Hi, Does anyone know if there is a link on the main Labrador site that goes through the training for 'drop / give' and for 'leave' it? I never mastered it with our old Lab and I'd really like to try and get a solid one this time round with our new pup so was looking for any steps to try and work towards now. Thanks for any help!
I swap for food for a week or so, then when they are doing it well, I add the words ‘drop it’. I start with toys and work up to things like chews and bones. With Keir kibble has worked perfectly with dropping anything - this morning it was a cocktail stick Until I took him on a free run today and he came across horse poo - ohhhhhhhhh heaven, he’d have eaten the lot and was totally deaf to my ‘leave it’! Now I need to think of a treat more tempting then horse poo Hmmmmm!
Here is how I teach "give". - Firstly, resolve to never take anything away from your puppy. The easiest way to get a puppy who doesn't want to give you things is by taking them from him. - Sit on the floor and play gentle tug games with your puppy and a favourite toy. Make him "chase" the toy across the floor, let him tug it and let him win it. Encourage him back in and play a bit more tug again. If he drops it, animate it again or toss it a few feet away. Playing this in a hallway means he can't run off with it, and the game keeps coming back to you. He is learning that bringing you toys makes for an amazingly fun game. My puppy would launch herself into my lap for these games, she was so keen to be close. Not all will be as tactile. - Once you've played this game for a while (several sessions), you can start putting the "give" on cue. Get a treat in your hand and, while he's tugging, make the toy go "dead" and hold the treat over his nose. When he drops the toy, whip it away while he eats the treat, then bring the toy back out and start the chase/tug game again. He is learning that dropping the toy gets him a treat and a continuation of the game. He doesn't have to judge whether the treat is worth it, because it's a win-win. - When he has the idea of this, you can start "faking" the treat. So, hold your finger and thumb the same way as if you were holding a treat. When he drops the toy, show him there was nothing there, but give him a treat from your pouch, and then re-engage with the toy as before. He is learning he doesn't have to see the treat, it will come whether it's in view or not. - When you can bet on him dropping the toy when you present your fingers, add a verbal cue. Do this before you present your fake treat. So, "give", then give your visual cue (fake treat). When he drops, treat and re-engage. Make sure they are very distinct - "give" then fingers, not both at the same time. Once you have done this a few times, try waiting a moment or two after saying "give" and see if he drops the toy. If not, that's fine, he just needs a few more repetitions, so present your fingers and go back to "give" followed by fingers before testing it again. Eventually, he'll anticipate that "give" means the same as your fingers, and you can fade them out. - Add a bit of movement. You should now have a puppy who realises the game is best with you. So, let him "win" the toy and then run backwards a few paces, encouraging him to you. Start the game of tug again when he gets to you. One time in ten, ask for a "give", then return the toy, or toss it for him to chase and bring back again. When he has the idea, you can introduce your "give" cue as he is approaching you. - You can end a session by taking away the toy, but make sure he gets a jackpot reward then. But he will have learnt that most of the time, giving you the toy means he gets it back. This is the most important lesson. - Play this game with lots of different toys and even household items - tea towels, shoes, wooden spoons. Anything you're not too precious about. This way he learns that giving you anything is a good thing. - If he grabs something he shouldn't, don't chase him. If it's something precious, get a handful of your premium treats and throw them on the ground. Teaching a "scatter" cue for this is really useful. You do this simply by, every now and again while at home or on walks, throwing some treats on the floor and shouting "scatter!". He will soon associate the word with coming to you and finding good things by your feet. Don't use this as a recall - it's a special cue that shouldn't be tainted by anything bad (like going on lead, being held for a shot etc) happening afterwards. - If he has grabbed something you don't want him to have, but isn't actually precious or dangerous, play the "give" game, returning it to him ten times before you take it off him for a jackpot. I do this with old bones we find on walks (there are lots of very old skeletons scattered around our land), or the odd half-decomposed rabbit leg. It's a bit disgusting, but it's all hugely valuable training. Every time he gets the best outcome (both a treat and the item back), you are paying in to the behaviour "bank account", making it more likely he will do it in the future. Every time you take the item away for good, you are making a withdrawal from this "bank account". So you need to keep it in a healthy amount of credit, or there will be nothing there when you really need to make a withdrawal. I hope that gives you a good introduction into how to teach your puppy to actually want to give you things. There's a bit more to it for formal retrieves, but if you just want a puppy who will hand stuff over, that's a good start.
