I'm really struggling with finding ways to tire out Myles (11 months). I am absolutely willing to play fetch, etc but he will only engage for a minute or 2 and then he'll just stand there. It's like he wants to play but he won't. Every time I think I have found the thing that will finally work, he loses interest after a few days. If you'll remember I posted a video of him in his paddling pool. Day 1 the most exciting thing ever, but after a few days he would not even get in. I just bought him a "flirt pole". (Basically a pole with a robe and a toy at the end of it. He LOVED it for a couple of days, but now he will chase it for a a few turns and then he's done. So I pick up a frisbee and throw it, no interest. (Sometimes he will fetch but it's had to be a learned thing with him and he doesn't do it with much enthusiasm). I know he needs to get out some of his energy and I am honestly trying but end up giving up because he gives up. So feels like we are just in this viscous cycle of a dog that needs to run, but he won't, so he has pent up energy. He gets multiple daily walks,which I know don't do much to tire him out. We are in the suburbs so no he doesn't get the off lead time that most of you have been able to get with your dogs. But I feel like I can't even get there with him training-wise because of his lack of interest so quickly. He loves clicker training, so we do that. He loves to play "find it", and he loves tug. So we end up doing these things but I still keep trying to find that thing I can do with him to run him out some. Count your blessings if you have a dog that loves to fetch. My first lab did and it's night and day difference in what you are able to do with them. Would love suggestions. Been very frustrating.
Hey, not all labradors like to retrieve. But you know what - Myles loves to play 'find it' and 'tug' - you can really work on those to get him working and using his nose. You probably play 'find it' in the house and garden - now is the time to start extending that into longer and more complicated games outdoors. I know you say you are in the suburbs, so this may involve a drive with him to another area, but that's fine. You can start laying trails with a piece of sausage, or his favourite toy, or anything. Slowly make these trails more and more complicated. The reward when he finds whatever it is you have hidden, can be a game of tug with you. Searching, or hunting, is very tiring for a dog, and by that I mean mentally tiring as well as physically tiring. Look around and see if there is a group near you that does search and rescue ('man trailing') training. I think that might be exactly up Myles' street.
Agree with Karen . My last Lab Tess was totally uninterested in retrieving , would stand and look at me with puzzlement if I threw anything for her, whereas Sam is passionate about the whole affair, so yes, they differ greatly .
Thank you Karen. I agree I need to probably build on the things he does like. I think it's just been a mental block for me thinking he also must need to run it out sometimes. My other big challenge with him is that he hates the car. He gets very bad anxiety (foaming at the mouth). So it's been an obstacle for us and limited our options. I am trying to work through the car anxiety and see if I can get him over it. But I can do as you said and try some things with him in the yard. He loves nose work, so yes that's right up his alley.
Obsessive retrievers aside, I think it's difficult to exercise a dog just through play. Particularly at first. A lot of dogs need to sort of "get hooked" on playing games, and if you have this kind of dog the more you play (particularly if you play until the dog is bored) the less valuable you will make the game. Even dogs that turn out to be super keen retrievers could quite easily be "turned off" by too many throws when they were young - and if you do anything until your dog gives up, it's too much. You need to always stop while the dog still wants to carry on. In this way, the dog gets more and more keen on the game, not less and less keen. Why not try to work out many short, upbeat training sessions, but plan to do only 2 or 3 repetitions of anyone thing, try a new game for 30 seconds and then return to training. I think it's a case of keeping everything below the level at which Myles gets bored, and gradually build it up. Also think about your own motivation too - if whatever you are doing doesn't hold much interest for you, you'll tend to be down beat and lacking energy and that will transfer to Myles.
Good points Julie, I think you are right in that I have let him get to the boredom stage (trying to keep him engaged). I am still trying to get used to and understand a dog that doesn't get motivated by retrieving. I will give those things a try. Thanks!!
Endlessly chucking a ball in the yard is not great for a dog anyway. It's not great for joints, or any good for mental stimulation. Out at gundog training for a morning, Charlie will do no more than 3 retrieves. Sure, he'd like to do 75 if he had the chance, but that's not what 'proper' retrieving is about anyway. Even on a walk, he'll only do 3 or 4 long retrieves and have to hunt for his dummy or ball at the end of it. We'll play a few games tug, find it and so on. After that, he'll get rewarded for doing training stuff - walking at heel, sit/stays, working while ignoring other dogs and so on. I do work hard on making his rewards "worth it" in what I choose, and how I deliver them, but he now loves to work, and that's been built up over time with a huge history of reinforcement. Cracking the car thing would be helpful - then you could see whether you could take Myles swimming, or join clubs and so on. Find a few dog parks....
Juno loves to play fetch but some days loses interest quite quickly (prefers the rabbit poo in the garden), when she does tis I usually end up doing a silly song and dance around the garden. Amazing how much fun you are then and fetch suddenly becomes more interesting particularly if I also pretend to race Juno to the ball . Here in France there are many areas where dogs are meant to on a lead but people tend to be quite pragmatic that if there is no-one around the lead is dropped to allow the dog more freedom; after all the dog does have a lead on, the signs don't say you have to be holding it ..... not sure if it would work in the USA the same but it's advice I've received from local mayors.
Hahaha! There's one valley here where dogs have to be on lead - strangely, it only tells you this approaching it from one direction, not the way I normally go, so I didn't see a sign.... I do have them on lead if it's busy (there's a family-friendly BBQ area at the end and they don't need two slobbering Labs all over them!), but most of the time, it's empty so they get to run around. A friend of mine did get stopped by the warden a couple of months ago, though, so I do try to be careful.
For us one of the main areas is a local lake where dogs have to be on lead but during the week it's unusual to see anyone else there so we sort of accidentally drop Juno's long lead and just keep an eye out for any official looking types . Have to admit the last time we dropped her lead while walking she decided to head off into the lake for a quick dip . Well she is a Lab
