Dog Training Games Archives - Page 9 of 13

The easiest part of dog training

Everybody knows their dog’s favorite toys, treats, and the perfect spot for scritches. That’s all you need to know for training games. What are the things your dog loves best? Stockpile some of those, choose a game, and start playing!

All the nit-picky nuances

The things that aren’t as natural; reward timing and placement, consistent cues, breaking down behaviors into little teaching chunks, all come with time and practice. And there are some skills we never master, so we work around them. Both of us (Hope and Fran) are notorious for having terrible aim and throwing skills. Just awful. If there’s a way to toss a toy or ball so it smashes something, is unreachable, or causes an avalanche of other stuff, we’ll find it. That okay. We know we suck at it. Both of us practiced throwing the obedience dumbbell, without our dogs, just so we wouldn’t embarrass ourselves in public. We choose to do that here, instead.

And now the dumbbell retrieve is one of ours, and our dogs, favorite games. Because we’re both proud of ourselves for figuring out how to do it. Now it’s fun and we both look forward to playing with it.

Just play with your dog

It’s the easiest part of dog training because you don’t have to worry about getting it “right.” You’re not going to break your dog if you click at the wrong time, say the wrong thing, or misplace a treat. Your dog isn’t going to tell anyone you flubbed it, ever. And when you do screw up, and we all do, just give your dog an “oops” cookie and try again.

Many people worry that they’re doing something “wrong.” The only wrong is if your dog isn’t getting it. If they don’t understand the behavior you’re trying to shape, it’s time to find another angle for teaching it. You haven’t broken your dog, or your training. You just have to make some changes to clarify things.

The coolest thing about dog training is that your partner in crime, your dog, is always willing to play with you. Going back to our video series of trying to teach Torque to “Push” a tube with his nose, you’ll notice lots of changes from week to week. He didn’t understand, or something didn’t “work,” so we changed it.

Clean it up later

Go for the easy, fun part of dog training. Play some training games with your dog. If it needs some polishing, who cares? You can always do that later, when all of the fussy bits of training come more naturally. If you play with your dog, just a couple minutes a day, you’ll be juggling treats, leash, and clicker like a pro in no time.

Give and take in dog training

Life would be easier if everybody would just do what you want, wouldn’t it? But people have this pesky attitude that their opinion matters, too. Just like life, there’s give and take in dog training.

In a civilized society, the two points of view hash it out and come to a mutually satisfactory conclusion. Nobody gets everything they want, but everybody gets something.

Dog training’s like that. You want your dog to behave. Your dog may have a different, or fuzzy, idea of what “behaving” looks like. How do you reconcile those different opinions?

Pick your battles

There are three ways of resolving behavior issues with your dog:

Ignore it:

Simon has to "leave it," but Booker gets a cookie too. — Simon has to “leave it,” but Booker gets a cookie too.

This is for the things that you wish your dog didn’t do, but aren’t worth the energy to change. It’s different for everyone. And it depends on the dog. Booker and Simon (Fran’s Boston Terriers) both love to eat grass outside in the yard. Booker seems to have a cast-iron stomach. But eating grass (and dirt) makes Simon throw up. It was worth the effort to teach Simon to “Leave it!” for everything in the yard.

Is it fair there’s one rule for Simon and a different one for Booker? Probably not. But no one’s ever guaranteed that life is fair. The dogs don’t seem to notice, or care. As long as everyone gets a cookie when the treat pouch comes out, they’re all fine.

Manage it:

Managing the environment is how to deal with irritations you’re in the process of training, but haven’t gotten there yet. If your dog steals shoes, everybody puts their shoes away behind closet doors. If your dog is a counter-surfer, nothing’s on the counter.

This is also where the “tools” come into play. If your dog constantly pulls on leash, while you’re working on loose-leash walking, you can certainly use a no-pull harness. While you’re teaching your dog not to eat grass, control access by taking them out on leash and collar, even in your yard.

A friend of ours is a top-notch dog manager. And up until now, a complete failure at clicker-training, or game-based dog training. We tried. She just didn’t have the patience to let her dogs make decisions. Instead, she’s always told them what to do. Her current dog is having confidence issues her commands can’t fix. For this dog, whether she likes it or not, she’s learning to be patient.

