The game of tug

14 years ago

The game can become too arousing for the dog and human hands can get hurt if the dog does not know drop it and consider it part of the game.

This is what a puppy should know in order to play the game safely:

Leave it!

Take!

Drop!

Here is little Will in a lesson. We are using one of his favorite toys.

Elisabeth Weiss is a highly certified, experienced dog trainer in Manhattan, NYC. To learn more about dog training services, contact us by phone at (917) 783-1473 or our contact form.

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Elizabeth Hess
October 22, 2012 8:35 am

Will is fabulously cute. And obedient? How long did it take you to teach him to drop? Instructive video! Thanks…
Elisabeth Weiss
October 22, 2012 9:39 am

Betsy,

It does not take long to teach “drop it” as long as you make it fun and rewarding.
One of the key things you can do:

1) disengage yourself from the toy before you ask the dog to drop it. That immediately makes the toy less interesting.

2) throw a distracting treat away from the dog rather than feeding the treat.

3) In preparation to teaching an actual “drop it” teach the dog that you are looking for an empty mouth. While the dog’s mouth is empty say “drop it”. Then throw a treat.

Does that make sense?

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