So Hank and I will sometimes 'rasle' and play tug in the living room (i.e. he tries to jerk me off the couch!) and when he gets going good, or I touch him on the chest or side of the head he gets vocal, growling and such. His 'out' is great and he's not agitated (hackles up). When I 'out' and then toss the toy he pounces on it and brings it right back to me to start the growling/tug session right back up. I am assuming that this is just good engagement and he's being vocal, right? (Ridgebacks are not generally know for being vocal) I'm just making sure I don't get myself into trouble. It's kind of spooky at times to be 6 inches from 80lbs of teeth and muscle growling and carrying on at the end of a toy.

You're going to get MUCH better advice than this ......

In fact, I'm deleting this for being stupid.

Edited by Connie Sutherland (01/10/2013 06:26 PM)
Edit reason: self delete

With some dogs, being vocal is a measure of intensity, but not always.
I have been learning to catch dogs at our club for about a year now. Some of the dogs are vocal, some not, and there is no rhyme or reason as to which is which. Of the two most intense dogs in our club, one growls and one doesn't.
I kinda like the growling, as you can use it to measure intensity in a vocal dog. My dog only growls during tug when I crowd her (move into her space) or I lift her off the ground. When the growling starts, I know I've taken the game to the next level. The most important thing is that it remains in the context of the play.

You seem to have a pretty good read on your dog. If you don't sense any aggression and it's all in good fun, I wouldn't be concerned. If you do get concerned about aggression, you may want to lower the intensity of the play.

PS; A few months ago, there was a guy who posted a video of him playing with his dog. He thought the dog was being aggressive because it kept jumping on him when he tried to end playtime. What was really going on was that the dog was trying to get the owner to engage . IMHO, Hank's growling sounds a little bit like he's trying to incite you to play.

Well, I'm not one of the people that Connie talks about who can give you much better advice, lol, but your post did bring back fond memories of my female Doberman I lost five years ago.

She and I had a game that sounds very much like what you are describing with Hank. We would play tug in the house, and she would get all fierce and growly. If I touched her with my feet, that would get her going even more. But it was all in good fun. We both knew it was a game, we took turns "winning" the tug, and all I had to do was give her the command, and she turned it off instantly.

I'm sure others with more knowledge will chime in (as Duane already has), but in my very limited experience and from the way you describe it, it sounds like just play, and it's true that some dogs are more vocal than others.

Many dogs get vocal when excited. Many do as pups & other do so as they get more mature. Playing tug can be very stimulating & bring out a lot of intensity in a dog, as Duane stated.

If you see no body language or severe eye contact suggesting that it is other then play vocalization I wouldn't worry about it.

I would, however, be careful that you don't put your own dog into defense. Which can happen if things spin up too far or it get too physically intense.

I personally reserve that kind of play for outside the house,except for young pups. As pushing play to a high intensity like tug in the close quarters of the house can cause things to escalate to pushing the dog over the prey threshold into defense if he feels like he is being backed into a cornor or trapped in any way. Even it is just a perception on his part.

sounds like pretty good clean fun to me , but i wanted to comment on the location re : acceptable or encouraged behaviour in appropriate locations .

if your living room is one of those places where you want to foster that kind of interaction , then fine , but don't be surprised if on down the road things start to get out of hand . dogs will connect activities with locations , and if you got stuff in " the swamp " you don't want broke , you may want to take it outside .

personally , i want my dogs to behave in a calm manner when they are in the house , the rough stuff / playtime happens when , where and how i dictate , generally outdoors .

 Quote: ian bunbury

personally , i want my dogs to behave in a calm manner when they are in the house , the rough stuff / playtime happens when , where and how i dictate , generally outdoors .

Good point, Ian. An owner should always be the one who decides when and where play will take place. I started to say that I play with my dog in the living room because it's too cold outside in the winter, but considering where you live, that would make me sound like a real weenie. Well, okay, I am a weenie, and the dog didn't care for winter weather, either, so the living room it was!

I also wanted to mention that I believe Ken has young children (correct me if I'm wrong), and I would be very careful to play these games outside the presence of the children. They may see you doing it and decide it would be fun to try, and they are too young to be playing with Hank in that manner. Growly tug-o'-war with big dog = adults only. I'm sure you know this, Ken, I only mention it for the benefit of the many unknown folks out there who read these boards.

the growly bit sounds like it is something ken has some control over , so i'd say use it as you see fit . . . turn it up , turn it down , play with the precise actions on your part that bring it out in him , and lastly , teach him how to " cap it " : that is , when you say " that'll do ! " , it's over , now !

Thanks guys, I just wanted to be sure I wasn't doing something that was 'too much'.

Yeah part of the reason we play a bit 'inside' is that it gets to be 'stupid' hot even in the evening and the blood suckers get kinda thick as well in the backyard. I don't call Houston the swamp for nothing! I wore shorts on Christmas eve this year, outside no less!

Ian I do 'cap it' if he gets too amp'ed up I will stop the game and tell him we are done. He generally flops himself down on the floor for a belly rub.

Cheri, I've got two girls (8 & 6) who have learned to stand clear when Dad and Hank have some fun. Hank is very gentle when it comes to the girls generally, and them being girls they usually just want to snuggle/pet him which he doesn't seem to mind too much. It's the 8-10yr old boys that come to visit we have to watch out for.

My 8 yr old wasn't paying attention and Hank started a tug game with her (while she was laying on our leather couch). She didn't let go of the toy and he jerked her clean off the couch right onto her back! (He's still got about 30lbs on her) Knocked the wind right out of her, she was ok but 'we' have learned that rough 'play'/tug is a Daddy game.

Another kid story:
A couple of months ago I walk into the kitchen and see the girls laying on the floor watching TV (way to close of course), and Hank gets up and proceeds to stand over both of them! My brain starts screaming, "crap, dog showing dominance! Children could be in danger! going to have come down on him like a ton of bricks".
As I watch, the girls/Hank have each other trained, he stands over them and gets a 2-4 hand (sometimes even feet!) full nail belly rub while standing there! Of course he loves this (next to bacon he will do anything for a belly/butt scratch) and will then proceed to flop down next to them to get even more 'lovin'. He looks like some inbred/fool dog with that Blissful expression on his face, it's ridiculous, he's supposed to be my lion hunter!

IT is hard to maintain NILF with a house full of ladies who love to 'give it' to the mutt when I'm not around!

Ah well what can I do, he listens and keeps the house safe, and I can call him off prey and cats when off leash. He's a darn good dog, for a punk!

 Quote: Ken Easterling

...As I watch, the girls/Hank have each other trained, he stands over them and gets a 2-4 hand (sometimes even feet!) full nail belly rub while standing there! Of course he loves this (next to bacon he will do anything for a belly/butt scratch) and will then proceed to flop down next to them to get even more 'lovin'. He looks like some inbred/fool dog with that Blissful expression on his face, it's ridiculous, he's supposed to be my lion hunter!

IT is hard to maintain NILF with a house full of ladies who love to 'give it' to the mutt when I'm not around!

Ah, yes, I have one who has very skillfully taught my husband and I how to give her the perfect belly rubs (with our feet while we're sitting on the couch or chair, lol).

I'm sure I've mentioned it before in some of your threads, but I love Rhodesian Ridgebacks. My brother and his family have one, and she has been a perfect family dog for twelve years now.