How To Teach A Dog To Tug

[Erny]

So for those whose dogs don't (or didn't) tug, would you agree that it's confrontational to them?

Not sure who you are asking Corvus.

And are you asking for someone to make a blanket statement/answer for all dogs who don't tug? If you are, then my answer is "no".

[corvus]

If your (specific, not generic) dog does not tug or did not tug until taught, do you think tugging was/is confrontational to that (specific, not generic) dog?

Edited September 29, 2009 by corvus

[Kavik]

With Kaos - I think he is not confident tugging in other environments and that he prefers his squeaky toy to his tug so will not tug when he thinks he will get his squeaky.

Diesel - I think he may find it confrontational - he is quite soft, but also he has worn his teeth down a lot and I wonder if it hurts his mouth to tug

Zoe - used to really enjoy tugging socks and the lead when younger, but I didn't know how useful it could be and I discouraged it (at trainer's advice at the time) so she won't tug anymore. She also has a skittish temperament so unlikely that she would have been comfortable doing it in new environments.

[JulesP]

Yes trying to get one of my dogs to tug would be confrontational to him. Or it would upset him. He is too polite to tug.

[Tassie]

For the 'polite' dogs who are not comfortable initially tugging close up, a good strategy to try is to put a very enticing (furry for preference) tug toy on the end of a long light line, and stimulate the dogs chase instinct/prey drive - many polite dogs will become very interested at that stage, and be snatching and tugging at the toy. Then you can just shorten the lead - in small increments so that the dog realises that what he's doing is fine, even though it's now closer to the handler. All things being equal, this sort of dog will eventually enjoy a game of tug.

Don't think anyone has mentioned the susan Garrett article here . A student of mine with a non-tugging GSD that did like to play with plastic drink bottles, tried this with a squashed drink bottle inside a sock. Within a week, the dog was tugging enthusiastically.

For a foodie dog, there are also tug-n-treat toys - I have a nice one with a sheepskin pouch, velcrod opening for putting food in, and a nice bungy cord.

[kezzzza]

I did the prey chase with my boy last night he went crazy with it and even had a tug although only for about 3 seconds but he enjoyed himself, until his wicked sister wanted to play, she wanted the toy we were using but she didn't want to share, so now she is kept amused while I'm playing with my boy. I'm sure he will get it sooner or later

[Erny]

I did the prey chase with my boy last night he went crazy with it and even had a tug although only for about 3 seconds ...

Let him *win* the tug in that 3 second time period and tell him how clever he is. Also, make the *win* happen when he is actually tugging. Doesn't have to be a really hard tug in the early stages - just the best tug he gives you. Build it up that way. Keep sessions very short.

[corvus]

Just as a precautionary note, Kivi Tarro was quite afraid of the flirt pole I made. I tried dropping the pole and just using the toy on a line and he was afraid of that as well. He was going through a bit of a period at the time where he was sometimes afraid of things that appeared to be floating in the air. I had not caught on and introduced him to the toy dangling from a string and he ran away. It took about a month of me playing with it by myself before he stopped taking off when he saw it.

Erik loved it on sight, though. I think it was a matter of picking a bad period in Kivi's mental development to introduce something.

[Erny]

If your (specific, not generic) dog does not tug or did not tug until taught, do you think tugging was/is confrontational to that (specific, not generic) dog?

Not necessarily.

[SherwinJTB]

This is kind of interesting to me as I've never really wanted to be in competition with my dogs. I would usually think that dogs that don't 'tug' are way too obedient or probably scared. I think you'd have to tease your dog a little and make them want to be more aggressive. Anyway, I find there's always risk to wanting to get your pets to do more of the ordinary. Chase them around being more active and maybe they'd think you're on equal level with them. Try growling instead of shouting words. lolz

[huski]

This is kind of interesting to me as I've never really wanted to be in competition with my dogs. I would usually think that dogs that don't 'tug' are way too obedient or probably scared. I think you'd have to tease your dog a little and make them want to be more aggressive. Anyway, I find there's always risk to wanting to get your pets to do more of the ordinary. Chase them around being more active and maybe they'd think you're on equal level with them. Try growling instead of shouting words. lolz

Prey drive isn't aggression.

Playing tug with them and 'chasing them around and being more active' won't make a world of difference to your leadership if you are still doing the right things and your dog knows that the prey item (tug) is something you control.

[Aidan]

Not wanting to play tug has very little to do with manners, fear or obedience unless conditioned not to perform this activity (intentionally or unintentionally).

I have demonstrated to several people how to teach their dog to play tug, many of whom were previously unwilling to play. The problem almost always lies with the handler either not being energetic enough, or inadvertantly moving the tug object towards the dog. In some cases, this can very quickly condition the dog to avoid playing tug.

[Erny]

Not wanting to play tug has very little to do with manners, fear or obedience unless conditioned not to perform this activity (intentionally or unintentionally).

I have demonstrated to several people how to teach their dog to play tug, many of whom were previously unwilling to play. The problem almost always lies with the handler either not being energetic enough, or inadvertantly moving the tug object towards the dog. In some cases, this can very quickly condition the dog to avoid playing tug.

I agree - this seems to happen a lot. Dog doesn't show strong interest, so human shoves tug into the face of the dog. That would be enough to put me off too! Better to use the tug to engage the chase instinct (pull away) and entice the dog to want to chase and catch/bite it.

I run classes using motivational techniques - tug being one of them. In each class there are always dogs who aren't into the tug but with coaching (the humans) and them continuing their efforts, I've seen dogs 2 or 3 weeks later well and truly into the tug game when it would previously never have been thought possible by their owners.

Edited September 30, 2009 by Erny

[Kelpie-i]

Our general rule when starting a puppy or dog with tug is to make the tug and game "yours" (human). The notion of "it's your toy and you are inviting the dog to play with it" seems to work well with humans and keeps owners from shoving the toy into the dog's face. Also keeping the toy low to the ground so that we arouse the natural drive to follow it or chase it helps entices curiosty. Oh and always let the dog win the toy, especially in the inital stages (but I'm sure you already know that).

Tug is a "team sport", in fact you will sometimes see 2 dogs tugging at a toy together and when one loses grip, the other will bring the toy straight back to engage in the game. It's interactive and stimulating. If a dog doesn't play tug, it's usually because that drive has never been nurtered, therefore I agree with the others in that is has little to do with manners.

[Pippi]

I did the prey chase with my boy last night he went crazy with it and even had a tug although only for about 3 seconds but he enjoyed himself, until his wicked sister wanted to play, she wanted the toy we were using but she didn't want to share, so now she is kept amused while I'm playing with my boy. I'm sure he will get it sooner or later

If you are trying to get your dog to tug and are just at the teaching phase then do the training with that dog alone with no other distractions..

A dog who is just learning should not have to compete with another dog for the prize.