February 04, 2014
My dogs favorite toy is a ball on a rope. She will out a sleeve or a tug, but not the ball. What should I do?
Full Question:
I have 2 year old high drive female GSD. Her favorite toy is a ball on a rope. I used this to train her and also for many hours of tug. She will do anything for that ball. The problem is she will not out the ball without a struggle when we play/train. When we walk back into the house she will drop it immediately at the door on command. I have tried freezing up, but she just pulls and pulls. She will out a tug or a sleeve, but not the ball. I'm assuming I need to start over somewhere with the out, but not sure how.Thanks
Ed's Answer:
First I would like to thank you for your business. It is appreciated.
I had a look at what you have bought from us and didn’t see what you needed.
You do need to back up and teach the “rules of play” They are:
1 - Tug with enthusiasm
2 - Out when asked to out
3 - Bring the tug/toy back after it has been released.
These are covered in the DVD (or streaming video) that I did with Michael Ellis, The Power of Playing Tug with Your Dog.
You are correct that you need to stop using the ball on a string and go to a tug. I would not be using a ball for a long, long time. If you have been using the command OUT, do not use it anymore. You have trained your dog to ignore it. So start to use another command when you go to the new work, something like DROP.
But your whole focus in the work from now on needs to be with the tugs. Don’t add the word until you love the bravior (a friend, Ann Brau, taught me this).
Regards,
Ed Frawley
I had a look at what you have bought from us and didn’t see what you needed.
You do need to back up and teach the “rules of play” They are:
1 - Tug with enthusiasm
2 - Out when asked to out
3 - Bring the tug/toy back after it has been released.
These are covered in the DVD (or streaming video) that I did with Michael Ellis, The Power of Playing Tug with Your Dog.
You are correct that you need to stop using the ball on a string and go to a tug. I would not be using a ball for a long, long time. If you have been using the command OUT, do not use it anymore. You have trained your dog to ignore it. So start to use another command when you go to the new work, something like DROP.
But your whole focus in the work from now on needs to be with the tugs. Don’t add the word until you love the bravior (a friend, Ann Brau, taught me this).
Regards,
Ed Frawley
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