Train it:

This is where you set your priorities. If you’re in a multi-generational family with toddlers or older people, your priority may be that your dog doesn’t jump on people. (2-Minute Trainer Method Book 4: Impulse Control) One of our students last session has balance issues, so her priority is loose-leash walking. Another wants to take her dog to the dog park and hiking, so the recall (Book 2: Come!) was top on her list.

Everybody’s priorities are different. These are the battles you choose to “fight” with frequent, short games that teach your dog the behavior you want. If you want your dog to stay quietly in their “place” while your family is at the dinner table, you sit at the dinner table and play “Place!” (Book 1: Clicker and Place) for a couple minutes every day.

Nobody can teach their dog everything all at once. And dogs can’t absorb it that way. Fortunately, once you and your dog are in the habit of playing training games, you’ll get around to all of it in time.

Give a little, take a little

You’re not a bad dog owner, or a quitter, if there are battles you choose not to fight. Management is fine, if it works for you, your family, and your dog.

Our most obvious one is at meal time. All of our dogs eat in their crates (in the dining room) at the same time we eat. No worrying about who’s eating which food. We’re not concerned about resource guarding. There are no suspicious silences from other parts of the house, and no hooliganizing wrestling matches. It’s a time we opt for peace, quiet, and not having to pay attention to the dogs.

In a way, that’s dog training, too. There’s no fussing in the crates, and no resistance to them. When the food preparation starts, the dogs go dashing to their respective crates. Everybody knows the rules, and happily abides by them.

Interactive dog toys are anything but

It’s weird that dog toys labeled “interactive” are exactly the opposite. All the action comes from the dog – the toy pretty much just sits there. The products labeled “interactive dog toys” just aren’t.

Best interactive dog toys

The truly interactive dog toys are the ones with you at the other end. Tug toys, games of fetch, anything where both you and your dog are necessary to the equation. Those are the games that strengthen your relationship with your dog.

Like any relationship, the one with your dog needs some attention. It’s not that dogs don’t love their people, they do. It’s that their humans haven’t made an effort to be part of the fun.

Building the bond

Fran and Simon playing the "Whatcha gonna do?" game. — “Whatcha gonna do?” game

People complain that their dogs don’t pay attention to them. These are the same people that walk their dogs with their phones in their faces. Or who load up the interactive dog toy with treats, plop it on the floor, and get back on the phone.

Rather than that puzzle toy, how about getting down and playing the “Shell Game” with your dog. Play with them. Instead of dumping food in a bowl, take a couple of minutes, a portion of the food, and play “Touch!” or “Gimme Your Face!”

All good things

When you convince your dog that paying attention to you is worthwhile, you’ll get that attention. You’ll get more than you give, that’s how dogs work. Just a few minutes of dog training games will get you better attention and focus. It convinces your dog that listening to you pays off.

Dogs will predictably act in their own self-interest. If something has worked for them in the past, they’ll do it again. If you reward and praise your dog for looking at you, they’ll do it more often. They tend to be geniuses at figuring out what gets them the most cookies.

Everything in its place

It’s not that static puzzle toys, or treat-dispensing toys don’t have a place. They do. Best uses are when we’re unable to pay attention like during an important phone call. They’re also great for crate training, especially if the dog only gets a very special treat when crated.

Interactive dog toys are fun for dogs. They can smell the treats and most really enjoy figuring out how to get to them. It satisfies some of their instinct for pursuit. And hones their problem-solving ability. Which may or may not be a good thing, depending on the latch of your treat container.

You’re the best interactive toy

Sometimes our students complain that they feel like “Pez dispensers,” because they’re constantly giving treats to their dogs. And that’s true, during training sessions. But those couple of minutes at a time are equivalent to your dog’s “job.” And everyone deserves payment for doing a good job.

The vast majority of the time you spend with your dog isn’t training. Those few minutes you play training games, be the real, interactive, treat-dispensing toy.

Dog training is a joy

Dog training is a joy, not a chore. If it feels like work, or just another obligation, it’s time for a reset.

For the kabillionth time, if you’re not having fun playing training games with your dog, you’re doing it wrong.

It’s probably not your fault. Society puts dog training in the “something you gotta do” category. Get a dog, go to class. Then, after you “graduate,” you can have fun with your dog.

Hogwash! Every single piece of training your dog should have elements of joy. Admittedly, there are some things that are more fun than others.

