My dog ran away when leash dropped. How to teach off-leash recall?

This is a training process that you need to do with her, you need to teach her to stay near you on command, this is usually done based on a reward system (treats) but it can take quite a long time to achieve this, when you are training her she should still be on the lead of course.

You will need to do some training with her and teach her to come to you when called. In the meantime, you should just keep her on a leash or in an enclosed area so she doesn't run away. https://positively.com/dog-behavior/basic-cues/recall-come/

That is great that you are working on training! It will not get better, only worse without consistent training. I would highly recommend only calling his name once. I would also use AMAZING treats- like small amounts of baked chicken ONLY when training- to ensure that he takes you seriously when you call his name. I would also consider having a special command - more than just 'come'- that you reserve for emergencies and reward him copiously with treats and attention when you do use the 'code' word. To really make any of this stick you need to work on it everyday for months, and the reinforce often. A trainer can help a lot, if nothing else to make sure you stick to your goals! Good luck and I hope this helps!

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It sounds like Toffee may not know his boundaries well, and assumes he can run everywhere once he's outside. I recommend training him on a leash to show him where his boundaries are. For example, walk him on a leash around the perimeter of your property, and never beyond. You can make him sit at the edge of your property, and give him a treat. Do this at multiple points around your property. Since he has run off before, he may not learn the true edge of his property. The safest thing to do is to take him out on a leash and not let him run freely. He is otherwise at risk of getting lost, or even hit by a vehicle. I hope this is helpful.

Unfortunately it sounds like your dog needs some structured training. I'm sure it was a horrible experience for you when she escaped. As owners we are totally responsible for our dogs and anything that they do, so she needs some help as next time you might not be so lucky in terms if the consqequences of her being loose and uncontrollable. In this instance I would encourage you to employ the help of a local and well regarded dog trainer. Huskies require strong and direct leadership so I recommend getting a trainer to help you deliver this. They will not only train the dog, but will train you in the best way to react to her and channel her energy. In the mean time I would invest in a collar or another harness as a fail safe in case she gets loose again.

If your dogs are not off-leashed trained then I recommend not taking them off the leashes. You can hire a trainer to see if they can train your dogs to become off leash trained. They would be the best ones to help you. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Some dogs no matter how you try cannot be trained off the leash. There are a lot of dangers when you have your dog off leash and it is recommended to keep them on. I would also recommend checking with local leash laws since most places you are not supposed to have them off leash. If you are able to do it and still want to I would recommend getting a trainer to work with you and with Reilly. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.