How to Play Games with Your Dog

Playing games with your dog not only provides him with the physical exercise and mental stimulation he craves, but also gives you the opportunity to reinforce his basic obedience training while you are both having fun together. The best games for dogs provide physical exercise while giving them a challenge and a reward for their accomplishment.http://www.wagntrain.com/Games.htm

Dogs need lots of attention from their owners or families to be content. Playing games with your dog, and giving him your undivided attention, will reinforce his emotional bond with you. Dogs who are bored and lonely may try to relieve their pent-up energy or seek attention in undesirable ways such as destructive behavior or excessive barking.http://www.wagntrain.com/Games.htm

Playing games with your dog doesn’t have to be time-consuming. Ten or fifteen minutes a day of playing fetch or other games with your dog is enough to give him the undivided attention he needs and to work off some of his excess energy. You may find that when you play games with your dog that his behavior problems are more easily kept under control and that you have a calmer, happier companion.http://www.petplace.com/dogs/why-it-s-important-for-dogs-to-play/page1.aspx Please use this guide to learn how to play games with your dog.

Step 1: Choose Game that Give your Dog A Challenge and a Reward

Tug-of-war is an active game most dogs truly enjoy, but it has its drawbacks: The action of tugging stimulates their ancient hunting instincts; the tug toy reminds them of struggling prey. The dog doesn’t want to give up his “prey” and the game becomes a contest of wills between dog and human. The problem with playing tug-of-war with a dog is that when the human player lets go first or has the toy pulled from his hands, the action reinforces the dog’s notion that he is the alpha dog, an attitude which can lead to behavioral problems and assorted household chaos.http://www.wagntrain.com/Games.htm Tug-of-war can also damage your dog’s teeth if the play gets too rough.

This guide doesn’t intend to suggest that you never play tug-of-war with your dog, but that you play gently and end the game when it becomes too competitive. Games don’t have to have winners and losers, and the best games for your dog challenge him to earn a reward from you. Some dogs respond best to praise rewards, and others to yummy treats. Knowing which reward works best for your dog and making him work to earn it will benefit you in all areas of dog training, not just at playtime!http://www.wagntrain.com/Games.htm

Playing fetch with your dog is a time-honored game that takes advantage of your dog’s ancient instincts to chase and hunt. Retriever breeds are especially fond of chasing an object and returning it to you, although their innate skills may need reinforced. To teach your dog to play fetch, first toss a ball straight up in front of you and catch it again a few times.

When your dog can’t resist jumping for it and grabs or touches the ball, give him a treat and lavish attention on him. Repeat the process a few times until he learns to associate the ball with a reward. Gently take the ball from his mouth each time and give him the command to “drop it” or “let go.” It doesn’t matter what words you use as long as you’re consistent; your dog will learn to associate the sound of the words with the action of releasing the ball.

Next, roll the ball a few feet away from you and reward your dog for chasing after it and touching it, even if he doesn’t pick it up. Gradually roll the ball further away, giving your dog a reward only when he returns it to you. Withhold his reward if he drops it half-way or snatches it back after he’s dropped it in front of you. Once your dog gets the hang of the game, he will enjoy playing for the fun of it and forget about the edible rewards.

Hide-and-seek is another classic game that dogs enjoy because it appeals to their love of hunting and tracking. Show your dog a toy or treat, put him in a “sit/say” and then lay a treat a few feet in front of him. Release him from his sit/say and let him go for the treat or toy. Next, put him in a sit/stay, show him the treat/toy and hide it in the same room where he can watch you and knows there’s a hidden reward. As he begins to catch on, hide the treat in the next room and progressively more difficult places for him to search. http://www.wagntrain.com/Games.htm

Children will also have fun hiding around the house, indoors or out, calling to the dog and waiting for him to track them down. The kids should reward the dog with excited praise when he finds them!http://www.wagntrain.com/Games.htm

Step 2: Make Your Dog Play by Your Rules, Not His Own!

Dogs who pester their owners for no other reason than they want attention and want to play are being manipulative, and this behavior should be trained out of your dog. Your dog does need plenty of your attention, but when it’s convenient for you, not for him!

Schedule a regular time to play games with your dog each day, even if you can only squeeze in a few minutes. Dogs like a stable routine, and if he knows that you’ll play with him each day at the same time he’ll have something to look forward to. He may still bring you a toy and want to play at other times, but you must teach him to take “no” for an answer if you don’t have time to play at the moment.http://www.wagntrain.com/Games.htm

The goal of your play time is to give your dog some much-needed exercise while keeping his interaction with you under your control. A dog who teases his owner by dropping a ball at his feet and then snatching it away or who makes his owner chase him down to get the rope back is exhibiting dominant behavior and will learn to manipulate his owner in other areas of the relationship (if he doesn’t already!).http://www.wagntrain.com/Games.htm

Don’t chase your dog to get an object back when you’re playing retrieving games with him. Allowing your dog to play keep-away with you only reinforces undesirable dog behavior. If he refuses to bring the object back command him to “drop it.” Stop the game if he doesn’t release the toy or teases you by snatching it back. He’ll learn that the fun is over when he doesn’t “play right.” When he brings the toy back to you and drops it as he should, reward him with praise and a treat for his accomplishment.

Step 3: Know When to End the Game

Playing games can provide your dog with plenty of mental and physical exercise, but some dogs are quickly bored by repetitive activity. Teach your dog to play more than one game so you can play another if he begins to lose interest in the first one before play time is over.

End each game while your dog still has enthusiasm for the activity and he’ll be eager to play again. You may find he prefers one game to the exclusion of others, and that’s okay, too. Keep his game ball or retrieving toy put up until playtime so that when you bring it out he’ll get all excited and know it’s time for fun!

You also want to make sure that the game ends before your dog is completely worn out, even if he still wants to play. Some dogs are so eager to please their owners that they will push themselves to the point of physical exhaustion. Rowdy games should be played with less intensity toward the end of the session, a cooling-down period like human athletes use, instead of an abrupt stop in the activity.

Play outdoor games in the cooler parts of the day, avoiding the hot afternoon sun. If your dog shows signs of heat exhaustion (unsteadiness, confusion, shallow breathing), help him cool down by placing a cold, wet towel around his neck and chest (never pour water over him) and finding him a cool place to rest.http://www.bigpawdesigns.com/heexindo.html