Today I received my tugs from Leerburg. I had purchased it and send away DVD 3 months back and had it shipped to a friends place in Boise. It was delivered to me today by his parents who returned from the US.

It was hot as hell and my dogs have never seen a proper tug before. They have bitten only rolled up jute. It was a bit of a challenge but I got them going.

I want to know what I can do to help Kaiser with his tugging. He is not even half as good as helga.

Pleas help me out with some advice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRinB9cCJrQ


Ram

One dog at a time, Ram.

In the worst case you might get a dog fight on your hands. Another reason is that when a dog shows interest in a tug and is being disciplined/snapped at for this it'll turn him/her off the tug play.

You want to be able to maximize the drive and reward immediately with each dog. Each dog you are working with should get 100% of your attention.

I play tug with only one dog at any given time. Can you please elaborate on my mistake. I am not able to follow

Watch Helga snapping at Kari @2:07.

Kaiser might like it better if it's just him, you and the tug without Helga watching next to him.

Helga has no problems tugging. I take your point on Helga chasing him away.

But my problem is with kaiser. I have tried playing with him when he is alone with me. He does not bite with vigour. I dont think helga watching him makes much of a difference. But i will try again tomorrow with him alone.

These 3 videos might be relevant in your situation:



http://leerburg.com/flix/player.php?id=722


http://leerburg.com/flix/player.php?id=737


http://leerburg.com/flix/player.php?id=743

the first part of your video was excellent i would use his favorite tug, have him miss it, building frustration. never force it on him keep up the good work

Ram,

From what I can tell your dogs are still very young and your in a drive building stage. The first thing I would do is get those other dogs out of there because they are only a distraction.
Second, you mentioned it was hot. Dogs learn through association so don't train when it is hot like that because a dog can learn not to like it because it's to hot and not any fun. Train early at first while it's cool.
Third, if possible find a grass or dirt surface to do this on because that surface your using is not only hot but it's hard on the dog's feet.
Fourth, don't feed the toy to them but make them come to it.
Fifth, keep your hands off the toy once you've let go of it and the game is over You can create a nervous reaction and end up with a dog who mouths the toy instead of a solid grip. This will transfer right over to the sleeve when you get there.
Sixth,I would lose the snap on that leash also and use something that you can tie on so you don't bop the dog in the head accidentally and create an aversion to the work.
Seventh, try building the drive initially without a tie out and just let them chase it around a bit and have some fun with it.
Eighth, if the dog bites the string don't keep pulling. If you do you run the risk of teaching the dog that biting the string gets him the reward. I'm sure you don't want that so just relax and wait for the dog to drop it and then jerk it away and engage the dog immediately.

Great job with Helga.

I agree with Ana and Michael's points. To build drive with Kaiser make the whole environment more conducive to him paying attention and being comfortable. Also, have you tried a different item that he might be more interested in? My pup loves real tugs now, but at first I had to build her drive with a rag. I just used any old rag or tea towel, and she loved it because it was easier to bite and it's easy to whip around to stimulate the prey drive.

Harness! Use a harness! That way your dogs are more comfortable with really going for it.

Ana and Michael are spot on, too!