Potty training a puppy isn’t all that much fun, especially when the weather’s lousy and you’re standing in it. But there are inklings – when your dog gets it right and bounces when you praise and reward. When you realize there hasn’t been an accident in days. When you say “Potty!” in the right spot and the puppy does it! Success is always fun.

Dogs just want to have fun

One of Hope’s obedience competition students said her dog doesn’t like doing the “Down!,” so she doesn’t practice it much. Predictably, her dog, when told to “Down!” is hesitant and slow.

The student and her dog are caught in a feedback loop. They’re feeding off each other’s distaste for the exercise. Since this team wants to compete in both Obedience and Rally, not having a “Down!” is a big problem.

Some people may just practice more, longer, harder. That’s not the way to achieve a slam-to-the-floor “Down!” on command. To get that enthusiasm, the dog has to love doing something. They’ll do whatever you ask (eventually) just because you asked it. But to generate the joy – they have to love the game.

We told our student to stop practicing “formal” downs. Or formal anything, for that matter. Incorporate training games into everyday life. If you’re walking down the hall to your bathroom, grab a treat, call your dog, walk briskly, and ask for a sudden “Down!” Celebrate, reward, and that’s it.

Part of every day

If your dog lags behind you when you’re walking, run a few steps, turn around, and play-wrestle with your dog. “Where were you?” “I was looking for you!” Chances are, the next few steps your dog will not only be with you, but watching your face. And probably smiling.

This week’s competition class started with introducing a game to the teams. Every handler/dog team got a plastic cone. And strict instructions that whatever the dog did with the cone; looked at it, sniffed it, pawed at it, swatted it across the room, was to be praised and rewarded. Even though all of these people know about training games, they resisted at first.

After just a few minutes, the cones went away and we practiced the warm-up heeling around the room. That’s what we usually start class with.

And it was a revelation to the people how much better their dogs performed. There were smiles all around the room – both the dogs and people. Because dog training is a joy.

Best morning routine includes your dog

Even the grumpiest getter-upper has a better start if dog games are part of the morning routine. You have to give your dog breakfast anyway. Why not turn it into a game to start the day?

Torque plays "Tap!" during his morning routine with Hope. — Torque plays “Tap!”

You don’t have to go anywhere, or prepare anything special. The dog food’s already there. You’re there. Your dog is with you. Wouldn’t a game of “Tap!” make you smile? How about making a dog-training game out of making breakfast? Teach your dog to open a cabinet, just by attaching a rope to the handle. Wouldn’t that be adorable?

Productive morning routine

According to the giant search engine, the trend since the start of the year includes making morning routines more productive. While resolutions have gone by the wayside, now people are getting realistic and looking for good ways to make the most of their days.

It’s not easy to build a new routine – habits are almost as hard to make as they are to break. According to studies we’ve seen, it takes anywhere from 28 to 250 days to form a habit, with most people falling into a range of about 66 days. That’s more than two months!

It’s no wonder resolutions don’t happen. Especially since most aren’t fun. They may be good for you, but let’s face it. If it were something you enjoyed, you wouldn’t have to resolve to do it.

Training games are different

But you do enjoy playing with your dog. You must, or you wouldn’t have a dog. So start small for a new morning routine. When you measure out your dog’s food, set five pieces aside. And ask your dog to do something (time for Kitchen Games!), either one thing five times, or five different things (sit, stand, down, paw, spin). When the five pieces are gone, you can feed your dog as usual.

Or, if you find yourself smiling and having fun, use more of your dog’s meal to keep playing. And that’s how you start to form a new morning routine that’s not only productive, but fun as well.

Dog Training Is Love Language

With Valentine’s Day coming up, everybody and their uncle is getting all gushy and throbby-hearty. Nothing wrong with being reminded to show your love. There’s no such thing as too much. And one of the beings in your life that is the epitome of unconditional love is your dog. Pure, unselfish, love is what dogs bring to our lives. And training is that dog love language.

We’ve been hearing about “love language” for a while now – how people relate to five different types of “love language.” We’re not sure why you have to choose, all are valid. And all five are essential parts of dog training. Our conclusion is that one of the best ways to show your dog that their love is appreciated and returned is to play training games every day.

