Fetch Dog

How to train a dog to fetch

Training Techniques

It is very easy to teach your dog how to fetch an article.Before beginning this exercise, your dog should be sitting at your side. On command, you will have to throw an article, that is clearly visible to him and indicate the direction to your dog at the same time,your dog should move immediately at a good pace to collect the article.

A very important point about this exercise is that your dog must not do anything until he is told to do that.

Its best to start teaching your dog in play so that he first develops an interest. If you indulge him in a play and reward him then he will be very keen all the time for this game, but if you become very strict in training him, chances are that he may lose interest in this activity and making him enthusiastic about this activity will become difficult.The right time to start teaching this activity to your pup is when you find that he has become interactive and is very enthusiastic about playing any game.I taught my dog to fetch when he was about 2 months old, I noticed one day that he was running away with my pillow, I was 5 months pregnant at that time. It helped me a lot in later stages of pregnancy as my dog used to fetch my slippers from under the bed. Fetch newspaper at the time of morning tea, fetch his chain when he wanted to go for walk and also get my hubby's home slippers when he used to come back from office.

In the beginning use a tennis or a rubber ball as object that has to be retrieved.Dogs generally love to play with balls plus the a way ball bounces on the floor also excites them to run after it. Now, once the dog holds it in his mouth, ignore him, move away, if he wants you to throw it again, he should come back to you, give him some food, that will make him drop the ball in order to eat.After a few days you can start by taking a long rope and tying it to your dog's collar, throw a newspaper roll, say "Fetch" and let your dog run behind it.Once he has the newspaper roll in his mouth you can say "Fetch" again and pull him towards yourself, give him a reward when he comes back.

It is no point teaching your dog to fetch things till the time he has got some kind of obedience.It should not happen that you have struggle to get the article out of his mouth and he refuses to leave it.

Also keep in mind, if your dog stops on the retrieve before coming right up to you, don't make the common mistake of walking up to him, make him come towards you. If he stops, move backwards and keep coaxing him up till he comes till where he is supposed to come and only then praise him for getting the thing up to you.

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