FF question

[WigWag]

Okay I've got a question. My 19 month old black bitch is "excitable" to say the least about all things especially retrieving. I want to apply pressure but at the same time I want to keep that infectious positive attitude strong. She's so darn cute about everything - yeah yeah yeah what can we do NOW!!! So after playing in the yard she knows the command FETCH and is 100% on picking up her ball/bumper when given the command - I taught her this only because she developed a habit of dropping her "toy" midway back to me in favor of her sister's and it got really annoying so I would run out make her leave the sister's toy for the sister and tell her to FETCH her own running back together to the starting point and then tossing everyone's toys. She soon picked it up and realized what I wanted. I know that has nothing to do with formalized training or FF but I wanted you to know that she does in fact know what FETCH means in that particular context.

Now she's done hold - will sit and hold till the cows come home and goes through heel, sit, here, etc all holding. So I started her on the ear pinch/fetch command yesterday. She's very willing to grab the bumper when placed in front of her and she's a bit "sticky" now as well - she's no the chomping/rolling type at all either which I like - just rock steady holding.

Now if I jazz her up with a few "GOOD GIRL! NICE JOB!" and hold the bumper in front of her and say FETCH she dives at it and holds. If I get serious and give her the ear pinch she sits and balks - normal I know since she has no idea what the heck I'm doing and it hurts Mom! That was yesterday - I did the ear pinch and didn't jazz her up at all to stay serious. She handled the pressure well and accepted me rolling the bumper in and was steady on her sit and hold and afterwards bounced right back to her usual self.

Now today she was more willing to open for the bumper to stop pressure - it seemed to click at the end a little - yeah. My question is though should I stay so serious? Should I mix in some happy "FETCH!" and let her dive at it with her positive attitude? I've never gone into FF with a dog that already understood the command FETCH albeit only applied in play sessions.

Thank you in advance.

Oh and my puppy boy is doing great - yesterday and today I took him out to a field for some 50 yard marks. I'm glad I did this and not any FF yet - his sit and wait for the mark needs some work! He's quite strong at 100 lbs so I will work on getting him in a solid sit before anything else! He also let out a loud bark when I let him go for his last mark today - his grandfather did this as well in the beginning of his training and he just stopped eventually on his own once he knew what was going on so hopefully he will do the same or not bark at all again.

[EvanG]

Originally Posted by WigWag

My question is though should I stay so serious? Should I mix in some happy "FETCH!" and let her dive at it with her positive attitude? I've never gone into FF with a dog that already understood the command FETCH albeit only applied in play sessions.

Thank you in advance.

Generally, I would say "No" to fun bumpers during FF. You're sending mixed signals to the dog; alternating between a completely formal fetch, and a totally informal one, while expecting the dog to sort out the difference. A better route is to maintain a well structured, patient approach, keeping the rules clear and consistent. But be faithful about praising for compliance.

During this period you can continue marking your dog in separate sessions, as long as it does not produce behaviors in conflict with those you're attempting to establish during FF.

EvanG

[kojakusa]

Originally Posted by EvanG

Generally, I would say "No" to fun bumpers during FF. You're sending mixed signals to the dog; alternating between a completely formal fetch, and a totally informal one, while expecting the dog to sort out the difference.

Are you saying no fun bumpers during a given FF session, or no fun bumpers at all during the period (weeks) that the dog is going through FF? I hadn't considered the potential confusion factor there. That will be one less mistake I repeat on the next dog

[EvanG]

Generally, "No" to fun bumpers during the period of FF, at least the period of formative training for the essential skills.

If the dog is handling his bumpers well, if he's progressed to reliably deliver to hand, fun bumpers would probably be fine. In reality, the problem is that by the nature of the hell-bent-for-leather attitude a dog tends to have about fun bumpers (which he should have), he will tend to abandon the standards you're in the middle of building.

Careful with this. I know we all love to see them having fun chasing fun bumpers. But it's unfair to expect a dog to sort out for himself when it's okay to live with one set of standards, then then to know when to live with another.

EvanG