Can anyone advice me please?
I have a new dog that i got from the pound a month ago.
He's a little cross yorkie and is roughly about 8 mths old.He's very loving and clingy following me around the house everywhere i go but as soon as he's out and off the lead he runs off and won't come back no matter how much i shout him.
Any idea's?

Don't shout - just walk the other way with a big juicy treat in your hand & he'll probably come running - then snog him like mad for being so brilliant, it'll work every time :)

Get an extending lead or training lead and practice rewarding him everytime he comes back, dont take the lead off until he has mastered that 100%, reward him and give lots of praise. HE will soon get the idea. Also try taking him to tennis courts or enclosed areas then he cant get out and eventually he will be caught without negotiating roads etc etc. I think the askinging him to come back while still on lead is best to start with tho.

Never ever ever let a dog off the lead until you can control him. No matter - there is no answer.

Use the extending lead - learn how to do clicker training and recall.

You have to make him WANT to come back to you - this boy no doubt doesn't know any rules , you have to gently train him . remember also dogs don't understand anything unless we gently explain it.
think of him as a foreigner dropped in a foreign land. doesn't understand english. how would you explain it to them? If it was you - would you go back if someone wanted you to - or how could you encourage you to go back?

give him time and good luck

remember also dogs don't understand anything unless we gently explain it.
think of him as a foreigner dropped in a foreign land. doesn't understand english. how would you explain it to them?

This is brillient advise. Its so true. If i was surrounded by foriegners I wouldnt go over the crazy one screaming and shouting and I doubt my dog will come back to me if i do the same.

Pratice at close range in a boring (no destractions to begin with) enclosed area. Theres lot of ways of doing it but I always teach recall like this. Sit on the floor with a hand full of treats. Feed him a few from your hand. Throw a treat away from you (short distance at first) while hes watching so he moves away to fetch it, after hes eaten the treat he'll no doubt come back to see if theres anymore. Reward this decision with a treat. Once hes getting it add a cue (usually his name or Here boy/girl). Build up the distance and if hes on a long line do it in more distracting places. Do it both off lead in an enclosed space and on a long line in none enclosed spaces.

When you do get to a point where your confident about letting him off. If hes ignoring you recalls please dont keep shouting. If it didnt work the first time its not going to work. You become background noise if you keep shouting and he'll learn to ignore your shouting.

Never ever ever let a dog off the lead until you can control him. No matter - there is no answer.



It needs no more explanation than that.

Don't shout at him and don't clip him when he returns - both are the most likely results in these scenarios.
Training recall or at least to take notice is straight forward re-educating his current behaviour may take a little more patience. I trained my boxer a sanitised recall in less than an hour, it took me six weeks to get him to stop trying to run away first.

THANKS for all the advice!
I would like to point out that the only time i let him off the lead was in my back garden. I thought it was secure but because he's only little he managed to sneak his way through REALLY small gaps (little tinker!)
But thanks again everyone and i'll keep trying:)

THANKS for all the advice!
I would like to point out that the only time i let him off the lead was in my back garden. I thought it was secure but because he's only little he managed to sneak his way through REALLY small gaps (little tinker!)But thanks again everyone and i'll keep trying:)

Typical terrier ;) mine's the same - despite a 6 foot fence at my mum's he's gotten out several times... he'd just take himself for a good run then come back and throw himself against the door to make sure we knew he was back :hihi: Eventually found out how he was getting out though n blocked it off.

In reply to Berkana, yes i block 1 hole so think i've cracked it, but then he manages to find another and he keeps finding different little holes that i wouldn't dream he'd get through. I wouldn't mind but my garden is massive so he could run himself stupid if he wished :)