Introduce the "Here" command with plenty of praise and an upbeat attitude. Your dog will quickly understand that compliance is rewarded.

I’m always amazed at how many different opinions there are on the time and technique for teaching one of the most basic dog commands: “Come,” or, as most trainers say, “Here.” It has always been common for trainers to preach that this command should be one of the first things you teach your puppy. But more and more trainers are learning the benefits of teaching this command when the dog is more mature.

The reasoning for waiting is if you drill the dog on staying close too early in its life, you run the risk of creating a dog that won’t leave your side for fear of being reprimanded.  For the first several months of a dog’s life, we allow the pup to run wild.

For the first few sessions, while working your dog on a leash, command “Here” and give a tug on the leash. Keep the lesson and your tone of voice upbeat and, if you wish, reward your dog with the most common of all training rewards: a treat.

After a few sessions of this drill, when you know your dog understands the command, you can start using low-level e-collar stimulation to get the dog started toward you. Your dog will quickly learn that responding to your command turns the stimulation off. Heap on the praise and continue slipping the dog treats when it returns to you. Most importantly, do not stop working on other parts of the dog’s training while teaching “here.” You don’t want a dog that feels “safe” only when it is at your side.

Also, go easy on the e-collar motivation. Remember that one of the basics of e-collar training is to use the lowest level of stimulation that your dog responds to. If your dog voices out when you use the collar, you’re using a level that’s too high.

Finally, when you have a dog that responds to “Here” every time, introduce distractions such as people and other dogs to your training field. Insist on compliance even when there are others around. Follow these steps and you should end up with a hard-running dog that you can call back to you whenever necessary.