How to Train a Dog to Fetch

 - Today I'm going to write to you about the value of teaching your dog how to fetch. Now, this is something that I do every single day with my dogs in order to keep them in shape, and to exercise them. But did you know this is also a fabulous game to use to help establish leadership and to build a great relationship with your dog. Today I'm going to go over a few key factors on teaching your dog show to do a retrieve. Ready, Bee, wanna show them? On your mark, okay, ready,get set, go, get the ball! (clapping) Good girl, bring it here! Bingo! Good girlie! 

This is seven-month old Beeline and my name is DN. Welcome back to My blog. Get that thing! (guitar strum) (puppy yips) Before you begin, you may consider putting your dog on a leash. What I've also done is put my toy on a leash so that I have control of both variables. Now before doing this,I've already established that my puppy really likes this toy so make sure you have an idea of what types of toy your puppies like, whether it's a tug toy or a rubber-sized type toy like this. Sometimes dogs don't like to retrieve because they aren't motivated by the type of toy or reward that you'reusing, so experiment. Make sure you find something your dog likes. 

One of the main reasons why I've put my toy on a leash is so that I can make this look like dying prey. That's a lot of fun for the dog so what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna get Beeline engaged with the toy right now just by moving and whipping this toy around and letting her chase it, ready, Bee? What's this, ready? Oooh, so puppies like when things move so I'm gonna get it ready. What's this, shhh. What's this, get it, get it,get it, get it, get it, get it. 

Whoo, she caught it already! So I'm just gonna move it away from her and if she happens to let go of the toy, I'm gonna start whipping it around again. Whoo, there it goes, whooop, whoop! Ha, ha, ha, she's pretty quick! Good girl. This is the first part of the retrieve. 

I wouldn't actually throw the toy. I would just engage her in a game of tug by keeping the toy very active and exciting. Good girl, get that. Now that I've established that Bee really likes this toy, the next thing that I want to do is start teaching the retrieve portion of it. Now what I've done is I've actually taken two leashes and I've attached them to this toy so I have a really long line to use to control the toy. I know she really likes this toy so I'm going to throw it out, but to prevent her from running around my yard with it, I have a line attached so that when she picks it up, I can use it to reel her in back in towards me, teaching her to go get the toy and bring it directly back to me, and I would just repeat this process a few times until I don't have to assist her with it any longer and she's doing it a bit more independently. 'kay, Bee, you ready? Wanna get this toy, ready, ready, ready? 

So what I'm gonna do is hold on to her, make sure I have the end of my line ready. Ready, set, oh, she's ready! Come here, come here, come here! Set, get the toy, get the toy. Good girl, whoop, whoop, whoop! Bring it here, bring it here, bring it here. Yay, good girl! Now when she gets back, I don't wanna take the toy away from her right away. I want her to be rewarded and have fun for bringing the toy tome, so I need to take a second to play a little game of tug. Oh, that was a good puppy. Okay, let's try it again. Are you ready? So I'm gonna get the end of my line. Ready, set, get the toy! Good girl, bring it here, bring it here, yay! Good girl, very nice, good! We just repeat this process until the two of us got tired. Good girl! I've just done a bunch of repetitions with me holding the leash and she's been really good about bringing the toy directly back, so I'm gonna progress now by throwing the toy a little bit further away, and I'm going to start dropping the leash. If at any time I feel like she's not bringing the toy directly back to me, I'm not gonna chase after the dog and the toy. That could be probably the worst thing you could do. 

When you chase a dog,what they typically do is keep running and just turn it into a big catch-me-if-you-can game, so instead, I'm gonna try and get to my line so I can go back to directing here with the leash in my direction. Hopefully I won't have to do that though. You ready Miss Bee? Ready, set, get it (clapping). Girl, bring it here, bring it here, yay! What a good girl! Always lots of play and praise when you're puppy brings the toy back and try it again. Ready, get set, get the toy! Good girl, bring it here (claps), whooo! Good girl! I think it's safe to say she likes this game. Good girl, yes, very nice. Now once you're able to do this with the leash on the ground, obviously the next step would be able to progress to not having the toy attached to anything, but it's not gonna hurt anything by having the leash attached for a little bit longer just to be on the safe side, especially if you're in a busy location where there tends to be lots of distractions. Good girl, yeah. 

