Fetch! But better

Fetch is a bit of a dirty word in the dog world at the moment! Personally I love a good game of fetch, but we do it in moderation with boundaries around it. That pesky nuance the internet doesn’t like 🙈

Play is actually one of the best ways we have to engage with our dogs, direct their drives into something productive and teach them to start listening and thinking in higher states of arousal. This acts as a great way to create focus in a dog, and act as a stepping stone towards listening around higher levels of distractions that we don’t always have direct control over (eg birds, stock etc).

Here are some variations on fetch to explore with your own dog. Whether you’ve got a collie that’s a bit more interested in the eye-stalk-chase part of the predatory action sequence, a terrier who likes to dissect, a gun dog needing more WORK in their day instead of trying to just tire them out physically, or a shepherd who could do with an outlet for their frustration - we can usually find a way to make fetch and other games work for us both.

The key is to teach that arousal switching with clear start/finish cues, keep them thinking by using different cues (mixed in with fun free throws because all work and no play makes it pretty boring!) and being mindful of the impact on their bodies throughout.

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Need help with your pet working dog? Serving Waipa, Hamilton & Otorohanga NZ. 📧 hello@wolfedogs.nz