Hiya

Ollie's recall has been going well and I've retrained him from loosing it at his teenage phase. But I've never been able to trust him off lead in wooded areas as he tends to lose focus and just run into the woods and not stay on the path. He does listen to me but not as much as in open spaces. In open spaces, he doesn't find everything that smelly or interesting so just trots around and comes to me straight away. in woods, his nose is to the ground and if he smells a rabbit, he's off. So now, he's on a long line in all wooded areas, and off lead totally in fields or parks. The problem is there is only one park that is safe enough to let him totally off lead because the other fields and parks in the area have holes in their fences. And we have tons of woods around us, but hardly any parks or fields. It's quite sad really that a small park is the only place he can go off lead. I know he's a cocker spaniel and he's bred to smell game in undergrowth, but he's supposed to listen to me, not to his instincts. What else can i do? I've been retraining his recall for 4 months, and he's done fab, but I don't know if there are any other fields I can go to in my area (north west london, watford area) or if i should just keep him on a long line in woods?

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I OWN A CHOCOLATE ROAN COCKER SPANIEL
RIP David xx Run free at the bridge. Love you always xx 19th February 2011
RIP Jack and Mickey xx Run free at the bridge. Love you forever xx 20th June 2011

What treat are you using with recall? maybe you could get something extra special for it? Maybe even try rabbit? something that he only gets when he is recalled??

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Sammy can be a nightmare. When he gets over excited, he can bark at people and it is not nice. I have started to take his very favourite toy out with me and it seemed to work a treat! With 3 dogs, it is difficult as with their individual problems, I have to walk them off lead seperately.

I know you have worked really hard on his recall, but I think, when you get a breed like yours and they have such strong instincts, it is difficult. Hopefully time will make him better.

How about some advanced gun dog training?

I think you have probably done as much as you can on your own. I would consider outside help, if not already done.

You have shown huge dedication to his training, so don;t be too disheartened x

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Thanks goodvic2. I think i've done all i can on my own. I know he's a cocker spaniel and he's going to have this instinct but it's awful to see him just on a long line near enough everywhere we go. i might see about gundog training.

i use sausages and chicken, and he does come back for those. he's not interested in toys that much, he can take them or leave them. should i try whistle training? or would he still run off in a woods?

edit: he does come back to me in a wooded area, but you can see his mind is clearly distracted and he can sometimes not come back (hence the long line), so it only takes one sniff of a rabbit for him to be off, and that scares me too much to let him totally off.

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I OWN A CHOCOLATE ROAN COCKER SPANIEL
RIP David xx Run free at the bridge. Love you always xx 19th February 2011
RIP Jack and Mickey xx Run free at the bridge. Love you forever xx 20th June 2011

Non of mine get let off their leads unless I am in a fully enclosed area, they are a nightmare to get back especially if they are full of beans so i just dont do it, its not worth it,

Mo

My park's tennis courts has got new fencing so I may be able to take him there to let him off lead. Where do you go to let them off lead, moboyd? there's hardly anywhere that's not totally enclosed or has got holes cut in the fence.

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I OWN A CHOCOLATE ROAN COCKER SPANIEL
RIP David xx Run free at the bridge. Love you always xx 19th February 2011
RIP Jack and Mickey xx Run free at the bridge. Love you forever xx 20th June 2011

I have springers and have let them off lead from 12 weeks when they were first allowed out which makes recall much easier. If he ignores you in woods fields its because whatever is there is much more interesting than you or what you have, so what reason has he got to want to come back? so you have to take a high/higher value treat than the treats he has any other time, liver cake is a great one, chicken is also a good one.

I feel your pain Seven_Pets. Using a long line around trees is an absolute nightmare! I'm sure my dog knows exactly which side of each tree to go in order to create some sort of rope cats-cradle.

I'm confident with letting my lot off the lead, including the pup as she follows the dog or us and comes back when we call them

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i am extremely nervous about letting my dog off lead but only because ive made myself so. just because of what happened to bailey. i know that he was a beagle and had strong strong instincts to hunt and chase things.

but now with skye (flat coat), she is very very people orientated, and never wants to be far from me. i have never let her off lead myself.

she gets let offlead everyday though, but by my parents. im still too nervous to do it, even though i know she will come back. she has already proved she has excellent recall. i will get over it, i hope!

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6th Jan 2008 - 22nd July 2009