Once you've had a lot of reliability playing with the toy with your dog while the toy is attached to a line, you may consider taking the line off of the toy, but to ensure you have control, you could always attach this long line to your dog. That way if they decide to make any poor choices or they get a little distracted, you have a way to keep them safe and under control. The last component that I think is really important to talk about is how you move your body. In order to get her to bring the toy back to me quickly, I always wanna move away from her to try to encourage that chase drive, so this last fetch I'm gonna show you, I'm gonna throw the toy out. Once she gets the toy, I'm going to call her and I'm gonna run away and that's going to ignite her chase drive. She's gonna wanna come back to me quickly and then we can have that fun game together at the end. 'Kay, Bee, ready? On your mark, make sure you don't step on the line so they don't make it go tight when they run away. Ready, ready, ready, okay. Ready, set, we're going this way. Get the ball, get the ball, get the ball. Bee (clapping), yeah, he, he, he, he! Your dog might not add that exuberant jump at the end. 

As you recall, my dog is a little bit over the top, but whatever they want to do to make the game fun. Yes, good girl. Wanna do one more, are you ready, set, get the toy. Whoops, here, bring it here, yeah (claps)! Bring it here, bring it here, bring it here. Yay (claps), (mumbles) yeah! So always moving away from the dog, encouraging him to bring the toy back to you. If either one of you is not out of breath at the end of this,you're not doing it right. Now retrieving is obviously a really fun thing to do with your dog and it's something we encourage you to play a lot with them,but it's really important that when you're playing retrieve that you don't compromise your control by letting your dog be in a situation where they can take the toy and run off with it, so it's a really smart idea to keep your dog or puppy on the line or your toy, or whatever your retrieving with on a line as well to ensure that you always have control.

 People are often asking us for suggestions for ideas for things for their puppies to fetch, if you had any great successes with certain toys at home with your dogs,especially if they were once a little unmotivated by a toy and you found something that really worked, it would be awesome if you could post some suggestions in the comments below. I think other readers would really appreciate some of the suggestions that you might have. Now, if you like today's article, make sure you give us an encouraging comment. 

Feel free to subscribe my blog as we post brand new articles every week about all kinds of fun things to do with dogs whether it's training or just dog information in general. My name is DN. This is my puppy, Beeline. 

Thanks for reading and happy training. 

How to Teach a Dog to Sit

Hey everyone!

 

I'm DN from India. This is my furry friend "Maizy" and we're here to teach you a basic, but really important dog training command: "Sit" DOG TRAINING TIPS TEACH DOGS TO SIT 

 

So, to start you'll need some high value treats to help lure your dog into the "Sit" position. Maizy here really likes freeze-dried salmon so we're gonna use a handful of these. A clicker is optional,but if you're not clicker training always remember to mark your dog's behavior with a quick and happy "Yes" to let them know the moment they got the behavior right. 

 

Now let's start training! Are you ready Maizy? Yeah! Just you ready? Start with a tasty treat in your hand like this, and then lure your dog into the sit by holding the treat close to their nose and then moving it up over their head. Your dog's natural instinct will be to sit to continue following that treat and as soon as she does either click or give her a happy "Yes" and reward.

 

So, it will look like this. Maizy! Yes! Good girl! That was so good. Next it's time to add the verbal "Sit" cue. So, say the queue, and then lure your dog into the sit again. Once your pup's toosh hits the floor mark the behavior and reward. Maizy you want to give it a try? "Sit" Good girl! That was so good! After practicing this a few times and your dog is doing well you can then start to fade the lure. Give the sit command and make the luring motion this time without the treat.

 

When your pups sits, mark and reward. Maizy, "Sit" Good girl! That was awesome! That was so awesome! Now that your dog has a good sit she should learn how to hold that sit position until released. Give your dog the verbal "Sit" cue and then lure your dog into the sit. Then quickly mark and treat a few times as they hold the sit position. Maizy, "Sit" Good girl! Yes! Good job. Next add a break cue such as free and move her out of the sit by encouraging her to come to you. Maizy, "Sit"Good girl. Good girl. Okay. Free! Yes. Good job. Good job.Okay. Repeat this a few more times then start to mark reward less often as she holds the sit. 

