I'd been away from home for a little over a month and when I returned I noticed that Duggan has learned "keep away". I had him so that he would chase me and when I approached him he would wait and let me remove anything from his mouth with ease (he would recall with retrieves 100%) Now the opposite is true. He runs away and wants you to chase him. I can't approach him to take anything away or to play fetch. He's learned keep away. Something I tried very hard to avoid and to protect the work I had done. Any tips on how to undue this. Keep in mind there's 1meter of fresh snow in my garden.
What in the world is he finding under a metre of snow that he shouldn't have in his mouth? My dog loves snow and winter. If he wants to play I often oblige. I can't get through deep snow as well as he can but we have pee paths and chase each other around them. We take turns being it. For me this is easy, he doesn't have something in his mouth and even if he did (in the house say) he isn't a chewer so I let him have whatever it is and he gives up on the game. If Duggan isn't a chewer you might try just playing with him, you already have established the GIVE. I often figure, you know what? It IS time for a play.
You need to either find something that is SO much better than what he has (toy, jackpot food etc) Or, make it look like you don't want what he has, when he will either bring it to you happily to engage, or drop it and go off and do something else. Says she who knows nothing..........(save for how to get the TV controls back from the garden. Oh and the odd mobile phone). The latter method sometimes required nerves of steel.
So after three days of doing exactly what you just said he is back on track. Keep away has turned into a mild game of tug, which I'm also not thrilled about( he is a duck dog in the makings) but he's not running away anymore. I can approach him without him running away and I go for a pet on his head or back instead of the object in his mouth. Oh, and should I add he loves sardines. I'm thinking they definitely helped in the process. Jack pot.
And as far as a reward goes, being able to play with a human is probably his second greatest reward, next to playing with another friendly dog.