Five love languages

The five labels for love language are:

Words of affirmation
Acts of service
Gifts
Quality time
Physical touch

Even just listing them, aren’t you going “check,” “check,” “check” in your head while you’re thinking about training games?

Words of affirmation

This one is a “gimme.” Whether you tend to be quiet or enthusiastic in giving feedback to your dog, they know the click, the “good dog!,” the “atta boy (or girl),” is confirmation of their worth and your love. It’s affirmation up the kazoo. There’s not a dog owner in the world who hasn’t looked into their dog’s eyes and cooed “Who’s a good dog? You’re a good dog!” just to see that tail wag, butt wiggle, and paw dance. Check!

Acts of service

Maybe not in the context of training games, but all the things we do for our dogs. Granted, it’s a responsibility we’ve chosen to take, but that doesn’t minimize its value. Feeding, walking, bathing, cleaning up after – all of those things add up to acts of service for our dogs.

Non-dog people may see this and wonder what we get out of the constant demands on our time and attention, not to mention wallets. And if/when one of them mentions something to that effect, we can shake our heads and pity them. Because they have no idea how great it feels to be completely loved and trusted by a dog. They’ve never looked into a dog’s eyes and seen themselves adored. Isn’t that sad?

Gifts

Maybe all of these are pretty obvious. Whether your dog is food- or toy-motivated, every reward could be considered a gift. It can also be considered payment for a job well done. But our gifts to our dogs aren’t limited to the rewards given in training games. We don’t know any dog owner who hasn’t given their dog something “just because.” Because they’re cute. Or because they’re good. And just because we love them.

Quality time

This is the definition of dog training games. Even if you only manage one two-minute session on some days, for those two minutes your entire attention and focus is on your dog. That’s the gift that every dog cherishes above any other – quality time with you. Even if your training games don’t go the way you expect some days, you still managed to let your dog know they’re important, and loved. (See “Top 10 reasons to play dog training games.”)

Physical touch

This is probably the most common way that people connect with their dogs to let them know they’re loved. Every dog owner can relate to what’s happening when you see a dog shove their muzzle into a person’s hand. Or put a paw on an arm or leg. Dogs not only like physical touch, many are determined to claim it as their due. Dogs aren’t called “pets” for nothing. We like petting them, and they like to be petted. Where’s your dog’s favorite spot? Behind the ears? In front of their tail? How about their jaw/throat? Or is it tummy rubs they love most? Every dog owner knows.

It all translates to love

You’re a lucky person when you have a dog. Especially if you’ve taken the steps to give your dog the enriched and fulfilled life that training games bring. There’s no way you need a translator for dog love language. You’re already fluent.

Dog Training Game: Gimme your face!

Torque's "Gimme your face!" pose. — Torque’s “Gimme your face!” pose.

Part of having dogs is all the “husbandry” stuff you have to do – brushing, cleaning, grooming, etc. Lots of dogs don’t particularly care for it – especially if you’re trying to mess with their face. Wouldn’t you, your veterinarian, and your groomer love it if your dog was a willing participant? That’s why we teach the “Gimme your face!” dog training game.

Like all communication between you and your dog, you can call the game whatever you want. A friend of ours uses “Chin!” to get her dog to lie flat with chin on the ground. It was her cue for the obedience “down-stay” exercise. Whatever you can easily remember would be just fine. We like “Gimme Your Face!” because it makes us smile.

Gimme Your Face was a game changer

And it can be incredibly useful. Quite a while ago, we had a Boston Terrier named Daemon. Unfortunately, Daemon developed cataracts in his eyes when he was only about seven years old. At the time, veterinary ophthalmologists would remove the cloudy lens, but did not implant a new one as they do today. Which would have been awful for Daemon – his favorite game was fetching his beloved yellow rubber ball.

So we asked our own optometrist if he would consider fitting Daemon for contact lenses. He agreed and our regular veterinarian came with – it was the only legal way the eye doctor could prescribe for a dog.

To get to the point for this tip – Daemon knew “Gimme Your Face!” And that was how we got him to rest his chin on the gizmo doctors use to look into your eyes. That same place you put your chin – Daemon knew to put his! If he hadn’t already known the game, there was no way the doctor could have prescribed contact lenses for Daemon.