 

Maizy, "Sit" Yes! Good girl. Good girl! Yeah! Okay. You're free! Come here. Good girl.Finally eliminate the lure. Verbally cue your dog to "Sit" Mark and reward. Then give your break cue. Maizy, "Sit" Yes. Good girl. Free. Free! Good job. 

 

And just like that your dog has got the beginnings of a good sit. As always if your dog is struggling at any point, that's okay. 

 

Just go back a step and practice some more. And remember,training should be fun for both you and your dog so always use positive reinforcement and never skimp on praise and love. 

 

Thanks for reading everyone! I'm DN!  This is Maisy and if you've enjoyed learning this trick with us, Comment, and Subscribe for more. Thank you so much once again for reading my blog post!

How to Teach Your Dog to Speak

 Hi. Today, we're going to learn how to teach your dog to stop barking. It may sound nonsensical, but to stop your dog from barking, first, teach him to bark on command. Give your dog the command to speak. Have someone immediately make a noise,such as knocking on a door, that is sure to make your dog bark. Let him bark two or three times. Then, stick a tasty treat in front of his nose. When he stops barking to sniff the treat, praise him, and give him the treat. Repeat until he starts barking as soon as you say speak. 

Once your dog can reliably bark on command, move on to the quiet command. Teach dog that barking is OK until told to be quiet. Simultaneously, hold a treat in front of your dog's nose. Most dogs get quiet immediately because they can't sniff and lick the treat while barking at the same time. Praise your dog continuously during his quiet time with petting and words of encouragement. When your dog makes a mistake and barks,and he will, reprimand him immediately. Never strike your dog, but do something that will catch his attention, such as clapping loudly.

As soon as your dog starts barking,you must instantly reward him. If you are still having trouble, then you may need to spend some time working with your dog on specific barking situations. Here are a few of the more common ones. If you're a dog is in his crate or confined to a room behind a baby gate or other barrier, he may bark because he wants to be with you. But if that's not always possible,then you'll need to train him to stay quiet. 

Next time he's barking uncontrollably in his more confined space, try this. Start by turning your back and ignoring him. Whenever he stops barking,turn and praise him. Give him a treat and make a game of it. As he catches on that being quiet gets him a treat, lengthen the amount of time that he must remain quiet before being rewarded. 

Dogs that are afraid of other dogs will often bark at them. Have a friend with a dog stand out of sight, far enough away that you know your dog won't bark at the other dog. As soon as the friend and dog come into view, start feeding your dog lots of treats. Keep feeding treats until the friend and her dog are out of sight. Ask your friend and her dog to gradually walk closer. Don't try to progress too quickly. It may take days or weeks before your dog can pay attention to you and the treats without barking at the other dog. 

When the doorbell rings-- [DOORBELL RINGS] --your dog alerts you to the presence of an intruder by barking wildly. Once you've taught your dog the quiet command in a calm environment, practice in increasingly distracting situations. 

Teach your dog-- [DOORBELL RINGS] --to react to the doorbell by going to a special place and laying quietly while the intruder comes into the house. Start by tossing a treat on his mat and telling him, go to your place. Have him go to his place before you give him the treat. 

When he's reliably going to his mat to earn a treat, up the ante by opening the door while he's on his mat. If he gets up, close the door immediately. Repeat until he stays on the mat while the door is open. Then, increase the difficulty by having someone ring the doorbell while your dog is on his mat. Reward him if he stays in his place. Try these techniques to stop your dog from barking. All of them can be successful, but don't expect miracles overnight. The longer your dog has been practicing the barking behavior, the longer it will take for him to change his ways. Let's recap. 

First, teach your dog to speak or bark on command. Once he has that down, teach him to be quiet on command. Use treats and praise to help get the desired outcomes. And lastly, be patient and consistent in training. Don't expect overnight changes.  For more information and offers,check out my blog. If you like this article, please comment so that it inspires me to write more articles on this topic and also to find out when we have more articles available, be sure to subscribe. 

If you have some good ideas for training your dog please let us know in the comments section below.