My puppy runs away when I let him off lead and keeps walking, when he eventually returns do I?

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• He comes back instantly on a retractable lead but once off hes gone

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  by seeuontheovaside on November 3rd, 2011

• Again, you must remember that he is a puppy. He has a natural instinct to run, play, and explore that you cannot ignore while training him. You have to work WITH these traits because he WILL do these things. This instinctive behavior is how the puppy learns about the world around him and what he can and cannot do (both his own limitations and those you impose upon him.)
  
  The goal is to get him to stay, come, and heel on command. But you HAVE to allow him some freedom to engage in his instinct driven behavior.
  
  As your puppy grows, he learns a lot about the world around him and things become less "new" to him, therefore he has less of a desire to run off and explore every little thing because he already knows a lot more about them.
  
  Remember that puppies/dogs are pack animals, and you are considered part of your puppy's pack. This means that the puppy is part of YOUR pack and the puppy looks to you for guidance and WANTS to please you as a result of his instincts.
  
  This means you have to communicate your desires in puppy terms, because the puppy cannot understand human terms. He's literally not wired that way. If you learn how to do this properly, and have the patience required to do this as he grows, eventually his behavior will conform to what you want him to do.
  
  Remember though...your frustration isn't something that your puppy can understand. If you give into your frustrations and punish him harshly (like slap or beat him), this will trigger an instinctive fear response from him that you will have to overcome. This will take even LONGER to do. What a puppy fears, he avoids. Which means you have just made it harder to train him to stay with you and come on command.
  
  Start training him to stay, heel, and come on command while on his leash. When he's mastered this well enough, find a SAFE place where you can do this off his leash. A place with a wide open area that he can run in without getting lost or endangering someone, like a fenced in area. And work the SAME commands with him off leash.
  
  The power of the reward cannot be overestated during training. You must be consistent and systematic about it for it to be effective.
  
  And all it takes to mess all your training up is one time with you losing your cool with the puppy.
  
  Seriously...google the things I mentioned. It's pretty easy! Just set aside the time and make it FUN for both of you.
  
  Good luck!

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  by The Chief on November 3rd, 2011

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