I should add, playing tug doesn't mean a battle of strength. It absolutely doesn't involve you shaking the toy - that can be very harmful. And don't lift the puppy (or dog) from the floor with the toy. You should always keep the toy level with his eyeline to protect his neck. He may choose to shake it, that's fine, but you shouldn't do it back, as this can cause whiplash injuries. With a very young puppy, you can start "tug" by using a longish toy and running your hands down the length of it, with the tiniest bit of pressure. Imagine pulling something in from the sea that is attached to a rope; how your hands pass over one another. It's the same sort of movement, but letting the toy slip through your hands as your puppy pulls on it. This gets them used to the sensation of pulling against a bit of resistance. As they become more confident, you can hold on a little more, but remember you're trying to make it a fun game for him, which means he has to win sometimes. You can also whip it away if he lets go - no reason you should play good guy all the time Just count to three then re-engage. He'll soon learn that letting go when you don't ask him to stops the game briefly, so he'll hold it better next time. You're not trying to stamp your authority on him by saying it's your toy and he doesn't get it - there's no fun in that, so he'll just give up. You might hear people saying that tug is a bad idea because it makes your dog dominant. This just isn't true and it's such a great game for teaching skills such as take/give, impulse control against chasing, listening to cues even in high arousal and simply that their human is fun to be with! Being able to use a tugger as a reward is so useful later down the line, too. My older two dogs are a bit "meh" with tugging, but I've made sure to really nurture it in my puppy and it means I have one more string to my bow when we're out and about. I think it's also helped develop a much better hold (onto a training dummy) with her than I have with my older two, meaning she's more willing to keep a dummy in her mouth until I'm ready to take it.
Thanks for all replies. @snowbunny - that's amazing help - thanks so much for taking the time to write it all out. He loves tug games already so hopefully this will work well! I'll give it a go Thanks again - really appreciate it.
Thank you Snowbunny for so elaborate input. As mentioned by you my Bruno too loves playing tug and does bring things to me but does not leave them easily. Plus there is another issue with him, if he has something in his mouth and he KNOWS..that whatever he has in his mouth I am going to take from him, he starts running around and does not listen to me. Earlier, he used to just run with the thing in his mouth now he gobbles it down! Earlier, he used to open his mouth, when I used to say "show me"...now he tightens it more and gobbles whatever is down. I am not able to teach him to 'give' me or 'leave', I find is very depressing for Me ... I am worried as summers are approaching, different kind of toads and insects will be out, if he puts something in his mouth and does not leave.. The thought scares me... What should my approach be...
Hi Jenny You need to really focus on Snowbunny's first point - never take anything away from your puppy. As soon as Bruno lets you have something you should immediately give it back while being fantastically enthusuastic at what he has done for you. Make him want to give things up because he sees it as a good thing, not a bad thing (you taking something away from him). Manage the training scenario - small, confined space so he can't go too far away and something that is not too much of a temptation for him to keep, then wait until he drops it (do not chase him or shout at him) ... be patient.
I'm a bit late to the discussion, but fabulously helpful advice thanks @snowbunny - our astounding hound (now 6 months) has a rawhide habit which means he ends up with small nubbins towards the end that he loves to toss about over his head. I've been taking these off him with a 'scatter to distract' approach, but as he's getting wiser to it he's beginning to guard his precious slimy treasure and hide under chairs etc. I've tried hard to be nonchalant until I can distract and remove it, but this is a far better way forward. Thank you!
Old post but always relevant. We have also used tug of war as a powerful training tool and excellent energy transformer. When we started playing tug of war for 5 or 10 min in the morning, the entire household changed! New life. Tired up puppy right after a long night is the best thing ever. He is not tired to the point of not being able to go on with his day but definitely reaches a level of energy left over in his body after tug that makes him a lot for likely to behave, train and connect with us a lot more effectively !! Just brilliant !!
