Fetch

I am posting this in every dog forum I am a member of, so some of you may see it more than once. I just hope someone can help.

I have never had a dog that would fetch anything. I have a Wiemaraner puppy [7 months old] that will not offer to go get nothing.

How can I get my dogs to fetch, anything?

Thanks for any help.

Mule

 

find there favorite toy and just put it right in front of them and just slowly keep moveing it farther away

 

They don't seem to be interested in toys, unless it tastes good, then they eat it quickly.

Mule

 

you cant MAKE them do anything, they have to WANT to do it. just need to spend alot of time and find out what peeks its interest and go from there.

 

You are right. I got the time.

Mule

 

Do you need it to a real obedience training or just for fun, play with dogs?
If you need it for Obedience teaching must look different, cause it's important what dog is carring, how he carry it and how he gives it back. In Obedience and Schutzhund its important that dog do not bite an object he is carring.
I've got two dogs, older is not a real "chaser" but he easly give the object to you (too easy, I had to learn him keep it till I give him a comand to give it back to me). There was a lot of work put into him, just to learn him to go for an object.
My other dog is a real "chaser", love it... but she hate to give an object to you. It take some time to learn her to wait for a comend to chase an object and to learn her to bring it back to you.

First you have to learn a dog to "love" a toy you are going to throw or put somewhere. You play with this toy with your dog and do not give him this toy to play alone. Talk to him all the time with a very happy vioce, encourage him to pull on toy, say him that he is a good dog... When you get his attention to this toy you may attach some rope to it, keep the end of this in one hand, the leash at other. Throw an object, not far, give a command an go/run with your dog to the object... all the time you have to encourage him, do not pull on the leash, just try to make him go to an object. If he do and take the object, immediately start to play with him and talk with a happy voice that its a good dog, good work. Next time if the dog is interested try to let him walk first. Remember that the playtime is his reward, so if he dont like to bring or chase the object, he will do this only for the reward, so at the begining it have to be really good one. If yor dog will go but dont want to bring object pull on the rope attached to it. Not on the leash. If you will pull on the leash you will force him to come to you physically but you will not learn him to bring an object to you. If you pull on rope attached to an object, then you won't force a dog to come to you, but the object will be moving in your direction and the dog, if still want to have an object, will have to move in your direction also. When the dog will be near of you, grab the object - do not take it away if the dog is the type which dont want to bring it to you. If you take it away at the begining of "learnig" you will learn a dog that it is not profitable to bring you an object, becouse if he did it would be taken from him. Just grab it and play with dog for some time, after this let the dog "win", keep the object, but encourage him to run with it (dog on leash, not far away from you, try to make him run in direction that you choose - do not force him, just use a voice). This will be a reward for dog...
To learn a dog to bring the obdject or to give it away can take some time, but you have to be patient. If the dog don't like to do it you have to give him a good reward to learn him. It take time and a lot of work but it works...

ps. sorry for my english, it's not my native language... I hope that what I wrote is understandable...

 

go to the Agility Forum and look at the article I posted on building drive. It give you how to start a fetching. If that doesn't work you can teach a forced retrieve but I would only do that if your going to compete in Obedience or field trials.

 

Any thing I do with my dogs is for my enjoyment [and theirs] only. We will never compete, nor even watch a competition.

Mule

 

IN, I could understand what you wrote.

I thank you for your time to write all that.

Mule

 

Drive fetching like performance said or forced retrieving?