Teaching Retrieve

Hey guys, TJ's training is coming along very well!
He is now going offlead and coming back when called using toys, he takes no notice of food when we are out! weird! but at home and in the garden he prefers treats!

anyway, when we are playing, i throw a toy for him, and he will go and get it, but wont bring it back to me, he will just go and lay down with it, and if i try and get him to bring it back with treats he will drop the toy and come and get a treat.

any ideas would be much appreciated!
As it would be handy to have him retrieving for future purposes!

Hi Gems

Does he understand "give" or "drop it"? Teach him this - give him the ball and then get him to give it back to you, praising and rewarding.

Then put the ball on the ground and get her to take it then give it up to you, praising and rewarding again.

So treats are given to her when she gives the ball back to you.

When this is going well you could try only throwing it a very short distance initially then encourage "take it" and "give" and HOPEFULLy he will bring it back to you for the treat as he has learned that he gets a treat when he gives the ball up.

How did Luna get to you???

That's an exact description of my girl

Tyipical collie Gems chases after a moving object but then when it stops doesnt know what to do . You need to start of by teaching him hold. Don't throw your retrieve article get him to sit in front of you and if he will take a toy from your hand say hold then ask for it back,praising him for holding and for giving it back when you ask for it. If however he won't take it on his own you need to put it in his mouth and get him to hold for a second or 2 saying hold all the time he has hold off it and praising him for holding. Then once he understands the word hold you can start working on his retreive by placing an object just a short distance away and asking him to hold it once he has hold of it, praise him for good hold the ask him to come and give or the words you use and build up like this until you are throwing the object for him asking him to hold and calling him back to give.

Thanks guys, no he doesnt know hold or give yet, but he will take a toy from me, he loves the toys with the ball on the rope
I will give that a go with the clicker and see how we go, thanks !!!

J, she came on a little vacation

This thread might help: http://www.dogweb.co.uk/talkdogs/sho...ormal+retrieve

the dog trainer we took indie to taught recall with a clicker. She had the dog bringing back the toy within 5 minutes. It was really amazing.

Basically, she threw the toy, if the dog paid any notice to it she would click and treat. Then she wud throw it again and if the dog started moving towards it she would click and treat. You gradually click when the dog has gone a bit further. So click for sniffing it, then click for picking it up. Gradually the dog learns that it is the toy that is bringing the reward.
So when the dog got the treat, the trainer left the ball on the floor and ignored the dog, when the dog looked toward or picked up the ball she would click and treat again. Eventually she was clicking for the dog holding the ball in his mouth and for bringing it to her. It was quite amazing to watch the dog thinking about what he was meant to be doing

dont know if i explained that properly, i hope it makes sense. But just basically break the exercise down into individual steps rather than trying to do the whole exercise in one go

Thanks SB, will have a browse! :smt040
Thanks Jenny, some great advice there :smt023

With mine i dont throw toys away till they are really into tugging games so they learn toys are more fun when mums playing with me. Then after a while ill drop it and say hold it then start the tugging game again and when i want the toy back i say off. Then eventually ill throw the toy and and say hold it then give a tuggy game when they get back with it.

Thanks Hannah, he is really into tuggy games, this is how he is allowed offlead because i know i can get him back using tuggies.
thanks for the advice everyone