[steevo]

I have a 14 month old Marrema sheepdog.We live in the country and have 5 acres of land.Every time I take her off of her leash she goes off on her social journeys.I can call her,but she only comes home when she feels like it,and some times when I can see her,she will look at me when I call her and take off.I hate to have her tied up all of the time,but I can't watch her every second she is off of her leash.Any suggestions?

[Killerdrgn]

Give her a treat when ever you call for her in the house or short distances outside. So when you call she'll have an incentive to come to you. I dunno if that will work though, it makes sense. My dog just naturally follows me around everywhere.

[retriever crazy]

Originally Posted by steevo

I have a 14 month old Marrema sheepdog.We live in the country and have 5 acres of land.Every time I take her off of her leash she goes off on her social journeys.I can call her,but she only comes home when she feels like it,and some times when I can see her,she will look at me when I call her and take off.I hate to have her tied up all of the time,but I can't watch her every second she is off of her leash.Any suggestions?

dont let her loose til she is older.i think all dogs should know whats it like to be tied up , so when they are older they greatly love it.

[GSD lover]

It's fine to let your dog roam about but you really need to teach it the recall. Because the dog has to know when you tell it to come to you you mean it. It can be a lifesaver. So, I would work with it on that and as said do use treats as rewards. And when you teach it that, make sure it only gets treated when it comes close enough to you to grab its collar. Or, the whole letting you get close and running away thing will be all the time. And don't chase it, that becomes a game. A trick to get it to come back to you is run the other way. They get curious why you are running away and just have to see what is up.

[Curbside Prophet]

Yes, you do need to teach your dog how to recall first before you let her off leash. And yes, you should use treats to motivate her to learn. I would guess that she runs away for three reasons...1) she's still pretty young, but she should know better 2) she doesn't get much exercise 3) she doesn't know you are her pack leader. So, walk her properly (get her real tired and leader means you lead, not the dog), and correct her any time she steps out of line. If the dog is tied up in her yard all day, exercise becomes very important.