posted
I've found a good way to get people to come into my help threads . . .
My summer project: training my dog to fetch a newspaper. Right now my idea is just to play fetch with newspapers in sturdy bags to start, with hearty rewards. I figure starting to work up to a newspaper I place soemwhere, then havign her go get it. Then a preplaced paper. Hopefully, this will work, but I want to know if anyone else has done this and therefore, any ideas?
Posts: 550 | Registered: Jan 2004
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posted
Nope. And I'm saving the shock therapy for my children some day . . .
"You ate a cookie before dinner and spoiled your appetite? Well, you can either eat your broccoli or I'll shock you--*bzzt* *bzzt* *bzzt* *bzzt* *bzzt* AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! *bzzt*"
Posts: 550 | Registered: Jan 2004
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posted
My brother trained his dog to do this. Unfortunately she decided that if one paper was good, a dozen papers would be really really good. So she fetched the whole neighborhood's papers in to him too. He ended up having to train her to leave ALL papers where they were. Posts: 2843 | Registered: A Long Time Ago!
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posted
I can't even train my kids to get the paper and they (mostly) understand English! j/k they'll get it - they just have to whine a lot first.
Posts: 2034 | Registered: Apr 2004
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posted
first of all what size dog do you have? is he going to be able to fit an entire newspaper in his mouth
do your newspapers get delivered in plastic bags?
Generally speaking you should divide the lessons in to two parts The "hold it" and the "take it"
First you need to teach him to grip or hold it in his mouth just at a sit. Then you progress to having him hold it with out dropping it while walking around.
You teach the chasing after it to take it separately. This should be the fun part with treats. But you don't want them to confuse the treats with the newspaper during the hold it part, because you might end up with a shredded newspaper.
Make it a fun game. make the newspaper the centerpiece for play (as well as reward). Associate a verbal cue like "toy". When she understands that "get your toy" means "get the newspaper" (and fun and treats will follow) you're on your way.
posted
Oh my point was above, (since I was rambling late at night) if you have a plastic wrapped newspaper, you need to play with it that way, and get her used to biting or holding the plastic without inhaling it.
I'd have to know more about the dog's size and personality before I could make any more specific training recomendations.
I would hope you have a good "recall" or "come" on her all ready, because she needs to be willing to come back after she's gone out and picked up her toy. Some dogs don't like to.
posted
She's a big lab. My main problem is that if she thinks there's a treat in it for her, she gets excited and drops it halfway.
Posts: 550 | Registered: Jan 2004
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