Come Bowser! It’s pretty embarrassing for a dog owner to say this in front of his friends when Bowser remains immobile on his spot. It’s even more embarrassing if Bowser’s tongue is hanging out of his mouth that makes him look like he’s laughing at you. Come to think of it, he probably is.

It’s not only embarrassing, but also frustrating when your pet dog doesn’t answer to a given command. Good training and maintenance of Bowser’s education will ensure that he remains an obedient and trusty pet.

A few minutes of playtime before the lesson begins can do wonders for the attitude of dog and human alike. Likewise, ending each training session with a few minutes of free playtime is a great way to end on a positive note and to help the dog associate obedience training with fun.

The command to stay and the command to come when called are often combined in obedience training lessons, and they do go naturally together. Start with the dog on a loose leash, ask the dog to sit and then slowly back away. If the dog begins to get up and follow you, return to the dog and ask him to sit again. Continue this process until you can reach the end of the leash without the dog getting up.

After you can successfully reach the end of the leash on a consistent basis, try dropping the leash altogether. Of course you will want to do this in a controlled environment like a fenced in yard. After the dog has mastered the stay command, it is time to add the come when called command.

Take up the leash again, and with the dog on the end of the leash, say, “come” or “come here”. It is often helpful to use a lure when teaching this behavior. The lure provides a visible item for the dog to focus on. Teaching the dog to come to the lure is a good first step in training the dog to come when called. Repeat this procedure many times until the dog will consistently stay and then come when called. After the dog has mastered coming when called while attached to the leash, slowly start introducing the concept when the leash is removed.

A well-trained dog should respond to the call to return to its owner no matter where it is and no matter what distractions may occur.  If you have a neighbor with a dog of his own, have him over with his dog. Have him and his dog stand just outside the fenced in area and repeat the come when called exercise with your dog off leash. Put the leash back on and begin again if your dog remains distracted by the other dog.

Having a good, obedient dog is something that we all can appreciate. This saves us the trouble of having to chase our dog or getting dragged behind a leash. In the same way that we want to feel proud of our children, our dogs make us proud when they do what we ask them too especially in front of a lot of people.