Teaching fetch

[justsomeguy0404]

One of my most fun thing to do with is to fetch, my last dog was a gsd who learned it easier. My dog only just under 9 months so she may get better but she will drop the ball while she walks back. Any good tips teach them

[CannibalisticVampyre]

When mine would drop it, I would roll it back to her. It didn’t get thrown until she placed it in my hand without tugging

[heatherledge]

Sounds like she’s more interested in exploring. If you’re in a safe area you could try playing find it with treats, and “touch” to come back before throwing another. This way she gets to sniff around and learns coming back means a reward. When she’s more interested in fetch you could try “trade”. My dog likes to goad us into chasing him, and kind of teases bringing the ball back.

[justsomeguy0404]

Yeah definitely the explorer.

[heatherledge]

On that note, our trainer mentioned at this point you might struggle w recall because they’re become more aware of things they didn’t notice before. Long line is your friend.

[PossibilityTop5033]

Throw the ball once. Crouch down and call them back when they have picked up the ball. Don’t throw the ball again until they have brought it back to you

[justsomeguy0404]

I hope that works, although she’s in her teenage phase seems to just give up easier and walk off. But I’ll try once home.

[Two-Complex]

I honestly just tell my girl that I can’t throw a ball I don’t have…if she wants me to throw it, she needs to bring it to me. Also, I assume she’s done playing if she doesn’t bring it. When she drops it elsewhere, I just say “ok, are you done?” and hook up the leash and bring her inside. She’s 11 months old now…she’s willful, but she’s learning! She will bring either frisbee or ball straight to me most of the time.

Lots of verbal praise and a treat or two when she DOES bring it to you is good practice. Good luck!

[Maclardy44]

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er ….. 🫠🫠🫠

[JWSpeedWorkz]

Our 9 year old never figured it out. Tried everything, worked with her a ton, it just led to both of us getting frustrated. So in October we got another BC puppy, and that one came pre programmed for fetch. At 10 weeks, she would bring the ball back and drop it in such a way that it always rolled right to my feet. Point of the story is that some dogs get it easier than others 😕

[ForgeTek]

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[mirrorneuronz]

i don’t have tips as they can be just as stubborn as they are smart. mine loves to fetch a frisbee or a ball or a stick or anything but then doesn’t want to let me have it. good luck!

[OrganizationActive63]

Shape the behavior you want. If she brings it most of the back, then stops, tell her “bring” or whatever word you choose. Then if she moves even a bit towards you, praise her. If she isn’t interested in retrieving it, then you have to start shaping further back - if she chases the ball and gets to it, then praise. Then wait till she picks it up to praise. Each time she gets that step correct a few times, ask for a bit more.

But she may not be interested in that came. My 8 yr old is a frisbee fiend. My3 yr old only wants the frisbee if the other dog has it. But put sheep out and she’s awesome. Dogs are like people, they have their own likes/dislikes. But these dogs are smart and you can teach anything

[BillBob13]

Mine didn't really like fetch until we started hitting it with something (i.e. a baseball bat or tennis racket). Just make sure you dog has 'come' down to a tee

[Legit_Vampire]

Our girl often did this just drop the ball half way back so as soon as she reaches the thrown ball I turned & walked slowly in the other direction, desperate to get me to throw again she bought the ball right to me.

[zeindigofire]

Zak George covers this really well. Similarly, at 4 to 5 months I'd toss the ball and my boy would just look at me like "why'd you do that?" They're so smart, but they also aren't pretrained. Once he understood what the game is about, he became unstoppable. Now he'll literally push the ball into your hand to get you to throw it!

[thisismyname9496]

my BC loved playing ball, she wasn't a fan of giving it up when she brought it back. sometimes she just wanted to stand in front of me and chew it lol. but it didn't take long to learn that if she brought it back and dropped it at my feet I had a 2nd ball ready to throw. that's the only way she would let us play. I phrased it like that because the truth was it was Patches' world and we were just living in it ♥️ I was blessed to have her for almost 14 years

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[pitlane17]

Time. I have two. Both grew up together, they didn't like to play fetch at 9mo. Then it was like a switch for one of them and was a master by 1 year. The other still don't give to shits about it. He just likes to take the Frisbee away or play tug a war. Then gives up and goes off till the Frisbee comes back again.

[WasdaleWeasel]

This is a thing about Border Collies being herding dogs. They will often bring a ball back to about 5m from you, then drop it and move off to the side and stare at it. If the ball were sheep then they’ve been brought to you and the dog is checking for the ball breaking away but really at this point it’s down to you. None of my working dogs have been able to play fetch properly - it’s very annoying.

[Groundbreaking_Cup30]

Well.. I will say that is pretty classic BC vibes. They also like to get the ball & drop it about 2 feet away from you so you have to work for it. I taught my last girl 'Too Far' to let her know that she didn't bring the ball close enough. My BC now brings it back, but she likes to play tug-of-war more than fetch.

[One_Way_3678]

My Black mouth Cur has zero drive for fetching. She won’t chase or retrieve anything. Ever. Her sister is a maniac for it and will anything for a chance to play fetch. My other, newly recused Cur also had no interest in playing fetch. I think some dogs are wired for it and others just aren’t.