Help needed for running away from me when he has something he shouldn't

[Deb]

Boomer is a 12 week old ALD. We got him at 8 weeks. He is doing so well. Ringing potty bells to go out, sleeping thru the night, Not jumping up, learning not to bite.SO...everything is great except for one thing. We live in the country...lots of sticks and stones to try to eat. I wish I could puppyproof the yard! Most of the time he is off leash and plays and walks nicely. But occasionally he'll get into something he can't have. I tell him to leave it...go toward him and he takes off running. Too fast for me to catch. Sometimes I try to catch him...sometimes I stay cool to see if he'll drop it. Any tips? Sometimes a treat for coming back works...sometimes diverting his attention to something else. If he strays too far in the yard, he'll come back quickly when he sees us going back into the house.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

At this age & stage of development, I would not have him off leash outdoors. You can use a long line to give him a chance to run a bit, but every time he gets away with running from you/refusing to come to you/refusing to "leave it" or "drop it", it reinforces the behavior that you don't want. You can't issue a command if you have no way to enforce it. And "getting into things" outdoors can have some very, very serious consequences. I would keep him on a leash always at this point.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I agree with Karen on this.  Unless your yard is fenced and "puppy proofed", I think it's pretty risky to allow him to be off leash before being trained.

[Judy, Meg & Polly Wolly Doodle]

We used to keep a small snack baggie of kibble in our pockets when we were in the yard.  We try to NEVER go after them, I think that encourages them to play it like a game.  We frequently do 'leave it' and 'drop it' commands in the house, so in the yard we shake the bag to get their attention, tell them drop it and offer the treat, they don't get the treat unless they drop it.  My girls are pretty good about it now, but I will confess it took time and patience.  It was harder though to break my husband of trying to go after them to take the stone or stick away.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Yep, fill your pockets constantly with  treats.  I think all puppy owners should smell like a giant treat at least for the first two years  :)

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

Wow, he is so young.  He comes right now, but he wont soon.  He will become very independent and confident and certainly he will take off running.

That said, I agree with Karen. A nice long line or lead. He is a long time away for having freedom.  You really need to break this habit now.

Always, always, always, reward the " Come when called" No matter how long he takes or if he does it not so good, always reward with a treat and a happy greeting.

I used to use a ball.  Still do sometimes.  I throw  the ball and as he is bring it back to me, I yell Come Here.  

Com,e is the most important command to teach and constantly reinforce with your dog. It sometimes is a matter of life and death.

Anyway, keeping working on him and REWARD his return.. no matter how bad it is or how long it takes

[Deb]

This morning he went out, got a stick, looked at me as if to say"I know I shouldn't have this!" I told him to leave it. He immediately dropped it and came to get his treat! I was initially concerned at having him off leash but the breeder insisted he would stay with us. he does 99% of the time.I agree...there is a danger even though we live in a pretty remote location.We always have him on a leash when we walk anywhere.And we don't let him in the lower yard at all. Thanks for your help. My daughter has a rescue dog that has NEVER been off leash. When he does get off, he runs away. I don't want that!!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Beyond running away, there are things that he could get hold of that could make him very ill. And then there is the issue of his learning that coming when called is optional.

I have found that breeders may be very knowledgable about breeding, but training, not so much. There is no way any breeder could know that any 8 week old puppy is always going to stay with you or come to you.  :) 

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

My dog does this ...still.  He grabs whatever he can and puts it in his mouth. When he is excited, he grabs the closets object. Stick, shirt, socks, shoe,....... 

He is, after all, a RETRIEVER  :)   And so I had to look at it this way.  I often pick up the nearest object ( most often items that are his-toys) and give it to him when I know someone is at the door or I have to go to the basement, etc.

He doesn't destroy anything, but he does have to have something in his retriever mouth at all times.

I think it is a GREAT thing he drops the object at such a young age. I also think it is great that you rewarded him with a ball.  That is the way it works.  A good exchange.

I tried to find an article about the ' Life Stages' a dog goes through but I cant find it just now. It talks about a stage around 6-9 months where a dog becomes stubborn, often testing his boundaries, your authority, etc and this age is when they do run off.  A bad habit to establish often with horrible outcomes. He IS going to go through this stage and he IS going to run off.  If not for a deer or a squirrel as we are no match for animal instincts. Expect this to happen.  It is nature. We cant fight Mother Nature, right.

So reinforce what you have been doing, reward, play exchange,  so when this time goes you get through that stage with a positive outcome.

If you are going to have a dog off -leash ( and I have all my life so  understand)  he should constantly be rewarded ( even though right now it seems like he is defiant ) . My dog is 51/2 and if I know I will be off leash, I STILL have treats in my pocket and the ever precious ball.   

Still, my treats and balls are no match for chasing a deer for miles and miles or a squirrel up a tree I at east try to be prepared with his favorite thing in life

Down the line, a dog can learn the commands Stay and STOP. Stop is a great command to learn.  But, I think stop needs to be learned while training on lead  :)  I do think you are going to have to train this pup with a lead so when off leash he knows these commands and is solid on all recall, stop, stay, leave it, etc.

Then you can enjoy many places, not just home, off leash.

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

Boris greets everyone with something in his mouth, usually a toy squirel or a ball. It's a retriever thing. Mind you if he saw a real squirrel or a cat he would not hear a thing I said so I don't trust him one bit except at the beach where there is only the sand to run up and down on and the sea to jump into. Oh and also the dog park and a big field that has a fence all the way around. I know there are some dogs that walk without leashes and I see lots of them, I just don't see it as a safe option for my smart, playful energetic boys!

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

I had bent down to correct Spud's leash that gets under his arm from time to time.  Suddenly, just to the right about three feet, and he saw it too, were what I first thought to be Coyote.  Thankfully, not Coyote, but thankfully he was ON LEASH on this off-road path.

Really, they were just a few feet away and they spooked but Spud was on that leash. It took at least 30 seconds for me to compose and grab my camera.  Still, look how close even after a half minute

There is a time and a place for OFF LEASH.  This was not the place. Also, typically, Coyote want nothing to do with humans, but from March through June, a Coyote comes forward, not running away to protect his den with pups.  He will come forward if you come across that line.  So, again, time and place, even with my off-leash dog.  Even then, you take a risk anytime off leash. So train off leash AND on leash because you will need both

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Both Ned and our Springer greet us with something in their mouth, Joanne and Nicky.  Clancy, not so much.  Luckily, we only get greeted with dog toys.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

And my Miniature Poodle always greeted us with a toy in her mouth. You'd see her go get one before she even came over to you. While JD, whose entire life revolves around retrieving a ball, never carries anything around in his mouth. Go figure.