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Recall to "front" ...Need help

3K views 17 replies 13 participants last post by  wolfstraum 
#1 ·
Hi,

I have 100% confidence in Kira's recall. I can call from anywhere, and she'll stop what she's doing, and come to me.

However, I've been trying to get her to "come to front" position, and sit in front of me.

If I call her, she comes running over at full speed. 99% of the time, she'll end up close to me, then I have to command her to either heel or front. I can't get it in one recall.

So far, I've managed to accomplish this, ONLY by either stopping her while she's running to me, and then commanding her to front.
I want her to run to front, and sit.

Suggestions welcomed.
 
#2 ·
Go back to basics and start luring with the "here" command. Ask her to sit, step back a few feet and call her to "here" luring with food or a toy into the correct position then reward once she does it.
 
#3 ·
Go to your kitchen. Sit in a chair with your legs apart. Tuck a treat under your chin. Call her in, when she's between your legs, release the treat. Muscle memory...you need to build the muscle memory. Do not use the Front command until you are sure that she understands the position.
 
#4 ·
Hope you don't mind me giving my 2 cents :)

I have similar problem with my dog. He half sits in front and half goes to heel position

The problem is the dog anticipating a heel or another command so it's like why bother sitting right in front.

It comes down to foundation training i think. If the recall to front was really solid to begin with the problem shouldn't arise

Bart Bellons theory with the boxes or a marking board is a good route to fixing it. He'd put a box open at one side in front of him and call the dog into the box and reward there. Then when that was solid he'd remove the box.

Similarly he'd put another box to his left so to position a straight heel from the front position

I'm sure you know this technique and can search for his clips if you need it
 
#5 ·
She will do the above mentioned in a close, controlled environment.
Now that I'm typing this, I realize that maybe I'm the one that may have confused the commands...

If i'm within close range, I can easily say "front", and she'll come to front. I use reward based, and repeat.

Now if I'm long range, I use COME command. I guess I associated two different results.

I need to be corrected.
 
#15 ·
She will do the above mentioned in a close, controlled environment.
Now that I'm typing this, I realize that maybe I'm the one that may have confused the commands...

If i'm within close range, I can easily say "front", and she'll come to front. I use reward based, and repeat.

Now if I'm long range, I use COME command. I guess I associated two different results.

I need to be corrected.

BAD ANTHONY...now you have been corrected. Do not use two different commands for the same thing:crazy:
 
#7 ·
MadLab what helped me with anticipation are two things:
1. I would only do the "finish" (when dog moves from front to heel) once in a while - most of the times I'd reward the recall separately (so maybe I'll release midway with the ball between my legs or maybe I'll have him come to front and then reward etc). The less u do the finish, the less anticipation (same with down with recall)
2. I taught two commands that can be called from the front position - fuss (finish) and "under" (figure eights between my legs). This way I can mix things up while still working the front, finish, etc. Dog learns that even if he anticipates a command after the recall, he doesn't know which one (fuss or have him weave and then fuss)

Summary: be predictably unpredictable

As for Bellon's methods - I never really tried it (I have enough equipment to carry with me, I can't bring a bunch of boxes with me) but from what I've seen the end picture is a nice one, very clear to the dog.

Anthony: I agree with others, you can probably go back to basics. Lure very closely into you (exaggerate the position - I lean back and have the dog's nose literally touching my midsection when I first taught) and reward from the front position, then you can increase distance
 
#8 ·
Make a platform just big enough for her to sit on, and about 3-6 inches off the ground. Teach her that sitting on the platform gets rewards. Then recall her while you stand at the platform so if she is on the platform, the front will be correct.

Also, I used a different command for "recall to me" and "recall and front & center"... "Come" and "Heir"
 
#11 ·
Although I never done this, this is something my trainer highly recommended.

Once you have that down try to call her to you while your back is facing her. I was surprised when we did this exercise that Dakota did go to front and sat. Most of the other dogs did not. They went to heel position. She is not 100% on this one so I have more work to do.
 
#9 ·
Hope you don't mind me hijacking a bit, but I have trouble with mine with this too. She will Hier but will stop and sit about 1 foot in front of me. Would the platform or chair work in this case? I have done the treat and ball under my chin but she tends to still stop 1 foot in front of me for the treat, and will get close but jumps for the ball.
 