Every day after work we would ask “Daemon, want to put your eyes in?” and he would run into the bathroom to have us put his contacts in. And every evening before bed, we would take them out. Over the next several years he only lost a couple of contacts – he loved being able to see.

Variation on “Touch!”

So how do you teach your dog to “Gimme Your Face!”? One of the very first training games dogs should learn is “Touch!” – touching their nose to the palm of your hand. If your dog doesn’t already play this regularly, start here: Training Touch! We like it because it’s a game you can easily play anywhere, especially when your dog is stressed and nervous. Remember that familiar games help dogs regain focus and composure.

To teach “Gimme Your Face!,” begin with the “Touch!” and, while rewarding your dog for the touch, slide your palm underneath the dog’s chin/jaw, cradling it lightly. Say “Good Face!” (or “Chin!” or your own word), reward again, and remove your hand.

Repeat the same sequence a few times, until your dog seems comfortable with it. Some dogs really love getting their chins/throats scratched, and easily learn this new game. Especially if you tickle or scratch them at the jaw.

Next steps

When you think your dog is starting to understand the game, try cupping your palm and saying “Face!” If your dog readily puts their chin in your palm – click and reward! “Good Face!”

The next step is to build some duration into “Gimme Your Face!” It’s easy to do – just keep your dog’s chin in your hand and deliver treats. Short intervals at first, then gradually increasing the time between rewards. If your dog lifts their head, return the treat in your hand to the bowl. Leave your hand in place and wait for your dog to replace their chin in your palm.

As always, some dogs love the game and catch on immediately. Others take a little longer. But it’s worth waiting for and being patient. Imagine how much easier it will be for you to brush your dog’s teeth and clean their ears if they willingly “Gimme your face!”

Give your dog time and tools

Do you give your dog time? Or do you expect your three-month-old puppy to be housebroken in a couple weeks? Leash-trained in a month? Stay out of the trash / laundry / mud instantaneously? It would be interesting if dogs came pre-programmed for all the “right” behavior. But they’re not machines. They’re living, breathing, thinking beings. And dogs need time to learn.

Say you’re out in public and you see a parent and child about two years old. The child is on a crying jag, screaming, kicking, and out of control. And the parent shouts and smacks the child.

You’re shocked! It’s obvious the child is overtired and the situation needs calm, not escalation. You don’t expect a two-year-old to know how to act in public, be perfectly potty-trained, and a pro at self-soothing. But many people expect a months-old puppy to be all of that and more.

Why positive reinforcement dog training “fails”

Positive reinforcement dog training is the best, scientifically proven means of training your dog. It works on people, it works on dogs. It doesn’t work fast, and it’s often misunderstood. Just like a human child is given time to learn at their own pace, without repercussions, dogs need time to learn, absorb, and practice good social behavior.

Lately there’s been a lot of nonsense floating around social media that positive training equals letting a dog do whatever it wants, whenever it wants. Nothing could be further from the truth. Dogs trained with positive reinforcement understand the limits of behavior and abide by them because they know. Not because they fear punishment if they fail.

Complete opposites

The nastiest trend in dog training lately is “balanced” training. From the explanations, it seems like this is a capricious mix of punishment and reward. If the dog does something good, it’s rewarded. If it does something “bad,” it’s corrected. But how is a dog supposed to know which is which? And how is “good” different from “bad”? Can you imagine living life at someone’s whim? Never knowing when something you do is going to end in pain? Dogs deserve better.

Until your dog understands how to be “good,” it’s up to you to limit the dog’s options for “bad.” If your dog steals shoes, keep shoes out of reach. Does your dog dig in your backyard? Go with him and keep him on leash. If your two-year-old child is fascinated by trucks, you stop him from running into the street. You don’t wait until he’s in traffic to act. You teach him not to do it. And pain isn’t part of the lesson. When one strategy in the 2-Minute method isn’t working the way we expect it to, we move to another: our “Plan B” – never a painful lesson.

Frustrating for the dog

One of our students has a bright, exuberant Miniature Poodle who she wants to compete with. One of his persistent problems in Hope’s competition Obedience class has been with the recall exercise. Instead of running straight to his Mom, at least half the time he runs over to Hope and starts jumping on her “Hi, I’m here!” “Hi!” “Hello!” “It’s me!”

