[kunruh1986]

Hes a very stubborn saint bernard/ pit mix I rescued from the shelter when he was 6 weeks old now all the cuteness has faded and I am getting to wits end. I love him so much and all I need to know (Because I live in the country) is how to MAKE him come to me when I want him to. Help please.

[Alty]

Try taking him to a dog obedience class or getting a personal trainer. In order to train your dog you have to invest allot of time and allot of patience. Remember, he is a dog, he learns through repetition and reward.

Good Luck.

[kunruh1986]

Well I spend a lot of time with him and when I say a lot I mean at least 6 hours constantly throughout the day and he kind of just does what he chooses you know. I give him an assortment of treats It just seems like he's a free spirit you know? Potty training was a cinch and that seems like it would have been the hardest thing.

[Alty]

How old is he? Larger breeds take longer to settle down and they aren't easy to train when they are young. A obedience class is really your best bet.

[froggy7]

Also, as my dog trainer pointed out, about 80% of the time, "Come" means bad things to the dog. We tell them to come when we are going to take them to the vet, leave the park, go back inside, etc. One of the tricks that she suggests for teaching Come is to put 10-15 treats in your pocket in the morning. And then randomly call your dog to you throughout the day, give them a treat, and let them go back to whatever they want to do, until you run out of treats. Kibble is fine to use. That increases the number of positive Comes that the dog experiences, and makes it much more likely that they will come for other types of situations.