Gatsby Helps Train Milka the Puppy to Come.

To help Milka learn the "come" command, I employed Gatsby's help.  By tethering Milka to Gatsby, I knew I could depend on his reliable response to initiate a game of follow the leader that would always lead Milka directly to me when I called them.  It was just up to me to appropriately "mark" the behavior for Milka by repeating "come Milka" as she followed Gatsby and consistently rewarding her for performing the behavior (don't worry, I also gave Gatsby a treat each time).  Initially she did not respond to "come" until the slack was gone in the leash, but soon she started moving even before Gatsby took a step when I said "come."  Such fun!  You can see in one bit of the video how happy they both look.

I DO NOT RECOMMEND using this technique on your own!  Gatsby is a VERY SPECIAL dog who understands his size and is gentle enough to grasp the necessity for taking it easy with all sorts of other dogs regardless of size or temperment, and I am an experienced trainer. If you don't have access to Gatsby and me, you can use a 30 foot lead to teach your dog "come" after you successfully conquer "stay".  Stay tuned for details about this alternate technique.