Since Hope never encourages him, rarely looks at him, pets him, or talks to him, she didn’t understand why he does it. Until last week. His mom brought him into the building on leash, and he immediately spotted a new person. The dog ran over to this person while his mom said “He’s going to jump on you.” Since classes are at a dog daycare facility, it didn’t bother the person. Hope, witnessing this, told the dog’s mom she shouldn’t allow it. And was firmly told to mind her own business.

This dog will never understand why it’s okay to jump on a random man in the lobby and not the judge in the Obedience trial. His mother could easily turn this around – the dog is smart and eager to learn.

Keys to dog training

Dogs are easy to train if you abide by the key rules:

Be consistent. The rules are always in effect. Either it’s never okay to jump on people, or it’s always okay. Dogs know black and white. Shades of gray are alien.
Learning takes time. Be patient. You’ll know when your dog starts to think about their choices. Be on the lookout for those moments of decision – when your dog thinks before acting. That little hesitation before choosing the right thing is a triumph. Celebrate all the little wins.
Until your dog knows, control access. Remember there are three ways of dealing with dog behavior. Ignore the things you don’t care about. Manage the things your dog doesn’t know yet. Train the things you want your dog to know.

Give your dog the tools and the time

Real World Dog Training

How true-to-life is your dog training routine? Is your dog up to real world dog training? What happens when you’re in the middle of a 2-Minute training game and someone in the house starts banging pots in the kitchen? Or somebody opens the door, either leaving or coming home? Does your dog stick with the game and play with you? Or do they run off to see what the fuss is about?

It’s hard to focus on what you’re doing when somebody elsewhere may be more interesting. Dogs are really curious beings – they always want to be in the middle of the action. How do you get your dog to stick with what you’re doing, rather than run off to explore that odd sound in the other room?

Being with Fran was more rewarding than exploring. — Being with Fran was rewarding

The best answer is to set up the situation and teach your dog there’s nothing more interesting than playing training games with you. The harshest test we ever dealt with was many years ago in a puppy class. Our instructor stopped at a fast-food restaurant on the way to class. He threw fresh, yummy-smelling french fries all over the floor. And our job was to walk our puppies from one end of the room to the other – without the dogs grabbing a single morsel. We’re delighted to report that all the puppies succeeded. And, when that trial-by-fire was over, he allowed us to share a couple of fries with our good dogs.

Are you more interesting than a french fry?

If you’re not sure, it’s time to fill your dog training games with fun, energy, and really high-level rewards. If you use a bunch of different treats your dog loves, have a fresh batch of this “trail mix” handy. If your dog’s favorite reward is playing tug, stick a great tug toy in your pocket, ready to whip out at any moment. Randomize rewards so your dog never knows when the next one is coming.

Dogs love schedules and patterns and it’s easy to fall into habits in dog training. To pull an example from obedience competition – in the “Recall” exercise, when called, the dog runs to you from across the room and sits directly in front. When told or signaled, the dog then “Finishes” the exercise by going to heel position at your left side. There are two different ways for the dog to get there. He can either go to your right and circle behind you to get to heel. Or he can swing into position toward your left side.

The Finish always follows the Recall. Every single time. Which means that dogs, being smart, understand what’s coming next. And they “save you the trouble” and go right into heel position instead of stopping in front. Which, depending on the judge, can mean failing the exercise. So how do you fix it?

Randomize it! If dogs don’t know what’s coming next – they pay attention to what’s actually going on. Sometimes ask for the circle finish. Other times the swing. Still others, tell your dog to wait and go around them!

Embrace the chaos

Randomizing all the factors in dog training games ensures your dog can ignore distractions, focus on you and your game, and disregard outside influences. Ask your family to make weird, random noises from various rooms. And if, after a quick glance, your dog stays with your game, reward heavily – an instant game of tug, and series of high-value treats, a quick belly-rub/wrestling match.

Just like playing games in different locations cements the learning with your dog, working through various distractions will help them focus when you need them to. If your dog is incredibly distracted when the doorbell rings, get a doorbell app on your phone and play different rings during 2-Minute dog training game sessions. If it’s somebody talking on the phone that your dog can’t resist, ask someone to sit to the side during your game and talk into the phone (whether or not there’s someone on the other end).

Set your dog up with different scenarios you can practice in a controlled manner. If your dog is constantly underfoot when someone’s trying to prepare food in the kitchen, have a mat or bed in there and practice “place!” Create real world dog training dilemmas and help your dog deal with them.

