You may believe, at first glance, that this command is not very useful.
You may believe that it's a command you won't use much.
And your beliefs would be wrong.
Oh, I know, your new, loyal pal runs to you the moment she hears her name.
Why would you need to teach her to come? At times dogs act as if they have an attention deficit.
Remember the dog in the movie, "Up"? He'd be in the middle of a sentence (yes, he was a talking dog!) when he'd blurt out, "squirrel" and twirl his head around.
A time may come when you call your dog's name and he's bounding toward you, when something else catches his eye - that's where this command comes in handy.
The objective of this command is to get your pal to come to you whether he wants to or not.
After the commands sit and stay, come should be the next one you teach him.
Begin this session by reviewing sit and then stay.
Then once he's obeyed the stay command and he's a good distance from you, tell him to "Come.
" Along with this, make a sound or a gesture.
This could be clapping your hands or slapping your thigh.
This motion helps to excite your dog into motion.
It won't take your Golden long to connect the two - the verbal command and the gesture.
Praise him for his compliance.
If your friend doesn't respond, put him on a long leash.
Allow him to wander off.
Slowly reel in the leash all the while, repeating the word "Come.
" When she finally reaches you, praise her lavishly.
Repeat this several times.
Now, you're ready to try the procedure again without the leash.