Question about off lead walks

When you let your dogs off lead in a park area, how far ahead do they go before they check back to see where you are by either looking ack or coming back to get reassurance? I ask because today I walked a short way with a chap with a Staff who neither looked back nor came back nor waited at crossroads in the grass to check which way his owner was going (you know where they have cut paths in the long grass)

Sal looks back and waits at any crossroads in the grass till I indicate which way we are going. Tess comes back every now and again for a stroke and pat to reassure her she's a good girl. But neither go down another route than the one I indicate with my hand. But this other Staff took no notice at all?

What do your dogs do carry on regardlesss or at least look back?

lol-Vegas once off lead just goes on autopilot-albeit a lost autopilot cause he dont look back...

I have to call (or yell) at him to stop unless we're in woodland where i hide from him and he will then stop to find me.

Hmm Sal is similar but does stop at intersections in the grass or if she goes to far ahead of me by chasing a rabbit, or a bird from the river, she never really goes so far ahead I loose sight, Tess never goes that far ahead about 30ft is her limit apart from when she catches the scent of something or again a drabbit/squirrel but she appears to have an inborne sense of panic if she goes to far away from me. And rushes back to assure me she is still with me

I wonder if it is the difference between the sexes the bitches being a little less gung ho. I remember my old Staff Sam was a terror for going miles ahead

Syd keeps returning to us, he goes about 50 yards ahead and if he doesn't come back he will stand and wait until either we catch up or i say ok. Although we practiced this when he was younger, we would call him back if he got too far ahead. Even now if he charges through the trees on a scent if i say oi where you going he turns instantly and comes back. If we are in the open in a field and he is playing with another dog then they will probably venture as much as 100 yds away, but again as soon as i call him, he turns round and comes back.
Also if we are both out with him, if i suddenly hide behind a tree he will notice and come back and look for me, if Iain hides behind a tree he will look back but stay with me unless i tell him to go find him, if i tell him to walk on he does, but again it is stuff we have practiced with him from a pup.

i dont let china off as she is still a bit unpredictable with other dogs and she goes deaf when i call her and this makes me very anxious...if OH is walking her alone he will let her off as she listens to him!

Most of my dogs keep an eye on me, but not Molly (5 year old Setter). She is just off and sniffing etc etc etc. She will occasionally come back and check me out, but not very often!

I don't let Suki off lead but we've got a training lead that's about 15 foot long (thanx to my wee sister!). Last night we took her to a country park and she never strayed far - no pulling and as soon as I said 'wait' she stopped and if I called on her she came back. But if another dog is around she develops selective hearing and will do whatever she can to go and investigate - ah never mind baby steps.

Funnily enough though if we hide in our garden she comes running. The other thing that makes her pay attention is 'What's this' - for some reason she comes bounding back.

Mine always stop and wait a few yards ahead, they stop and just stand there even if we're on a straight path. Mind you, if there's rabbits about they sometimes race off ahead, never thankfully catching any, realise I'm quite a way back, so they just come running back. I would never, ever let them disappear out of sight, never in a million years, nor would they want to!

Mine always look for me every few steps cos i'm always playing hide and seek with him so he thinks if he doesn't watch me i'll vanish!!

Hide and seek though it sounds silly is a great game to get them in the practice of looking where you are i've found.

Roxy checks back at the point where she would stop if on a lead. I think its 5 meters. She'll check back then carry on a bit more and then stops and waits for me to catch up