How to maintain recall after board and train

Use the recall cue your dog came home with, whether a word or a whistle, and give it one job. It means come all the way to me, now, and it always pays. Never use it to end a game, to start a bath, to clip the leash on before the car or to call the dog in for a telling-off. For those moments, walk over and collect the dog. A recall that sometimes predicts bad news is a recall the dog learns to weigh up.

Gather the kit. A 20- to 30-foot long line, clipped to a well-fitted harness rather than a collar, and gloves if the line will run through your hands. Food your dog rates above anything the beach or the woods can offer, in a pouch you can reach in one movement. And a note of the rules for the places you plan to use, since Gloucester's dog regulations say a dog must always remain under the control of its owner or keeper, leash or no leash.

Cape Ann's off-leash calendar is generous in winter and tight in summer. At the time of writing, Gloucester bans dogs from Good Harbor from April 1 and from Wingaersheek, Plum Cove, Cressy and its other public beaches from May 1, through September 30, with fines of $300 per violation, doubled in season. Crab Beach is the exception, open to off-leash dogs all year under the city's conditions. Rockport keeps dogs off every public beach from June 1 to September 15.

Inland ground fills the summer gap. The Trustees list Ravenswood Park in Gloucester among their reservations that allow off-leash dog walking, though their guidelines exclude grassland nesting habitat from April 1 to August 15 and keep dogs out of resource protection areas. Farther up the North Shore, Crane Beach in Ipswich allows off-leash dogs only in marked zones from October 1 to March 31. Rules change, so check each page on the morning you go.

That gap is normal, and it usually means a stage was skipped or the reward is not strong enough for the place. Send a note through the Dogtown app describing where the recall fails and what the dog went after instead, or book a private session, from $94, so a trainer can watch the handover from line to freedom. A recall that fails around other dogs or wildlife every time is worth a session before the next off-leash trip.

For a structured goal, Canine Citizen Academy prepares adolescents and adults for the AKC Canine Good Citizen test, which includes coming when called, in 4, 6 or 8 weeks. Dogtown Academy days, $89 full or $69 half, keep a trainer in the week, and every Academy day includes a training session. Our board and train page explains how Foundation builds a recall and how Advanced proofs it against distraction.