I finally got a copy of the flinks "drive, focus, and grip" video. very good. it was also reassuring to see that what i had been doing wasn't too far off the mark, just need some coaching in the finer points and where to take it from here.

my question is now what do i do for excercise? I usually play ball (fetch) with my dog just to wear him out (if i don't he keeps me up all night). i try to use different balls (not the ones on the string) for this, and sometimes i use two, sometimes just one.

will this interfere or get confusing with the drive building work i do at other times? if so, how do i just wear out my dog especially on the days i don't have time for long walks, etc. ? or how do i incorporate it into the drive building if that can be done? is it ok to do the drive building, and then incorporate playing fetch, making him sit and focus before throwing the ball again?

thanks in advance.

cb

Chris, I won't presume to tell you what to do, but I can share what works with our dogs: in short, with our two dogs (of different temperaments) playing two ball for exercise has not interfered with any training exercises.
A good thing, since there is NO way that I can stop the two-ball game twice a day. Ours are house dogs and they would drive the family crazy if not exercised daily! And I'm not into doing anything more physical myself than the two-ball...

In the interest of time, I incorporate training sessions into the exercise game by requiring some work before the two-ball begins. On days when there is no time for both activities, then only two-ball is played.

I also tried to use a different set of toys for training and for exercise, but with mixed results: for the more prey driven dog I could use ping-pong balls for all he cares: as long as the throw lets him run all out. His satifaction seems to come from the running....
However, the DDR bitch is not so prey driven, and will really only play with the same toys (kongs) that I train with. Its not the retrieving that seems to satisfy her as much as the brief fighting (tugging) that follows each retrieve.

With neither dog has my mixing the activities presented any problems, as they quickly distinguish the body language for play or work.

Of course your mileage may wary... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

thanks, ann.

that's similar to my situation. he's a house dog, and this is my first go-round with this type of training. he's got a ton of prey drive (he'd chase a rock if i threw it for him...) and he's pretty focused for being "home schooled" by an amateur...

anyway, i just want to make sure that throwing the ball, whether it be the ball on a string (which is definitely his 'prey item' of choice) or just a regular ball can either be incorporated into training ( make him work first, then play) or if i need to be careful and save the balls for training and find another way of wearing him out.

i want to do things by the book, or at least "by the video" from here on out.

thanks again to anyone else who has an opinion.

cb

Hi Chris

I would be careful about playing the two ball game. I am also doing Drive, Focus, and Grip and I used to play the two ball game with my dog and I noticed that he started to get chewy on the prey item because he didn't like giving it up for the second ball....so be careful, you could start to see chewy grips.

I exercise my dog by taking him for long walks.
I try and do the Grip Work for just a couple minutes and at least twice a day or three times a day if I'm off work.

I play a lot of 2 ball with my dog, and it does not affect his grips. I acutally use the jute bite rolls, instead of a ball. Sometimes I hang onto it and he comes charging in like a freight train and I fight and play tug with him. He absolutely loves this. I have noticed that he is more mouth with balls then the jute bite roll, but this has not transferred to the sleeve. His grip is always calm and full. I guess each dog is different. Just my 2 cents.