German shepherd pup

Question


Hello and thank you for taking the time to answer my questions.  I just bought a 4 months old male German shepherd.  I would like to know the best way for me to practice having the dog to come to me when I call him.  Also, what is the best way to teach him to sit and stay?  I have a fenced in back yard; however, the dog can somehow fit under the fence and get to the front.  This is not safe for the dog, so how can I prevent this behavior?


Thank you for your expertise.  


John  

Answer
You will have to fix the fence. There is no other sure way of stopping it,  he will of course end up too big to get under soon.

OK,  the recall.  Get a long long lead, probably about 25-30 metres,  attach the dog.  Wait until he's quite far away from you and call him, look inviting, spread your arms and kneel down,  he should come to you, If he doesnt you can use the lead to gently reel him in. When he gets to you,  whether you have to reel him in or not, give him a treat and loads of praise. Repeat and repeat. Don't attempt this off lead until he is 100% on the lead.  Some things to remember are, never call your dog by his name to punish him, recall should always be for something great. Never call him (while practising) away from something really fun, cos chances are he wont listen, and everytime you call him and he doesnt follow through, he is learning that you can be ignored.

Sit, get a treat and starting at your dogs nose level, bring it up and over his head,  he should follow the treat,  because of the anatomy of a dog, they have to sit down when they look up far enough, as he is sitting say sit and reward him.  The other thing you can do is say sit, and then gently push his rump down, reward right away.

Once you have taught sit, down is easy.  Ask the dog to sit, get a treat and hold it in between the dogs paws, slowly move it out towards you,  the dog should slid into a down, again if this doesnt work you can gently manouvere him.  Always use treats.