 Re: How to teach your puppy to fetch and drop
Here is a method I used to teach my dog to fetch. I used treats to reward her in a positive reinforcement training method.
I started out by holding her close to me and playing with the ball in front of her before tossing a ball about five feet away from her. I then gave her the fetch command and released her. At first she went after the ball but did not pick it up and bring it back to me. However, I rewarded her with treats and praise for even touching the ball with her nose. This helped to develop an interest in the ball because she was not receiving treats just for touching the ball. After awhile she was willing to pick up the ball and I offered even more treats and praise. As the training progressed she began to go after the ball, pick it up and bring it back to me when I tossed the ball a short distance. I continued to reward her each time she was successful but also began tossing the ball even farther away. At first she was successful but as I tossed the ball farther and farther she began to retrieve the ball but then drop it before she got all the way back to me. When this happened I would say, “Uh-oh where is your ball?” and would not offer a treat. She quickly learned the only way she would get her reward was by bringing the ball back to me. She would then either go back for her ball if she dropped it or she would not drop it in the first place.
Using treats as a reward is one way to train a dog to play fetch but other dog owners and trainers use a baited ball to teach a dog to retrieve.
Hope this helps!
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08-02-2009, 01:05 AM
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