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FF275: Coming Together: Reliable Recalls for Real Life

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FF275: Coming Together: Reliable Recalls for Real Life

Course Details

There’s nothing better than seeing your dog joyfully running full speed toward you just because you called their name... Except maybe when they do it at a busy dog park — or when they turn away from a deer mid-hike to choose you instead. 

Of course, the reverse is also true. Few things feel worse than calling your dog and watching them continue at full speed in the opposite direction.

Whether you’re just getting started teaching a recall or want to rebuild and strengthen one that isn’t as reliable as you’d like, this class is for you.

Over six weeks, we’ll teach a real-life recall from the ground up, focusing on helping dogs want to come to us and choose to stay engaged once they arrive. This is not a formal obedience recall. The emphasis is on relationship, reliability, and practical skills that translate directly to everyday life. We’ll build a strong reinforcement history for coming together, create clarity around what happens after your dog reaches you, and gradually introduce real-world distractions.

This class will give you a clear, step-by-step approach to teaching a recall you can trust.

Note: This class is not designed to rehab dogs who chase cars or extreme cases of chasing prey — for that, I recommend Tracy McLennan’s class. If you have questions, please feel free to reach out to Melissa directly.

Teaching Approach:

This class will take a step by step approach. Each step will have written instructions with a corresponding video of each step. Videos tend to be short, with the occasional video that is a bit longer demonstrating one piece at a time.

Lectures are released weekly, at the beginning of each — then students work at their own pace. Feedback will mostly be written, however for gold students I will occasionally do a screen recording if I think the student might benefit from feedback on timing. 

Melissa BreauInstructor: Melissa Breau

Melissa (she/her) is FDSA's resident marketing geek. She teaches two classes here at FDSA: Marketing for Pet Professionals and Building a Wordpress Website.

Syllabus

View Full Syllabus

This is the first time this class has run, so lecture order and syllabus is likely to evolve as the class runs based on student skills and needs.

Week 1: Beginning of a Good Recall - Make it Fun!

  • Rewards vs. Distractions: Evaluating what matters to your dog
  • Foundations for a Great Recall 
  • Choosing a Final Behavior 
  • Games: Collar grabs, buffet feeding, no fail recalls, the get it game, the chase game 

Week 2: Building Drive to Come

  • The $100 Bet 
  • Games: Restrained Recalls, Hide & Seek, Choose to Check In, Focus Games

Week 3: The Importance of Choice

  • The Importance of Choice
  • Games: Bowl game, dead/inaccessible toy, recall off a person (if available), recall of a closed container

Week 4: Adding Distractions

  • Moving things - oh my!
  • Flirt pole recalls
  • Foundations - Recall off another dog (if available)
  • Chase game outside (added distraction)

Week 5: Taking It Into the Real World

  • Choosing Your Next Location
  • Acclimation & Focus Games Out and About: How do they compare to your baseline?
  • Chase Game + Get It Game Out & About

Week 6: Proofing & Continuing to Build the Skill

  • Work up to calling off treats
  • New locations and new places (sniff spots, public areas, etc)
  • Continuing to Build Your Skills 

Prerequisites and Equipment

  • 40ft Long line or large fenced space for last few weeks of class 
  • Flirt Pole (homemade is fine! Can do most exercises with a toy on a leash, if a flirt pole is not available)
  • Lots of treats! 
  • Inaccessible container (example: plastic box with holes drilled/cut into it)
  • Your dog

Sample Lecture

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Testimonials & Reviews

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New class!

Registration

Next session starts: June 1, 2026
Registration starts: May 22, 2026
Registration ends: June 15, 2026

Registration opens at 11:00am Pacific Time.

SILVER LEVEL Update - Students will be permitted to submit ONE 90 second video each week.  For additional details on all enrollment levels please view our Getting Started section on our Help Page.

FF275 Subscriptions


Gold

Silver

Bronze
Tuition $ 260.00 $ 130.00 $ 65.00
Enrollment Limits 12 25 Unlimited
Access all course lectures and materials ✔ ✔ ✔
Access to discussion and homework forums ✔ ✔ ✔
Read all posted questions and answers ✔ ✔ ✔
Watch all posted videos ✔ ✔ ✔
Post general questions to Discussion forum ✔ ✔ ✖
Submit written assignments ✔ ✖ ✖
Post dog specific questions ✔ With video only ✖
Post videos ✔ 1 per week ✖
Receive instructor feedback on
  • Questions
  • All videos
  • Questions
  • All videos
✖

Find more details, refund policies and answers to common questions in the Help center.

 
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