so my puppy (7 month cocker spaniel) will retrieve anything i throw for her in the house. i can even put her on a mark for anything and tell her to fetch it up and shell get it. doesnt matter if its a shoe thats been sitting there for days. the problem starts when we get outside. i make her sit, stay. then i throw a toy that she was just playing with. i release her and she hauls ass to it, stops and sniffs it, then looks at me and comes back without it. im not trying to make her a duck dog by any means, i just want to do retrieves as a play/excercise method for her. i think she just gets confused outside for some reason. any ideas to get her to bring things back outside? should i try really short retrieves at first until she figures it out? thanks for any help.
retrieving question for non hunting dog
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Prolly wouldn't be any different than if she WAS a hunting dog, right? :yes:
I think you're right. Go outside and start really short. I mean short enough you can throw, take a few steps and if she picks it up...you can praise and pet and then take the object. Then expand the distance as she gets it.
Some people will make the mistake of retrieving themself if the pup doesn't and throw again. That just shows the pup they can chase (it's fun) and they can chase again without having to bring it back.
Get her excited about it before the toss. I would use the checkcord after you make some progress with her picking it up in the first place unless now she is chasing, sniffing it and then running off to do other things.
I think you're right. Go outside and start really short. I mean short enough you can throw, take a few steps and if she picks it up...you can praise and pet and then take the object. Then expand the distance as she gets it.
Some people will make the mistake of retrieving themself if the pup doesn't and throw again. That just shows the pup they can chase (it's fun) and they can chase again without having to bring it back.
Get her excited about it before the toss. I would use the checkcord after you make some progress with her picking it up in the first place unless now she is chasing, sniffing it and then running off to do other things.
ok so the weirdest thing happened today. i started by getting her excited about one of her toys where she was jumping to get it. then i get her to sit/stay. toss it about feet. gave the release and she went and brought it back! did that about 10 times. then i got a little more confident about her understanding what is going on so i threw the last one the length of the backyard! i never realized how fast my dog actually is!! and she brought it back perfect. also i dont think ill need a check cord because she brings it right back to me in a fairly straight line and walks around my left side and drops it at my right and sits and waits for me to throw it again. i tell ya if she was just a little bit bigger she would be a tremendous dog! thanks guys
well a little update. i guess maggie figured out what i wanted her to do because now she will retrieve anything i put her on mark for. i tested this by chipping a few golf balls in my back yard. she usually doesnt wait for the release, but she brought back all the balls i hit (about 15) and dropped them at my feet and layed down waiting for the next one. we had to stop because i had a ball get away from me, sail over my 8 foot privacy fence, and hit inside the bed of a truck. much to maggie's shegrin, i decided it was time to move inside! :rofl:
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way to correct the problem! i like hitting my neighbor's stuff too! :yes:
sounds like you gave the dog good obedience as a pup, not many people train to hold until a release command is given anymore.
sounds like you gave the dog good obedience as a pup, not many people train to hold until a release command is given anymore.
ya i started holding her just to vary it up a bit and to see if she would. shes either just really smart, or im a pretty good dog handler (most likely the former!) now sometimes i send her right away and sometimes i hold her. is that going to confuse her? i just do it to make sure that she understands the commands i give her and not just going with a pattern. we did figure out that on marks its either a hit or miss. she will either go get them perfectly, or look at me like im an idiot. we have also been praising her any time she randomly bring us something. last night she brought a sock right to my girlfriend and dropped it in her hand. i figure at least shes not chewing the **** out of it and who knows, maybe shell bring us something we lost like keys or a remote control or something one day!
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get her to bring you a beer, that makes it all worthwhile! :yes:
i dont think her mouth is quite big enough yet, but i think thats a definate possiblity! she didnt do quite as well today with the golf balls. my brother was there so she was a little more excited than usual and more distractions equals a non listening dog! but she did do pretty well and he was pretty impressed.
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