My pup doesn't like to play :(

dobe8 · 12-04-2007, 03:31 PM

My pup is 6 months and she does not like to play interactively with me. She loves to chew on bones by herself but She doesn't get into balls, or frisbees, or tug toys. I have bought her a multitude of toys and try to get her to play catch or tug of war, but she looses interest in about 30 seconds. She has no grip on balls or toys, she won't bite down and play. The only play she likes to do is run in circles or play bite (which I don't allow). When I try to get her to bite a toy and play tug, she goes straight for my hand not the toy...

What can I do to get her more into toys and playing with me???

this kinda sucks..

Julie W · 12-04-2007, 04:03 PM

Only a guess here as it's impossible to tell without seeing her in person....but honestly I think you may have flattened her with your training style. You have mentioned before that she has been wearing a prong collar from a very young age, you don't use treats in training, and generally your training style seemed pretty strict from an early age. To get a dog more "up" you need to train through praise and positive reinforcement, not through corrections. Again, this is just an assumption from reading your prior posts and how different your philosophies are from standard accepted schH style training. You mentioned that you disagreed with most of what you saw when you brought her to the schH club, and everything they did was pretty normal for that style of training.

**sebsyd** · 12-04-2007, 06:09 PM

She is still really young to play frisbee or fetch games, even tug toys don't hold much interest at this age. Have the vet check her teeth to make sure there are no issues of her biting down. I agree with JulieW that play time is for fun! Maybe just take her out a few times and just play, ie chase her, play hide and seek, ect and make it fun, no corrections. Doesn't hurt to try. I'll have to go back and read your former posts. good luck

vegaslove · 12-04-2007, 08:27 PM

vegas has the exact same problem but she's 2 yr old. trainer said she was probably never played with as a pup and there were some signs of abuse/neglect. She told me to get different kinds of toys ( starting with little, stuffed type, no noise to avoid a fear reaction ) and to attempt play frequently but in short periods. I went right out and got the stuff toy and Vegas loved it. She carried it around then eventually started pushing it around and pouncing on it. She has now graduated to play with the tug toy and has advanced to 1-2 tugs on it before she releases. before, she would not even hold it then worked her way up to release as soon as you touched it.
She's even starting to chase the tennis ball but won't pick it up yet. Long way from her not even going near it! I never let her see me go get it after I toss it. I throw, she'll chase, I'll praise, then another game maybe tag/hide n seek. i get the ball after I put her in the house and save it for the next round.
We've been working on "play" for 2 months.

Good luck..keep us posted!

Murreydobe · 12-04-2007, 08:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sebsyd

She is still really young to play frisbee or fetch games, even tug toys don't hold much interest at this age.

I haven't found this to be true at all.

jatango · 12-04-2007, 09:01 PM

Wonder took a while to learn how to tug because he was under the impression that anything I tried to grab while in his mouth was to be dropped. He didn't like to interact directly with me when I first got him, so we stalked each other for a few weeks and then he figured out that mom could be used for playing AND for training! You might try activating his prey instinct by tying a strong rope to a rag and dragging it. She may tug with you if you're a farther distance away, and let your pup win! It sounds like some confidence building may be in order.

**doberkim** · 12-04-2007, 09:18 PM

My pup was tugging actively at 7.5 weeks old and continues to tug - she will tug with anything (with me or with other dogs), she will chase a ball, and she loves her frisbee and flying squirrel.

Then again, my puppy has no manners

Murreydobe · 12-04-2007, 09:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doberkim

My pup was tugging actively at 7.5 weeks old and continues to tug - she will tug with anything (with me or with other dogs), she will chase a ball, and she loves her frisbee and flying squirrel.

Then again, my puppy has no manners

You'll see puppies starting to play tug games with their littermates virtually from the time they first start playing with toys.

Certainly you can minimize these instincts by overtraining and the wrong kind of training too young. But I think there *is* a happy medium, where you can have a puppy with some semblance of manners (taking age into consideration) who likes to play games.

chinsNdobermans · 12-04-2007, 09:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Murreydobe

I haven't found this to be true at all.

I agree with Murreydobe... my 3 month old pup (not a dobe, but still a pup) has been playing fetch and tugging since the day I brought him home. He's extremely playful, his training so far (which is yet infrequent and short) is always positive and upbeat and he's smart as a whip. He loves training time as much as he loves playtime.

I agree with those think the training methods you've mentioned may have something to do with it. Maybe not though, you never know.

MaryAndDobes · 12-04-2007, 09:59 PM

One of the quickest ways to get a dog interested in whatever you've got is to play with another dog with said toy. All of a sudden, it looks pretty interesting to yours.

At obedience class, some of us used to switch toys because the other dog's toy was always better than the one we brought.

Also, I don't know if you're trying to play with her with toys she already has ready access to? A toy that only you have to share at special times might be more in order.