No training bubble for you!

Your dog lives in the real world. Set her up for success by creating real-life situations and getting her to concentrate despite the distractions. It’s tempting to stay in an isolated environment where your dog is always perfect. But it’s like the first-time parents of a newborn infant insisting that everyone be quiet because the baby’s sleeping. Baby has to learn to sleep through all kinds of real world noise. And doggo has to learn to focus in the real world, too.

“Drop It!” dog training game

“Drop It!” is one of the top three commands every dog should know. It can, potentially, save your dog’s life. We know – we have personal experience. The “Drop It!” dog training game is an important one to teach your pup early.

One day we had our dogs out in our own fully-fenced yard. Hope looks over to see her French Bulldog Dax chewing on something. Not good. Hope went over and told her to “Drop it!” Luckily, she did. It was a three-inch long stick of rat poison. Unfortunately, the sticks are about five inches long to start with.

It was a scary time, but getting the majority of the poison away from her, and a quick trip to the vet saved her life.

How did the poison get into our yard, you ask? It turns out that someone in the neighborhood used them in their own yard. The wildlife in the neighborhood – squirrels, birds, raccoons, opossums, skunks, etc.- didn’t know that only rats are supposed to eat them. They thought they’d discovered a bountiful feast and carried them all over the area. As far as we know, Dax was the only dog that found one. But we were cleaning up other animals for weeks.

Was it legal for our neighbor to do this? No, it wasn’t. Did we sue them to recover veterinary costs? Yes, we did. And won. However, no dollar amount would matter if our dog hadn’t recovered.

Teaching “Drop It!”

The first phase of “Drop It!” is relatively easy. It’s just trading toys with your dog. Start with a toy they like, but aren’t crazy about. You can either use two identical toys, or toys that have the same relatively low value. Play tug with your dog for a few seconds with one of the toys. Then hold the toy still while the dog is still holding it, and say “Drop It!” while you start moving the second toy with your other hand. The moment your dog releases the first toy to grab the other one, say “Good ‘Drop it!’” And play with the second toy – same procedure. That does it for the first “Drop It!” lesson.

Tango plays the "Drop It" game with his toys - dropping them in the bin. — Tango plays the “Drop It!” game with his toys – dropping them in the bin.

Dogs will be wary of letting go if they think that’s the end of the fun. As long as the game continues, the dog should be okay with swapping one fun thing for another. When it’s time to end the game entirely, rather than swapping, don’t ask for the “Drop it!” Instead, use something like “That’s all!” and offer an incredibly yummy treat.

Yes, we’re bribing the dog to do what we want. We’re okay with that. Until the dog understands the command, and will reliably do it, we use whatever positive means necessary to get the result we want. Taking away something valuable may cause dogs to guard it. And resource guarding can become a big problem.

Next step in “Drop it!”

To progress the “Drop It!” game, use a variety of different toys and/or treats, gradually introducing items your dog finds very valuable. It’s one thing to get a ball-loving dog to drop a rope toy. It’s another to get them to actually drop the ball.

If your dog is crazy about a certain toy, or kind of toy, be sure to have multiples of that identical item to teach drop it. Even the most well-trained dog may be reluctant to drop a cherished item. It may take a while to work up to the most valuable resources.

Go at your dog’s pace. If they don’t believe that the “other” item is as good as the one they have, they may not willingly obey the “Drop it!” Some dogs, like our own Booker, are more interested in the interaction with their people. The item doesn’t matter as much as the game.

Torque, on the other hand, prizes the ball above anything else. To him, having the toy is more important than the game. “Drop It!” is a persistent struggle for him, and when his better nature wins, he’s rewarded with even more time with his beloved ball. And if you’ve played the “Carry It” game with your dog, the “Drop It!” dog training game is the next logical, and important, step.

Know your dog

Knowing your dog’s personality and reward hierarchy is key. Stay with the less-valuable items as long as you need to build your dog’s trust in the game. Don’t make “Drop It!” the end of fun – reward with more time and use a different cue to end the game. You may even find that using a timer is beneficial. Your dog will learn that the “beep” of the timer signals the end of that game. Keep in mind that dogs love routine. If you always end the game when you hear the beep, your dog will know it’s time to go do something else.