Hello everyone, I am new to this forum and joined because I recently rescued a young (~18month)Dutch Shepherd mix. The dog is friendly and very athletic but does not seem to have any interest in playing with humans. He is fine around my other dogs, playing chase and keep away etc. but has little interest in interacting with me in play mode unless food treats are involved. He is pushy in attempts to get attention and has a problem of jumping up and if ignored of nipping. I am working on curing these problems with corrections, distraction and clicker training but so far I have not been able to get him interested in a tug or ball or kong or any toys for any period of time. He will briefly chase something thrown but will either quit before getting to it or soon after picking it up. Any thoughts on this?? I have read that if a dog is not played with as a puppy they may never learn to play. Thanks in advance for any help.
PardnersPal.

Without knowing any early history about your dog, it's hard to know what's going on. One thing it sounds like is he has a bond with other dogs more than people. I would keep him separated from these other dogs in order to create more intrest in you. The Flinks tape on drive building shows using the toy on the end of a whip. With this, you can keep the toy moving, and hopefully, build/keep the dogs drive up. Keep his play time short, and quit while he's still interested. If he is bonded more to dogs than people, I don't know what bonding you can create with him. Hopefull, others here can give you more info.

I was always told that if I were to get 2 pups at the same time, I should keep them seperated or they will bond to eachother and not to me, and that it'd be a better idea to get 1 pup at a time. I guess this can apply to older dog's too when introducing a new dog into the family.

Our rescued border collie mix is like that.If you stop thinking of play as item based it helps. Morris likes to chase and play with the other dogs so we joined in until he was comfortable just playing chase with us. Toni has had this dog going on 5 years and it has never picked up a toy to play with. If a dog is jumping and nipping for attention it doesn`t respect you as a pack leader and you can`t just correct for that.Somebody else could probaly explain better than I could on what you need to do for that. Distraction just gets the dog to think of something else. It doesn`t solve the problem. Have a good time with the dog and leave toys behind. Learning to enjoy time and play with you is more important. Marker training`s good. Leerburg has a few good articles on it: Clickers
Markers
Watching for the body language that says he wants to play with another dog and then returning it might confuse him the first few times but it gives him the oppourtunity to decide to play with you.

My dog was kennelled with a hunting pack until she was several months old. . .so she's pretty "doggy." She will always love other dogs more than she loves us. Also has zero interest in balls or most toys. A puppy kong filled with treats on a string worked well--she would chase that as long as I had the energy to run around like a lunatic. Did not like toys for about the first 5 months. . .I really thought I had a defective dog. We got on the floor and played with her a bit like other dogs might, though making sure to redirect any nipping behavior to the toy. Now, she will fetch her toys when when we throw them (and beagles are not a retrieving breed <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> and also go find hidden toys. What this boils down to: don't let your dog play with other dogs until it's bonded to you, and fairly well-trained. That will just encourage it NOT to bond with you, as it's already learned that other dogs are more fun. Spend lots of time with the dog on walks and training, and give lots of treats--the dog will learn that you are the source of all good things. Then slowly you can reintroduce other playmates. Without other dogs, your pup will probably learn to play "people" games pretty fast.

Thanks everyone for the input. I can separate the dogs and that sounds like a good solution for the bonding issue. Question. I have a kennel and dog run in one corner of my large fenced back yard. I have been allow the three dogs the run of the back yard during the day when I am at work. Would it be enough separation to confine the rescued Dutch Shepherd (DS) to the kennel and allow my Border Collie and Shi-Tzu to run in the back yard? There is a 4" wire mesh fence that defines the kennel area. The dogs could see each other and interact through the fence but not run together. Or is it necessary to crate the DS during the day?
Thanks!
PardersPal.

Bob, Good answer! Its as if we were conjoined twins <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> I think I'll just let you take it from here <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Howard, it just goes to show ya, even a blind pig occasionally finds an acorn. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Bob, you been digging to much in the heat. How about a blind squirrell? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I don't think ther would be a problem with the dog being kenneled within sight of the other dogs. You may have a lot of noise to get out though.
Howard, I must have been truffel hunting with my pig again. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />