“Sasha...Come. Yes, good girl. Come on.....” is more appropriate. Projecting weak energy with our voices is one of the most common places we fall apart as 'trainers.' Where have you ever seen a military commander begging his troops to pay attention?
You can sound happy, but not silly. Think about it as though you were speaking to a five year old child. You wouldn't squeak and coo and bubble when calling them off the swings at the park, would you?
Nor would you attempt to sound like you are angry to make the child respond....At least I would hope not. Projecting strength and conviction in your voice is a lot different then sounding out of control.
“JIMMY!!! GET YOUR BUTT OVER HERE BEFORE I SPANK THE TAR OUT OF YOU!!!!”
makes you sound classless and unstable. Noise without follow-through is just noise.
My dog comes close to me, but breezes by in a run instead of stopping in front of me.
As you are working with the long line, create more of a moving target of your body. Dogs don't find stationary Humans very interesting. As you call your dog, tug the line when you say “Come.” Begin moving backward or away from the dog, maintain facial contact (keep your face turned towards the dog) and avoid turning your back on him. When the dog begins to move your way, That is when you say “Good.” The act of moving your direction is good.
Pull the line so the dog is getting closer, as the dog breezes past you, say “no” and tug the line as you repeat, “Come.” Moving past you is not good, so you mark it with “no.” As the dog once again is on track, you may encourage with “yes” or “good” but try not to say the dogs' name again during this corrective move.
Keep at it 'til the dog has landed right in front of you, at which point you immediately dole out a reward; be it a toy, treat or freedom again.
The breeze by's will also be decreased if you take the time to practice this at shorter distances and with less distractions.
My dog only plays pass the puppy if we have a leash on him to give him a tug. So my partner can't get him to return, because they aren't holding the leash.
That's ok. You can again go back to a smaller space between you (starting so small that the dog only has to turn his head to receive a reward is sometimes necessary) or you can put 2 long lines on the dog's collar. Place yourselves at a distance that won't restrict the dog from reaching either of you. One person calls the dog, tugs the line and rewards for the return, then the other person does the same with their leash. Setting up control in the environment is how you get success.
My dog plays Come When Called great...when there are no distractions....
If your pup has a low distraction tolerance, you may have to stay at a short distance away (4 or 6 ft leash length) and put more of a buffer between you and the distraction, until your pup begins to function in the presence of these things. If kids and bikes distract her, finding a neighborhood where there are a couple kids, once in a while may be a better place to start then at the local playground.
If dogs are the issue, keep a good distance from them before you can expect your dog to focus close up. If Humans are the best thing in the world for your dog, call a friend and ask them to help you. Find a quiet place to work where you won't see many other Humans, and have your friend place themselves far off. At first, all they do is stand there doing nothing. At the same distance, add in the Human now walks; the Human now jumps/runs/catches a ball, etc. You can also have your friend bring a dog; begin far and smush that tolerance level at a successful rate. Go at your dog's pace, but always be pushing that envelope a little further. If your dog is consistently failing, it is not the dogs fault; it is yours for trying too much, too fast.
It is unfair to expect a high-drive or energetic dog to function well at the mall on a Sunday afternoon right off the bat. Start in your home. In those boring places. Then perhaps just your front yard. Or an empty parking lot. Getting creative with where and how you introduce distractions is the best way to bomb-proof your desired behaviors.
My dog comes when called on leash, but the moment he is free, I do not exist.
Your dog is not ready to be off leash. If you cannot trust them to return, don't.
You may have either not practiced enough, in different settings, with differing distractions, or you are working with an intelligent beast who has figured out just how little control you have when not directly attached to her. In these cases, you can either look into a teacher who can help you e-collar train your dog (which is not right for all dogs' personalities), or resolve to spend more time on it then you expected.
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