We are working on teaching the dumbbell hold. I got a hard plastic dumbbell but it seems slippery and hard for her to hold. Should I teach her with the wooden style instead?

We are working on hold.

I like the size of the dumbbell I got from you & it is the hard plastic one.

Is the wooden one better for teaching this? And the plastic is better for when she has it down solid. and it’s not possibly clanking against her teeth?

It seems harder to grip. Gets slippery.

Not that’s it’s an excuse for mouthing it!

I just wanna be fair to her and she’s learning. She can when she wants to though.

Leerburg's Answer

I don't teach hold with a dumbbell, I teach with a piece of PVC first and then a wooden dowel.

Since teaching the hold can be mildly stressful I don't like to associate any of the stress with the actual item my dog will be retrieving in real life or competition. I don't start with wood because it tends to promote chewing more than PVC.

We offer a starter kit and I follow the steps and techniques shown in the Retrieve video we did with Michael Ellis.

You can teach with the dumbbell, that's how we used to do it but have found that isolating the hold away from the dumbbell makes what we are asking more clear for the dog.