# Off leash advice?



## Vizmaniz (Feb 22, 2020)

I’m seeking advice for me and my vizsla and our off leash adventures. She is six years old and I’ve had her since she was a puppy. She has always had a lot of off leash time, but this is mostly very hard work for me. She is definitely NOT velcro. Inside she is and sits on my lap etc like most Vizslas, but on the trail she is the most adventurous, independent and fearless puppy I could imagine. Thankfully, she’s got great recall, which makes all the off lead time possible, but she is like a yo-yo. She runs off, I call her back, she comes, then runs off, I call her back, she comes, runs off again and so on. If I don’t call her back she just keeps on exploring and doesn’t remember to check on me at all. I like to keep my eyes on her just in case, as you never know what’s ahead. This is exhausting as I spend the whole time calling her back, and makes it totally impossible to have a human friend on the trail with us, as there is no chance of maintaining any kind of conversation when every ten seconds I’m calling the dog back. I come across as a mad lady, I feel like I’m constantly screaming the dog’s name. And, yes she comes every time, happily, but is there some kind of command or technique to teach her to stay close to me while still having the freedom to run free? 
Thanks in advance


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## joav (Aug 10, 2018)

i often (like 5x per day, every day)
will get a treat in hand, and whisper a come or a sit or just george’s name.

if he responds, winner, winner, otherwise i’ll ignore it and move on too...

have no idea if that’s helped or not, but,
we’re off lead nearly 100% of the time,
he runs around like a maniac as well, but,
tends to keep me in eyesight/earshot at all times...


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## harrigab (Aug 21, 2011)

as long as they "check in" with me, ie stop and look where "I,m at" every couple of minutes I don't see it as a problem tbh, they hunt point and retrieve and come back first time to the whistle, I'm calm with that situation and hence the dogs are calm,


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## einspänner (Sep 8, 2012)

You're working against 6 years of ingrained behavior, but this is worth a try. Let her drag a long (no more than 50 ft or so) rope behind and when she starts to get to the end of it, just put your foot on it and wait for her to move back to you, even the smallest bit, then praise her and keep walking. It's the same principle as training to heel. An e-collar could be another way to go; you'd train her to associate a tone or a light vibration with recall and then instead of calling her constantly, you can just press a button. 



I'm less convinced this will work on an adult dog, but when mine was a puppy and would go off ahead, I'd hide behind a tree just off trail and wait for her to notice. Inevitably she'd come running back to look for me and got lots of love when she succeeded. It was her job to keep tabs on me with the consequence of a few panicked moments searching when she failed to do it. 



But I'm curious what would happen if you didn't call her back at all. Maybe her limit for time or distance away from you is just much higher than your limit, you know? She may just naturally be a longer ranging Vizsla; does she have any kind of field trial dogs in her lineage? Obviously you need to set limits if the environment you're in doesn't support her being so far away, but, man, I'd want to get her out in a big field and see what she can do! On the flip side, I've struggled in some situations to get my girl to go farther out.


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## rubicon (Dec 9, 2019)

My puppy is still young so he’s more inclined to look at me than an adult dog would be, but my trainer recommends to always have treats ready when he’s off leash. Whenever he looks back, I toss a couple of treats in the air and make a “seek” game. That way he’ll associate checking in with praise and fun. It works pretty well. He checks in with me a lot. Sometimes I sing his name (without calling him back) just to remind him I’m there. It stops him from going too far or completely acting out his instincts even when he’s away from me. When I keep it up, he has better behavior around other dogs and people. You can clearly see he acknowledges the call but can choose to keep exploring.


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## 1stVizsla (Jun 22, 2016)

Buy a whistle (dog whistle or any frequency you like) and use that for recall. My dog LOVES IT when I whistle...it’s a big game to her. The bacon makes it even more exciting for her!


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Have you thought of teaching her to turn on command. Retriever owners teach Over, for their dogs to go left, or right. A good many birddog people use the word Yo. It's just them learning direction, without coming all the way to you.


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## cosmoKenney (Dec 8, 2017)

I have pretty much the same situation as the OP. But my 2 y/o will check in. He just does it from afar. As soon as he sees me come around a bend in the trail he'll continue to forge ahead. He has great recall so I am not that worried. And I try not to sweat the small stuff. They will tune you out eventually if you are constantly nagging them to come back or don't do this or that... 

But in my area rattlesnakes are a huge concern. I've already lost a V to a rattlesnake bite (2 actually, 1 on the nose and one on the leg). So I wish my young one would stay closer so I can scan ahead of him and call him before he stumbles on a snake. I can't imagine what life would be like for a V if he couldn't leave the house without being on a leash.


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## tegee26 (Apr 25, 2018)

I bought this inexpensive dog whistle last week and holly cow, my two V's caught on immediately. No more fingers in the mouth to get them to come, especially in the winter months here in New England. https://www.amazon.com/ACME-Whistle...1582985808&sprefix=dog+w,aps,142&sr=8-19&th=1


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## gunnr (Aug 14, 2009)

It sounds like you have one very nice dog!! It would be a pleasure for any on foot hunter to work with a dog like her.
I'm going to break down your post and try to address the particular points that I think are important, and hopefully point out that she sounds pretty special to me, and that you may need to work more on your trust in her, than actual obedience in the field.



Vizmaniz said:


> I’m seeking advice for me and my vizsla and our off leash adventures. She is six years old and I’ve had her since she was a puppy. She has always had a lot of off leash time, but this is mostly very hard work for me. She is definitely NOT velcro.
> In my opinion, you are very fortunate.
> 
> Inside she is and sits on my lap etc like most Vizslas, but on the trail she is the most adventurous, independent and fearless puppy I could imagine.
> ...


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