How to make my dog (lab) listen?

somewhere along the line, YOU CHASED THIS DOG.. never ever ever ever chase your dog… obedience school would be very good for you, it will give you a chance to get your dog to listen with distractions ( other people and other dogs)
in the meantime, in the house,, practice calling your dog and then giving him a treat every single time he comes.. eventually , start outside doing the same thing, except have a long light line attached to him… this way you can reinforce “come” if he doesn’t respond when you say it… even if you have to “reel” him in on the line after saying come,, give him a tasty food reward,,, enough of this practice and it will become habit for him,,, labs are notoriously known to be food motivated,, so training is relatively simple… also,, make sure he is neutered.

Just keep working with your dog. As you might know labs are very friendly and always want new friends so probably its just running because it was to say hi and introduce its self.

He can see that he is the dominant one and not you. Add strictness into your voice, do not scream say firm No’s and than go into dont moves, a dog can hear if you are playing with him or not. He believes that he is the one in charge.

he is still playfull, and he thinks that your’e playing.
be firm and train him to go to you.
also never call him by his name when he’s done bad.
maybe he thinks that youre going to punish him

Unfortunately many people tend to associate the command “Come” with bad things. You tell the dog to come to go into his kennel, to get his nails clipped, to jump in the bathtub for a bath….if these activities are not enjoyed by your dog, he’s going to associate the negative parts with that command.

I teach my students that the command Come should be your emergency word for when the dog escapes from you and could get hurt from traffic, another dog, run too far away, etc. You can also use it as a last resort when nothing else is working even if it isn’t necessarily an emergency (ie: coming in from the backyard when nothing else has worked).

The secret to making sure Come works when you need it to is to associate ONLY GOOD THINGS with it. If your dog loves eating (most dogs do), yell “Come!” to him when you go into the kitchen to feed him. If he enjoys going on walks and gets excited when you grab the leash, start yelling “Come!” when you go to hook him up. Think of all of the things your dog enjoys and start using that command in conjunction with those actions.

The reason your dog likes to go to the other person outside while you’re trying to catch him is because the other person is a novelty–it’s something he really wants whereas all you’re going to do is take him back inside (and that’s no fun compared to a new friend!). If you really start associating good things with the command, it should be a lot easier to get him to return to you when you need him to. When he does, make sure you reward him! Treats, praise, affection, play-time…anything that he likes as long as he gets rewarded every single time.

For those times that aren’t emergencies like when the dog is in the house and you want him to come over to you, or he’s confined in the backyard and you want him to come in, try waving a treat around and calling his name. You should always make your voice sound very excited and higher pitched than normal as well (hard for guys, but try!). Clap your hands, stomp your feet in a playful way, do whatever it takes and he’ll start to get the point and want to come and investigate what’s making you have such a good time.

Hope this helps.

EDIT: The command “Come” should also be in a happy voice. If you’re yelling or using the voice you use to scold him with, he’s going to think he’s in trouble. It’s all about making the dog WANT to come to you, not dominating him.

The very first baby step is to teach him to look at you. When you are in your house or other confined area and his attention is elsewhere, call his name. When he looks at you, say “Yes!” and give him a treat. Continue to do this for awhile. It gets him used to the idea that when he pays attention to you, good things will come. Then start working on “Fido, come!” increasing distance gradually over time. Every time he comes, even if not right away, tell him “Yes!” and praise him or give him a treat. When he looks at you but doesn’t come right away, still say “Yes!” then tell him to come again and again praise him when he does it. That moment when he looks at you is when he is deciding whether to come or not and you want to make it enticing to come. Take advantage of that moment.

A sure-fire tactic that works for a situation when a dog won’t come and you need him to is to call his name in a very excited happy way and run away from him (not toward him). He’ll think you want to play chase and come running. You look silly but it works every single time.

Never ever punish or hit your dog when he comes even if he ignores you at first. Coming to you should always be associated with a good experience.