Hi, we need help with getting our dog to "come" when called. She is 1 1/2 and does really well with recall in the house and also on hikes when off leash. The problem arises when we need to get into the car and she doesn't want to. She moves farther and farther away and sometimes even goes out into the street. Sometimes she acts like she wants to play and does the bowing thing. We use treats as a lure which I'm not sure if we should. It still doesn't work. The other time she does this is when she "wants" to come in through the sliding door. She scratches the door. We open the door. She doesn't come in. We could do this all day long. We finally got a doggy door for her to go through. We are concerned for her safety, that she might go out into the street and get hit and want her to respond more quickly at times. We try not to show frustration and anger, but it is very infuriating. Any ideas?
Hi there! Welcome to the forum. My dog can be like that too. Is she on a lead when you go to the car? She really should be. I normally resort to bribery with treats (Lilly has me well trained ) but sometimes I will just lift her in for ease - or get her front paws up and lift her bum in though this does need some co-operation. Have you tried getting her to jump in and out when you aren't actually going anywhere? Perhaps do some clicker training on this? I'm sure someone else who is better at training than I am will help out with this. Jac
I use treats with Tatze getting in the car, every time. She's very much 'show me the money' in this situation, but it works ,,,
When Snowie did this some years ago, my trainer said to start throwing treats on the ground before he even knows he's getting in the car. Make it a game with the final treat thrown into the car. I always then gave another treat when I was in the car. The objective was to break the cycle of refusing to get into the car cos he was having too much fun. At some point he became wise to this trick! But he's gotten better and aside from sometimes veering off at the last second to sniff something, a gentle nudge gets him back in the right direction to the car door. Or simply taking him by collar and frog-marching him to the car! I am so impressed by others who simply open the car door and their dogs instantly jump in. Snowie says he's got at least 10 more sites to inspect and sniff before getting into the car - this is at the walking spot. He doesn't need encouragement at home when we leave for a walk; only on the return.
From a safety point of view, my dog is always on a lead when we're getting into the car - It's not that he won't get in the car, but I know he will chase after anything he sees if he's not leashed. I would ensure your dog can't run off.
I say pick your battles (ie training needs) and just put the leash on for going out to the car. In the same situation I did. Now that the car is firmly established as the beginning of a good outing, to a walking place, he goes straight to the car. At 18 months it was just easier to leash up.
Wow, this is my first time on the forum and I'm really pleased with all these helpful ideas in one day! Thank you so much. If anything, it's just nice to know that other people have the same problems as us and that we're not "bad" parents. She really is doing well in most other regards.
