How did you teach drop it?! Ive tried giving him something whilst holding a treat in my other hand, showing him the treat and saying drop it. But he just isn't interested!?
Re: Drop It!? Mine isn't strong because I've not done a huge amount on this (yet), but when I started, if it was something that they didn't want to give up, it had to be a high enough value treat that it was worth dropping for. I didn't say anything at first (cue comes later once they are consistent at the behaviour), but showed the treat, waited for the drop, hid the toy while they ate the treat, and then gave the toy back afterwards. Once you KNOW they are going to drop it, that's when you add the verbal cue. You want to fade the lure really quickly, too, so it's not bribery, so they shouldn't have to see the treat to drop it, just know they're going to get "paid" for their behaviour. This way, they learn that it's a win-win. They get a treat AND they get their toy back. If your dog starts to tug, just stop tugging back. The few times they've done this (they're not big tuggers), I found this made the game boring and so they dropped it.
Re: Drop It!? Never have taught the drop it command? Having gundogs and they are used for retrieving, I do not want them to drop anything. I want them to hold on to everything until I give the release command to place it in my hand, 'Give' or 'Dead' are the most commonly used commands. If training this with a toy or dummy, have another one to swap with. Using treats can also be used, but this will maybe get the dog to actually drop it for the reward, I use this very sparingly with a young pup at first because I do not want it dropped on the floor.
Re: Drop It!? Dex is a pet so I haven't got the considerations Sue mentions .When he has grabbed illegal contraband I have always swapped for a treat....my greedy guts doesn't need high value for that ...any old piece of kibble about my person will do,but like Fiona says if you aren't getting the 'drop' up the yumminess of your treats.
Re: Drop It!? I haven't taught drop and have always used give for toys etc. That said I have been known to shout drop it when Juno has picked up poo - certainly don't want her to give it to me ;D
Re: Drop It!? We use 'give' as a command. We teach it by swapping for treats - sometimes high value treats are needed. Gypsy likes to find small bits of plastic etc and chew them, thankfully she doesn't swallow them. But sometimes when I say 'give' she hides it under her tongue! I think 'oh no, she's swallowed it' then I see her chewing again! Monkey
Re: Drop It!? There isn't a big difference between "drop it" and "give" - one is just into your hand, the other just dropped. You start off the same way. A clicker solves both the problem with a swap (it's a bribe so you're stuck if you don't have a bribe, and plus it won't work when the item the dog has is high value) and if you want a "give" the dog might spit out the item before he reaches you if you have food (a clicker completely solves spitting on a retrieve allowing you to use food very effectively).
Re: Drop It!? Maisie has two types of drop it, so it depends what you want. Do you want him to spit out something yucky he has grabbed to swap for a treat or do you want him to drop a toy so you can throw it/restart a tug game? For something yucky, Maisie has learned the word "trade." She spits it out and gives me a chance to grab a treat even if I don't have one on me. This was accomplished by giving her good treats instead of whatever she was trying to eat off the ground. I think she doesn't mind dropping because she's like "this thing I'm eating is dubiously edible, if I drop, I get something definitely edible… ok". I don't remember how we did that one though so that's no help. Her drop it for toys has improved immensely however. If you are playing drop it for toys, some people suggest not tugging at all and that will induce a drop. Well, that's no good for Maisie - she'll either run away with her special tug toy (since she doesn't get to have those ones unless playing with me) so is rewarded for not dropping, or she'll continue with the toy in front of me. So what works for me, finally, is a combination of making the toy go "dead" (ball it up, hold it still, so it's not as interesting, as much as you can with part of it in the dog's mouth) and sticking the toy/her mouth between my knees. It's not a knee vise or exertion of pressure at all - my hands are mostly what gets between my knees, it gets most of the toy out of her sight I think, and she drops it and backs away into a sit. Tucking the toy back like that also helps prevent secondary grabs after she's dropped (her other problem). If she grabs at it again, toy gets balled up and away for a bit so she knows - that doesn't help the play to start.
Re: Drop It!? Bella knows the leave it cue and is pretty darn good so will drop/leave anything I ask in return for a treat reward. I think a give / drop command would be good in relation to releasing toys tho...
Re: Drop It!? I use "leave it" for something undesirable outdoors and reward with a high value treat. Poo is the main culprit and it's starting to work. I basically just began with a lure and then cross-faded into a reward. I use "swap" for something in the house and I do show her the offer. That's probably bribery but better than eating my shoe... (certainly after the third pair!!) I used to use "drop" for her ball when we were playing fetch but no amount of reward/lure would work. Now I have two balls and won't release one until she gives me the other. That's working nicely. Playing with her toys in the house, "drop" has always worked just fine. It's only her beloved ball we have a difference of opinion on. I've had a modicum of success getting her to drop a peg into my palm (in exchange for a treat) when we're hanging the washing out but I wouldn't dare to hope for that with her ball. I'm picking my battles! Trade's a good word as "swap" and "drop" sound very similar - I might pinch that one.
