Quick Fixes for Common Problems: “My Dog Won’t Come Inside!”
This is the second installment in a series on quick fixes for the most common behavior problems I encounter as a professional dog trainer.
Is there anything more frustrating than a dog won’t come inside from the backyard? Especially when you’re running late for an appointment??
I’ve had several Keep Away players visit over the years, and I absolutely cannot stand it. Few problems wind me up like a dog who will not come indoors when called.
“I think I’ll just stand here and watch you.”
Prevention: The Ultimate Quick Fix
Getting relief from dog behavior problems doesn’t have to be complicated or include lengthy training programs.
Often, the fastest and easiest solutions come by simply adjusting the environment or human behavior to prevent the problem from happening in the first place.
Is that a cop out? Are you a wimp for solving your dog’s dumpster-diving habit by using a locking-lid trash can? Is prevention an inferior solution?
Nope! Not in the least.
For most people, the goal is solving the problem—not spending time training the dog. If prevention does the job and doesn’t create other problems, why not use it?!
(And if moving beyond prevention is part of your goal, not to worry: prevention is always the first step of the training plan anyway.)
The Quick Fix: Remove the Choice
Dogs who demonstrate a proclivity for racing around the yard instead of coming get to go out on a leash.
The leash is not there to correct the dog for not coming.
It’s there to remove his choice: I say it’s time and you’re attached to me so you have to come along.
Removing his choice means I don’t get angry and he doesn’t get rewarded for running away from me (“all right! This is a blast!”)
Yes, this means I have to go out and stay out with the dog,* but I would normally do that even if he wasn’t wearing a leash. And, for me, it’s worth avoiding the anger and frustration.
*If the dog is wearing a leash he needs to be supervised against strangulation; it is not safe to leave a leashed dog unattended.