Springer problem

Question
Hi and thank you in advance for your time. I have a 9 month English Springer Spaniel who is so rowdy and un-ruly that I am having a hard time trying to train him to do anything. The only thing I have mastered is "sit" which he does very well. Whenever I try to have a training session with him he thinks its just play time and runs around me like an idiot. Help. The major thing he needs to be taught is "come" because he got out of the yard last night and was 2 blocks away before I caught him. Any suggestions?
Thanks, Janet

Answer
Hi Janet,  Every dog is different in the best training methods to use and it is best to see the dog before recommending the proper methods for training. I would recommend that you went to an obedience class and if you could find one that the instructor would also give private lessons the combination of private and group lessons would help start the training process.  I would explain to the instructor that your main goal was having the dog come when called and they could base their private lesson time on working on this 1 important area and the group class would be used for dealing with distractions and learning the other basic commands but 9 months is still very puppy but not too young to expect the dog to come when called.  You could try and call your veterinarian first for a recommendation.  Best regards, Dawn Hoppe & Tina K-9