In class we’ve been working on “come” in a progressive manner, calling the dog with much enthusiasm and running backwards patting our thighs and praising the dog. At the training center Zoe’s “come” is much less enthusiastic than I’d like - actually I tend to lose her attention before she gets to me, because a car backfires, or one of the other dogs move around, or the breeze blows. She’s so concerned about everything else that she isn’t focussed on me - that’s just the way it’s been at class. So a lot of things I wait until we’re home to teach, and almost always that works.

But with “come” when I’d try the same thing in our yard, where she felt comfortable, she came flying all right - right past me. Then she’d zoom in circles around me in unadulterated glee. Which is funny, but not what I wanted. And no matter how much I encouraged her, and how many times I turned to face her, or how much I ran backwards, she wouldn’t come to me. I think the whole exercise was far too much like the chase game we’ve played since she’s a puppy. She wasn’t doing it out of stubbornness or anything, she just thought it was a fun game I was playing and didn’t get the point.

So earlier today before I took her out to pee I went in the cupboard and opened up a new package of cat treats - soft, smelly ones. I figured they were guaranteed to make her quiver with anticipation. I didn’t show her I had them. I let her pee and sniff around the yard, waited until she was occupied, then called her. I didn’t jump up and down and run backwards and pat my legs and praise her. I simply said, “Zoe come!” in a happy voice. When she was coming towards me I took out the treat, held it in front of me, and drew her in to me. She came straight to me, and was given the treat with much happy happy praise!

Wouldn’t you know it, every time after that when I called out “Zoe come!” she’d come straight to me. It was like a lightbulb went off in her head. The third or fourth time I did it I said “Front!” as she was heading towards me, and she came right to me and sat. Just like that, with very little guiding with the treat. I went from a dog who would run circles around me to a dog whose come was in perfect form, in literally 2 minutes.