Teaching fetch with a ball

[Dawn]

I have started trying to teach Molly to play fetch--or at least chase a tennis ball when I toss it. Sometimes she just looks at it, other times she goes after it and then just stops. Any ideas on how to teach her this game?

[Adrianne Matzkin]

My husband started with Roley Poley. She was in a down and he rolled the ball to her in between her front legs. She would chew it and then he "helped" her roll it back to him by rolling it himself. Everytime she watched or was interested at all came the "WooHoo". Didn't take long for her to start rolling the ball to him with her nose. That helped with her eye/ball coordination.
My SIL was in last weekend (they live in Pittsburgh) and told me he could really see the difference in her coordination and her ability to keep her eye on the ball better in the past month since he saw her last. She just turned 9 months old,
Remember, make everything Molly does they way you want to be the biggest and best game ever in her life. The idea is that it reinforces the good behavior and she will get it.
Why don't you try a little peanut butter on the ball. Bridery always works in my house. Have fun!!!!!

[Dawn]

Thank you, I will definitely try that!

[Tamara & Giada]

We cut a slit in a tennis ball and while Giada watched put treats inside, then threw the ball and the only way for her to get them out was to come back to us....we gave her the treat and that was it. After a while you ween them off the treats and onto an uncut ball:)

[2hl9mp3c2fuam]

Wow, great idea!!!

[Adrianne Matzkin]

My husband reminded me that we also used a squeaker ball. Unfortuantely, she still loves squeaking them.

[Dawn]

Oooh...a squeaker ball. I bet that just might work to get her all wound up!! I will let you know how it works!

[2widfg8okrqg5]

We would throw the ball (and always have treats with us) and if she didn't go after it, I would say "go get your ball" and go toward it and she would follow and pick it up and put it in her mouth and then priase the heck out of her and give her a treat. We did this for maybe a couple of weeks and then BAM! before we knew it she was fetching all by herself. BEWARE though because now she won't stop - she would play fetch 24/7 :O) Good Luck!

[Tante & Jordan & now Annie!]

Is there another dog who loves fetch around? That is how I got Jordan to play, she would watch Payton and I and it turned into her playing along with us.
Now Jordan is the one who plays and Payton will watch.Payton is an old man now, he knows he does not even have a chance to get the ball 1st.

[Sue & Willy Babe]

Willson is just getting the idea of fetch he is able to watch our neighbor's dog Abbey fetch and has gotten the idea, also my daughter and I use to roll the ball back and forth to each other and loved to try and get it, now after walks in the morning I throw the ball and he races to get it and brings it back, we work on it every day, its a squeeky ball we use, I think we will try the tennis ball more when the weather is nicer, its been raining and cold here, but it takes time

[Eva (Lilo and Rocky)]

My younger dog also learned from his older sister, who came to our house at 8 weeks with a tiny ball in her mouth, which she refused to let go of ;) Now Rocky is completely ball obsessed, and more so than Lilo, even though she taught him how to play the game!

[Dawn]

Wilson is such a beautiful boy. I was looking at your pics of him and in his younger "baby" pictures he really looks a whole lot like my Molly. I will have to upload some new pictures soon for you to see. They really do resemble eachother. If she looks anything like Wilson at his age I would be ecstatic. :)

[Adina P]

Rosco took a while to get into fetch. He never acted as a retriever when he was a young puppy. I'm not sure if I've really taught him or he just matured into it. But I did make an attempt that went like this:

-- I use a rubber chicken toy
-- I swung the toy around him and teased him with it.
-- I would praise him and give him a trait for just running after it when I'd toss it
-- I then upped the ante... And would only treat him if he touched it.
-- then upped the ante... And would only treat him if he picked up the chicken

If you want to teach a full fetch routine you might want to think of it in parts. Maybe even train it backward. Teach drop it. Teach bring it to you . Teach picking up. Teach chase it. Then string them altogether.