Most puppies will come to you when you walk away because they instinctively follow you. A reliable response to "come" will take months of consistent and positive reinforcement. You want your dog to stop whatever it is doing, turn around quickly, and happily come running to you whenever the "come" command is given. This is what you are aiming as the end goal, so don't expect too much out of the pup too soon. You need to get your pup to comprehend the come command, and you can do this by starting the day you bring your pup home. Whenever your pup is coming to you, wait until he/she is two to three feet from you, bend down, say his/her name and "come" in a very happy voice. When the pup comes to you, give lots of praise. Hug the pup, clap your hands, and basically make a big fuss over it. This should be done every time your pup is willingly coming toward you, and practiced frequently and consistently for at least four months. Then it should be practiced periodically for the rest of your dog's life.

This is an exercise that your dog can always perform perfectly, and will always receive praise because they CANNOT perform it wrong. It is very important that your dog come to you on his/her own, so look for that opportunity, take advantage of it, and give the command "come" whenever he/she has almost reached you. With this exercise, you will be teaching the dog that the "come" is really a terrific and pleasing thing. After a while, you can lengthen the distance from when you start to say "come", but don't do this too early in the learning process, or it may backfire on you.

Never, ever chase your dog. Instead, play a game of having your dog chase you. Make it happy and fun, roll around on the floor or ground, and let them catch YOU. Do not use food, rather make the reward be in the fun of the game instead. The pup should learn to chase or follow you and then subsequently will be learning to never run away.

After a while, as your dog begins to enjoy the come command, you can start to "proof" it as a command. You can do this by periodically using a long lead (leash). When the dog is away from you, say it's name, then "come", and gently tug on the lead to encourage him/her to come towards you. If it still doesn't come, pull it to you while saying the command, "Come, come!" in your happiest voice. When the pup reaches you, no matter how it got there, either on his/her own, or by gentle encouragement, give it lots of praise. Remember not to try to progress or hurry the process too quickly, or it may cause negativity to the dog. You want the come command to be the most fun for your dog to want to be with you.

Important things to remember:

1. NEVER chase your dog.
   
2. NEVER scold your dog when they come to you.
   
3. Until your dog is reliably coming to you: NEVER command your dog to come unless you have the lead in your hand to back up the command. If you need the dog to come to you and you don't have the lead in your hand for a back up, GO AND GET YOUR DOG. Don't test the command if you are unsure of the response.