Controlling your dog off-leash, regardless of the environment or the distractions surrounding you, is a combination of your dog’s understanding of what it’s being told, its conditioning and training, and, most important, the relationship you’ve developed with it. Dogs are not robots or computers where you simply input data, hit return and now they listen to everyone. They are social animals with varying personalities, and when given a command, even the best trained dog will look to see who gave the command, and then it will decide whether-or-not it’s going to obey. This is why your relationship with your dog is so very important.

It’s all about their attention and getting it immediately, especially in emergency situations! This can save your dog’s life, as Paul Knox of Foxboro, MA (pictured left with his shepherd, Kai) shared with Ron in a text message: Had him off leash in the woods today. Coming out towards the street he saw another dog on the other side and headed right for the street. I yelled “down!” and he dropped like a stone! At that moment I realized that every hour I invested in training was absolutely worth it! I could’ve lost him forever! Thank you very much for everything!