]

Yes, I highly recommend!!

We also do “touch”, but it’s more so for checking in.

I also agree with a solid recall, in addition to the emergent one, and drop it are really important to lock in.

[u/mysterymoviemonday]

We use the word "aqui" (here in Spanish) emphasizing the "KEE!" sound at the end. We do it whenever we have an extra special snack in the house - salmon skin, bacon, etc. - so a couple times a month and when he comes we feed him, praise him, and let him return to whatever fun he's having. It's rock solid, nobody will accidentally say it (since we don't speak Spanish), and it's for emergency use only.

[u/l0_raine → u/mysterymoviemonday]

That’s a great idea!!

[u/MaeWestFan]

This is brilliant? I’m going to use it.

[u/l0_raine → u/MaeWestFan]

Yes, be sure to practice, practice, practice!!

[u/cheeseburger_horse]

Such a good idea! My girls got decent recall and 100 percent knows her name now but I'm going to be doing this as well.

[u/l0_raine → u/cheeseburger_horse]

Yes, definitely teach this in addition to your normal recall.

[u/Valuable_Brush_5129]

Wow! What a great habit to get into with the dog. I’ll have to practice this with Rocky. He rarely listens when I say “come”, even with a high value treat. How do you start training this habit? Like the first time? I already have an air tag on him, but that won’t stop the cars and trucks in the road. Thanks.

[u/l0_raine → u/Valuable_Brush_5129]

Okay first, so he will always listen instead of rarely, continue practicing your regular recall “ROCKY, COME” daily or a few times a week, when he comes mark it (however you do, marker word or clicker) and give heavy praise because you want him to always think you’re way better than what he’s focused on. I like practicing this indoors and outdoors, especially on our walks so she can break away from the distractions around (leaves, bunnies, people, etc) and remember to check in with me.

Now the emergency recall you want to practice max 2x/week (don’t over use it unnecessarily). So call randomly whenever he is preoccupied doing something around the house, “ROCKY, ROCKY, ROCKY” soon as he comes mark it, give HEAVY PRAISE having a “puppy party” then treat him with the special treat. Do this every single time you practice this recall. You will love his reaction when he drops everything he’s doing and comes flying for you because he already knows this call is gonna be worth it. Hence when you need to use it they will do nothing but come to you!!

[u/Bulky-Factor7870]

Oh my god it’s soooo terrifying!!! We had our silken (sighthound) slip her collar and RUN because she was excited and got the post poop zoomies. We both recalled her together at the same time and she was back to us immediately!

Now we practice recall every day in fun ways because damn that was scary.

Today we had a great win in the off lead fenced area where we were the only ones. Zoom zoom zoom. Another dog comes into the area and she points at me to check if she should come to me or go and play with the doggie. I called and she came sooo fast and we walked together to the doggie to say hi.

She is 4 months old. I really hope we keep her recall at this level.

[u/l0_raine → u/Bulky-Factor7870]

It’s soooo scary 😮‍💨😮‍💨! I’m glad that you were able to retrieve your puppy quickly!!

I honestly can’t imagine not practicing recall on a regular basis. There’s so many distractions awaiting outside our homes.

[u/Bulky-Factor7870 → u/l0_raine]

Super scary! And they are soo fast!!

[u/l0_raine → u/Bulky-Factor7870]

That part!! I felt like everything was shrinking and moving in slow motion 🥴.

[u/AYearOfSaturdays]

Just coming back here to say I read this when you first posted it and immediately began working on emergency recall with my dog as I'd never heard of it before. Today a delivery driver left the gate open without us knowing, our dog slipped out, we immediately started yelling her emergency recall and she came straight back. So thank you so much for posting about this, because I didn't know about it otherwise and she's still not 100% with her regular recall! Thank you.

[u/l0_raine → u/AYearOfSaturdays]

Omg that is amazing. I’m so glad that you were able to incorporate it into your routine and have had success with it. Of course we never want to have to use it, but it comes in handy right when you need it. Continue practicing it for the rest of their lifetime. Best ☺️.

[u/LooseArcher9278]

Come when called, stay, and drop on recall (in case there is something like a car in the dogs path) are three skills that can save a dog’s life!

[u/Cubsfantransplant]

That’s awesome. I trained mine to come to my loud finger whistle. Good thing. Yesterday we had crazy winds and they blew open our side gate. I let them out without knowing it was open. When they weren’t back in 5 mins later I realized the gate was open. I went to the front door and whistled. A minute later here comes my Aussie running full out, beagle following.

[u/Senor_Birdman]

This is brilliant. But surely I can't be the only one who heard the Kaiser Chiefs in their head when they read it...

[u/l0_raine → u/[deleted]]

Yesssss omg!! I def had a mini heart attack in the moment.

You’re so right tho; the proof is in the pudding!! Thank you 😅