Training recall and the issue of neutering.

Sun 2 Dec 2007 by Sue McCabe

By far one of the most common queries I receive from potential clients describes challenges they are having with their dogs when it comes to recall. Getting their dog back from distractions, more often than not, other dogs.

The average age for recall becoming an issue is between 9 and 14 months. Whether female or male, hormones begin to flow through a dog's body at this stage. This causes them to make decisions dictated by mother nature and instinctive to them based on their current level of maturity.

These hormones tell them that they can now potentially reproduce. All other dogs can help with this so they need to investigate their own species, check out their gender, reproductive status and if necessary, act accordingly.

Male dogs can smell a bitch in heat half a mile away. Even if this bitch has been in your local dog walking area several hours before and is long gone, your entire male will pick up her scent and the previously responsive command of 'Barney come' may fall on deaf ears.

I have now reached the stage where, if customers tell me that they need help with their male dog's recall and they have yet to neuter their dog, I am reluctant to help them. I cannot compete with mother nature. Often their response is that they 'may like to breed from their dog'. For the average pet dog owner, my answer to this is that they have two options, a well-trained dog, or a breeding stud. Having both in the same dog is rarely possible.

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