My cockapoo is 10 months old. He won't come back to me on walks and thinks it's a game. please help?

You need to walk your Cockapoo on a leash. Your Cockapoo has learned that you have no control over him and basically he can do whatever he wants to. He may have walked off-leash "brilliantly" at one time, but the fact he is no longer doing that shows he really wasn't completely trained and he is taking advantage of his new found freedom.

Although some dogs are reliable off leash, many aren't, and even those who are can get distracted by something interesting and then you have no control. In that case your dog could very well get hit by a car -- something most owners don't even want to contemplate! I highly recommend bringing your pup to obedience training.

A good obedience trainer who teaches using positive reinforcement techniques will help teach your pup to have a reliable recall. Just so that you know, many professional trainers -- myself included -- don't risk the possibility of our dogs slipping up because of a distraction and getting injured. Most off-leash work is done in a controlled environment or in an area where we're pretty sure we can get our dogs back should there be a mishap.

So that you know, I'm Margaret H. Bonham, author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Designer Dogs and The Complete Guide to Mutts. The Complete Guide to Mutts by Margaret H.

Bonham The Complete Idiot's Guide to Designer Dogs by Margaret H. You need to walk your Cockapoo on a leash. Your Cockapoo has learned that you have no control over him and basically he can do whatever he wants to.

He may have walked off-leash "brilliantly" at one time, but the fact he is no longer doing that shows he really wasn't completely trained and he is taking advantage of his new found freedom. Although some dogs are reliable off leash, many aren't, and even those who are can get distracted by something interesting and then you have no control. In that case your dog could very well get hit by a car -- something most owners don't even want to contemplate!

I highly recommend bringing your pup to obedience training. A good obedience trainer who teaches using positive reinforcement techniques will help teach your pup to have a reliable recall. Just so that you know, many professional trainers -- myself included -- don't risk the possibility of our dogs slipping up because of a distraction and getting injured.

Most off-leash work is done in a controlled environment or in an area where we're pretty sure we can get our dogs back should there be a mishap. So that you know, I'm Margaret H. Bonham, author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Designer Dogs and The Complete Guide to Mutts.