As we approach the final stretch of the Total Recall Challenge, our Project Lead, Shona, is stepping in to bust some myths and clear up a few common misunderstandings around recall training.
Over the past few weeks, we’ve heard lots of brilliant questions — and quite a few recurring myths — about what recall really is and what “good recall” should look like.
Shona, an expert Animal Behaviourist with an MSc in Clinical Animal Behaviour, is here to share her thoughts.
Myth 1: a dog may understand their recall cue but choose to ignore it because they’re stubborn or naughty
There are two main reasons you are likely to experience this. First and most likely is that your dog really doesn’t know their recall word or signal. But if that is the case, why would they sometimes come back?
Well, it could be a coincidence, normal checking in, or they have learnt a rough recall – so when you make noise, they know it might mean a reward is coming. They haven’t fully understood the process, but they will check in with you anyway, especially as they sometimes get something they like out of it – but to us that can look like a naughty dog that recalls only when they want to. This has the knock-on effect that your recall word is now just background noise; they hear it a lot and it doesn’t mean anything consistent to them.
The second reason is that your dog simply isn’t motivated enough. In this case they do understand that you want them to come back to you, but whatever they are doing is more important to them in that moment. This isn’t malicious or disrespectful. It’s more like they see your recall as an invite that they are politely declining.
Maybe you have phased out rewards too quickly, maybe they have become bored of the reward you are using, or maybe they have found something super exciting and when weighing their options it wins out. Imagine you go to the pub every Friday with a friend, but one day another friend says they have free tickets to see your favourite band. You might feel a bit rude cancelling your original plans and you look forward to seeing them next time, but this is too exciting an opportunity to miss.
Another time you might see this is if your dog is desperate for the toilet, they know you’re calling them, but they have something more urgent on their mind right now! Dogs aren’t working on a high conceptual level, they simply have two options and they’re going to pick the one that is most fun or important.
It can be hard to differentiate between these two reasons, but luckily there is a simple answer – go back to basics and practise that recall! Test out new rewards, maybe games or a new tasty treat. Make sure your recall word is nice and clear, you can even pick out a new one, so your dog really builds a strong association. Above all, practise, you want to get to the point where recalling is basically automatic, they hear you call and come running every time.
Sometimes, there is a medical explanation why your dog seems to ignore your recall. Your dog might be losing hearing or be slightly deaf, so they only recall properly when they hear you clearly or see a visual signal. Your dog might also be experiencing some pain, so they don’t recall quickly as it hurts them to run back to you. So, if you feel you are doing everything right and still not seeing results it might be a good idea to chat to a vet or specialist to rule out any other issues.
Myth 2: dogs should come back out of respect, not for bribes
This is something that we hear a lot, and it is understandable, but respect is a very human concept. We have good evidence that dogs love us and view us as their family, which we think is more important than “respect”.
You absolutely can phase out rewards with training, but reframing the whole idea is helpful too. If someone in your social circle was constantly asking you to stop doing something you enjoy just for their benefit and without offering you any explanation or anything in return, you might get a bit fed up.
Our dogs don’t understand why we need them to stop having fun and come back to us, so we need to give them a good incentive. Rather than seeing rewards as a bribe, we view them as payment for doing a good job – as we would all expect from our work no matter how much we enjoy it or respect the people we work with.
Myth 3: dogs must sit or give eye contact for it to be a proper recall
It certainly looks very neat when a dog does a perfect recall and sits when they get back to their owner. It can be useful, it’s often easier to clip a lead on if they’re nice and still and feels more controlled or less likely to run back off. However, we need to be careful not to undermine our recall training by focusing on this.
From your dog’s point of view, if you call them and then immediately expect a sit or eye contact, you’re teaching that behaviour instead of reinforcing the recall itself. Our dog recalls, which is the hard part, but instead of getting their reward, they get another task. That can reduce enthusiasm and gradually weaken the recall.
If you really want a sit or eye contact at the end, build it in after you have a rock‑solid recall. First, recall your dog and give a big reward. Then ask for the sit or eye contact and reward again. And keep mixing in plenty of simple recalls where all they do is come back, get rewarded, and go back to enjoying their walk.
Myth 4: if recall is so important for safety, it makes sense to use a remote electric shock collar to train it
This is a claim that is often promoted, on social media especially, by trainers who advocate for these tools. Unfortunately, tools like electric shock collars have dangerous side effects, are only effective in the hands of highly trained experts and are unethical regardless. Studies show that training using positive reinforcement (which is what we use in all our training advice) is just as effective, but without the negative side effects, such as fear and mistrust of the handler.
Side effects of positive reinforcement include excitement to begin training and increased bonding with the handler – which we think are pretty good results! We love our dogs and want to make the best choices for them, which includes their mental wellbeing as well as physical. Living in fear of unexpected pain (and electric shock collars wouldn’t be effective if they weren’t painful) is extremely unpleasant for any animal and leads to anxiety, redirected aggression and physical issues.
We have designed Total Recall to be fun and effective for both you and your dog, without the need for any unpleasant tools that work through fear and pain. We work with wonderful local trainers who are qualified and capable of helping with a variety of issues, without falling back on tools that are designed to supress, rather than fix any underlying issues.
Head over to our Total Recall information page to discover everything you need to know about the challenge.
