Dog Obedience Training - Training a Dog to Retrieve

You can train your dog to retrieve anything you care to throw for him when you use dog obedience training systems to train him.

There is more to obedience training than just sit and stay work. You need to include fun activities in your training program. Training him to retrieve a toy and give you the toy in your hand, on demand, is easy when linked with my dog obedience training article on teaching the tug game. You can find these notes in my blog.

If you are lucky enough to have a pup that already tugs then you are already ahead of the rest, but you have to keep the pup tugging or he will forget how.

This retrieve teaching system requires that your pup is a happy little tugger so that the retrieve can become a game the dog loves. Once your dog is tugging really well, sit or kneel on the floor and start the tug game. Have the dog give you the tug toy and throw this just 2 feet away. As the dog grabs the toy, you also grab the toy and tug the dog back towards you. Repeat this lots of times but if the dog shows signs of becoming bored, stop and do something else.

Excitement in your motions and in your voice is essential whilst you are playing the tug game. No dog is going to enjoy a game where the handler is sluggish in his movements and talks slowly and softly. You need to lift your voice a number of octaves and become really excited and squeaky.

The tug toy needs to be shaken vigorously and you need to get the dog tugging strongly.

Be careful that you do not jerk the toy right out of the dog's mouth as you do not want to pull teeth out. We all know that little pups do lose their milk teeth and when this is happening, be even more careful because causing pain will inhibit the pups wish to continue with the game.

Start throwing the toy further away, but ensure you can get to the toy at the same time as the dog and do not let the dog run off with it. Keep on building the distance but do not progress too quickly. And always make the tug game fun and exciting.

If you have got to the point where you are throwing the toy so far that you cannot get to it at the same time as the pup, then you need to now stand still when you throw the toy and let the pup chase it and bring it back to you. If the pup does not bring the toy straight back you have progressed too quickly.

Once you have a dog bringing the toy back to you every time, you can start asking the dog to sit next to you, throw the toy, and after a few seconds, release him and tell him to fetch.

You can also start using different types of toy for throwing. Use anything that you can throw at least 10 meters.

You can use a ball but make absolutely certain that the dog brings the ball back every time, and deposits it into your hand. Accept nothing less. If the dog drops the ball short, pick it up and put it away, but give the dog an effusive reward the next time he drops it in your hand.

The retrieve can be used to control and manage some dog behavioural problems as well. Dogs that bark or dig up gardens can be well exercised using a tennis ball and a tennis racket. A tired dog will sleep for some hours before he wakes up and starts looking for something to stop his boredom.

A slim, trim and fit dog is a happy dog and retrieving a tennis ball for 10 minutes a day will ensure your dog stays that way.

Having a hyped up dog at the start of an agility round will ensure the dog runs a lot quicker than if he were unhyped. Agility enthusiasts use the tug and retrieve game to increase the dogs drive just before running a course.

In summary then, if you use the above dog obedience training methods to train the dog to tug and then to retrieve, you will have a tool that can be used for all sorts of other training purposes.

Nev Allen has been training dogs for 30 years and wants to help you to make your puppy a good canine citizen. If you want to understand all that is involved with dog obedience training, clicker training and dog ownership then you can read articles and watch videos about these fascinating topics at http://dogobediencetrainingblogs.com

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