Stimulating Playtime Ideas...

[LuvMyPuppy]

I was wondeing what types of creative games that other people play with thier boxer that doesn't teach them bad habits. I am trying to help my DH understand that the way he plays is contributing in a negative way with how he interacts with others. Because we want him to do ITP work I want to avoid these at all costs. No wrestling or shoving or initaiting him to play bite in anyway. (I know I sound strict, but it will pay off I am sure if we can avoid these things)

Games I have given them the ok to play are:
*fetch (even though he doesn't bring it back always hehe)
*tug-of-war because we can still win right now
*hide and seek
*training practice (which is like a game to Charlie anyway)

Any other ideas??

 

[Checkers]

Dont forget to rotate his toys too Ive heard that you shouldnt play tug of war with a dog. Its a power struggle between you and him and if he wins (even by the toy slipping from your hands) he sees that he controls the toys. Also perhaps you should let your husband play bite with him, not the really rough stuff, but just so he learns how to control the strength of his jaws

Another thing I do is try and tie or wind toys together. She has a ball with holes in it and I stuff a toy in it and wind an old belt through. She takes forever to unravel the toy

 

[Charlie'sMom]

How about playing frisbee? Bruce loves running between us trying to get it! As for tug, you need to make sure that you have taught the give/drop command before you start playing it, so that as soon as you say they will leave the toy. That's important for when they get older and are actually stronger than you to ensure that you are still in control. Hide and seek is always a favourite in our house (and that's good for re-inforcing that it is fun to come to you, so helps with recall).

 

[ldyjulia]

Ive heard that you shouldnt play tug of war with a dog. Its a power struggle between you and him and if he wins (even by the toy slipping from your hands) he sees that he controls the toys. Also perhaps you should let your husband play bite with him, not the really rough stuff, but just so he learns how to control the strength of his jaws

Our trainer told us the opposite. She said that tug does not create an agression problem it shows you whether or not it exists. She said that tug is a very important game in order to build a dog's self confidence. We play tug with Trixie all the time (one of her favs) and we see no negative results come out of it.

I also don't think play biting should be allowed. The way I learned it was that biting should be discouraged because otherwise when they get bigger they'll still bite but since they'll be stronger it'll hurt. Plus what you consider "play biting" others (like guests) may see as Real biting. Just my two cents...

 

[ldyjulia]

Hide and Seek?

I know what hide & seek is since I played it when I was a kid, but how do you play it with your boxer? How does it help with recall? We're still working on recall with Trixie so I would love to learn a game to help us with it.

 

[Charlie'sMom]

If you are playing on your own with your dog, make him/her stay in one room, whilst you run off and hide in another; when you are ready you can shout out to them 'come' or 'where am I' - this not only practices 'stay' but teaches them that it is fun to come to you (we always give a treat when Bruce manages to find us!). If there are two of you, one of you can go and hide, whilst the other keeps hold of the dog in another room (which helps if your pup isn't yet great at the 'stay' command!). When you are hidden, the person with the dog can say 'go find' or 'where's ...?' and the dog will soon come and find you. It's got to the point with Bruce that we just have to say 'where's ....?' and he starts looking for something! Have fun!

 

[LuvMyPuppy]

We love hide & seek, just a tip if your pup is young it might be scary at first for them...so make it real obvious where you are until they're comfortable. Like leave a foot out to be seen. I'll even repeat "find momma" if he's having a hard time finding me (otherwise he gets stressed & has been know to pee from it if it's too hard). I can't tell you how happy he is when he actually finds me. He jump and twist in the air, it's very fun.

I REALLY want him to learnhow to play frisbee!! He watched some other dogs doing it the other day & I was hoping he was learning something, hehe. We're still working on fetching a ball. When we're n the house playing (yes, bad idea in our apartment I know) he'll bring the ball back & he knows "drop it". When we get to a park he knows nothing, his mind goes blank hehe. Just too excited to be at the park I guess.

How did you start teaching you dog to play frisbee?

 

[Charlie'sMom]

We're still at the stage where we just throw the frisbee between us, and he chases after it. After a few throws we'll throw a low one for him to get and run around with for a bit while we chase him! He hasn't yet become one of those dogs who jumps up to catch the frisbee, but as he's young we don't want him jumping too much anyway. I figured once he gets happy with the frisbee he may eventually start catching it, but for now he gets enough exercise just chasing it!

 

[ldyjulia]

Frisbee

Thanks for the hide 'n seek explanation. It sounds fun...we're going to try it!

We also haven't gotten to the point where Trixie jumps for the frisbee. I heard that too much jumping isn't good for them while they're young so I haven't even attempted to teach her that. We just throw the frisbee and tell her to "get it!" Then we she gets to where it landed I encourage her to bring it back to me and when she does I praise her lavishly. Sometimes we play a little tug with it before I tell her to "release" and we start again. It is great exercise!!

(Side note: We don't use a regular plastic frisbee, we used one that we purchased in a pet store that I think is easier for her to pick up and safer for her teeth. )

Have fun! :D

 

[LuvMyPuppy]

THanks. We bought a frisbee that it rope around the outside. He actually picked it out himself. It has a snowman in the moddle and it was easy for him to grab the snowman head and drag it around. We're going to have to work on the 'bring it back' portion hehe. He loves to chase it but he just goes where it lands and starts chewing on it. (teething) Eventually he'll pick it up I'm sure.