Teaching The Come To

The come too is an exercise that teaches your dog to follow you no matter what direction your going. Plus it teaches the dog to step or get out of your way which is very important in keeping your self Alpha or leader in the eyes of the dog. And the final exercise it helps begin with teaching the foundation of the recall.

You will be heeling along normally with the dog in the proper position by your side. You of course will telling the dog to Watch Watch with food hanging from your mouth. You then immediately go into reverse backing up rather quickly telling the dog to HERE HERE with food right at your belly or in your mouth. You must reel in his leash as fast as your moving back wards. Now it may take ten steps backwards or more. Or it may take five as you keep backing up until the dog is in position right in front of your belly. As soon as he is in position you tell him sit and snapping the leash in a upward manner to get him to sit. He is to be in front of you no further than 10 inches from your belly, the closer the better. It is very important that you talk to him the whole time he is coming into you while your backing up. I like to keep saying HERE HERE, in a very upbeat voice to get your dog into position. You must move quickly and smoothly. As soon as he is in the right spot, spit his food at him to reward and calmly tell him GOOD HERE,GOOD HERE!

Now the next move is called the forward, you will walk thru you dog, saying HEEL, and as you snap his leash to the left of your body to get him to move to the left of you. It looks like a quick snap to the left of your body, This is not a correction but a direction of where you want him. The reasoning behind this is. The Alpha dog or leader in pack ALWAYS WALKS THRU THE OTHERS. This is his act of authority over the pack. They always move out of his way no matter how inconvenient it is. He is the boss, period! This action alone is telling everyone in the pack he is to be listen to. So as you go forward he goes right to your left side, back into a heeling pattern while you telling him to heel.

After he has this down real well I would say in about a week you can now go to a finish or go to heel. This is the last part of training your dog to do a full recall. Now your going to do another COME TOO, a little further down of your heeling. Again your going to say COME TOO! While backing up quickly to get him in position, with the food hanging from you mouth. Again repeating the command to HERE HERE!

Now as you have him in this position right in front of your belly you will then say HEEL, OR FINISH or what ever you want to use to get the dog to go behind you to your right side to return to a heeling position, I have the dog right in front of my, I will then step back with my right foot taking only taking one step back. At this same moment I will snap the leash backward with my right hand to get him in the direction I want him in, telling him to FINISH. I sometimes use food or a treat in my right hand to show him where I want him to be. By enticing him to follow the hand holding the leash. I then will pass his leash behind my back as I am stepping back ward. The dog should of gone to your right side and coming behind you at this point. Now is the time you will transfer the leash behind your back to your left hand, As he is behind you, now take a step forward having the leash in your left hand by this point. Continue to tell your dog to HEEL, HEEL. As he is in position on your left side have him sit, with a upward movement of the leash. His shoulder should be right at your left knee, if not tell him NO and reposition him into the correct spot. Remember if you allow him to sit crooked the first time he will think this is the right position from the very start. So do not allow him to sit wrong ever, it is very hard to re-teach them to sit correctly if you have allowed them to sit wrong in the beginning. So do it right the first time. If he likes to sit crooked away from you body, you can use a dowel to gently tap him on his hip to get him in the right spot. Now if he likes to sit into you with his butt a little behind you then you need to bring your right foot behind you right in that spot to discourage him from sitting there. Careful as this takes some coordination so try not to fall over. As soon as he is in position on your left side warmly praise and pet your dog letting him know what a good boy he is and what a good finish he did!

like to use the COME TOO, a lot while I am heeling my dogs, I will use the right turn, left turns and then throw in some come too to keep him on his toes.

Make this a quick exercise so he has to move fast and smooth. Remember one thing if your dog is bored with your heeling then you are probably very boring in it, So pick up your pace with your dog, chances are you walking too slow. Good luck and practice practice. VERY IMPORTANT,!!!!

• A HERE is exactly that, your dog comes here right to your belly and sits in front of you

• A COME is to come generally to you in a causal fashion. But not in front of you in a sit, it is to come to your general presence.

MAY THE GOOD LORD BLESS YOU AND KEEP YOU SAFE LIKE A GSD.