#10 ·
Anthony, I do a little of what everyone is suggesting with my crack puppy. I did start with what Michelle has suggested in a controlled environment, because he is so difficult to keep focused.

What really polished it up was even after he fronts and I reward, I'll back a step and repeat again. I do it a couple of times. That way he waits at the sit (in front of me) for additional instructions from me and stays focused. Sometimes I'll throw in a single reward then we'll run off to play. But I don't ever reward and end it there. I will when he matures, but right now my game is to keep him focused on me.
 
#12 ·
A Joanne Fleming exercise for fronts:

put the dog in a plaitz (down)....stand toe to toe with the dog.....use the HERE command and lure the dog up with food....repeat - over and over and over and over.....

don't confuse the exercise with different commands...thus here becomes the front position.....dogs can learn the front position from any location after the position is learned solidly....

do not reward incorrect fronts...the dog must have a solid straight front, you are helping that as your feet are spread slightly

Lee
 
#17 ·
put the dog in a plaitz (down)....stand toe to toe with the dog.....use the HERE command and lure the dog up with food....repeat - over and over and over and over.....

don't confuse the exercise with different commands...thus here becomes the front position.....dogs can learn the front position from any location after the position is learned solidly....
I personally don't think using the HERE is a good way, because you are using two different commands for what you want to be the front command. When luring the dog I think its best to say FRONT, so the front is always a front...but its just my opinion and the way I do it and all the trainers that I know do it.
 
#13 ·
Great thread.

To make it clear, it is proper to train the recall and the come-fore as different commands?

Reason I ask, sometimes I will wait for the dog to recall and go into a sit, using the same command as my recall to touch my hand, or as a recall to come near me.
IE Command may be confusing to the dog using "Here, sit", "Here, touch", or sometimes just "Here" and waiting for either behavior depending on a hand signal, or do nothing to wait for a sit, or sometimes he just runs off again.
 
#14 ·
Hi,

I have 100% confidence in Kira's recall. I can call from anywhere, and she'll stop what she's doing, and come to me.

However, I've been trying to get her to "come to front" position, and sit in front of me.

If I call her, she comes running over at full speed. 99% of the time, she'll end up close to me, then I have to command her to either heel or front. I can't get it in one recall.

So far, I've managed to accomplish this, ONLY by either stopping her while she's running to me, and then commanding her to front.
I want her to run to front, and sit.

Suggestions welcomed.

Front is my favorite command and adding a finish is fun too. Sometimes this can take two people. Put Kira on a (4-6ft)leash, put her in a sit, tell her to wait, back up the length of the leash, say front, when she comes to you,you can tell her or give her a hand signal to sit, then reward..do this about ten times, about the 5th time she will automatically sit. After you feel comfortable, put her in a sit, tell her to wait and go about 15 feet, then turn around and face her, say front and she should come right down the line. My golden does this wonderfully...about 100-150 ft with no problems. Its a great command:)
 
#16 ·
put the dog in a plaitz (down)....stand toe to toe with the dog.....use the HERE command and lure the dog up with food....repeat - over and over and over and over.....

don't confuse the exercise with different commands...thus here becomes the front position.....dogs can learn the front position from any location after the position is learned solidly....

do not reward incorrect fronts...the dog must have a solid straight front, you are helping that as your feet are spread slightly
This is what I do, but not at first.. First I lure them into me and teach them to sit and look up, once I have that solid to where they're sitting in front and looking up, I move onto the above.. but I want to see power in the dog when he/she pops up into the sit. And once that is solid I move onto adding some distance and then speed..

Funny Lee, I didn't know that's how Joanne teaches it..
 
#18 ·
"Heir" vs "front"

In competition - you only can use one command. the end result of the Heir is in front of you....

It makes no sense to me to teach it as a separate command....the Here command means come to my front....

Yes - someone who trained alot with Joanne showed me this, and then when I was at her place to do a breeding, she showed it to me as well - of course, I was training a dog who was already doing recalls....but I have used this with youngster now as well....guess it depends on your own sense of logic if it makes sense to you.

Lee
 
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