Is Rough Play a Bad Thing?

[beth101509]

Oliver LOVES rough play and I am beginning to wonder if I am creating a masochist. Can rough play be a bad thing?

For example...Oliver will bring me a toy (a ball or Kong Squeezz) and he will turn his butt to me as I reach out for it. Now, this game is my fault as I taught it to him but he really enjoys it. Anyway, he will back his butt into me with the toy in his mouth so I punch him in the butt (not hard obviously) and he only backs further into me or will turn around and try and have me smack the item out of his mouth. Once it flies out of his mouth, he will chase it or if I can get it out, I will throw it and he will chase it and then the game repeats.

Another example....the other day Oliver was pushing his body into mine wanting attention. I hate when he shoves himself into me. I find it disrespectful. Anyway, I grabbed his face in my hands and told him he was being a butt and then shook his head around and this began a game of wrestling. He would get on his back and we would fight like chicks (you know the fight where both sets of hands smack at each other? yeah, that). I am standing above him smacking his paws and he is wiggling all over the floor. He will stand up and run at me if I shove him away just to get shoved away again. We have wood floors so he can skid a ways.

So, in conclusion....I have taught Oliver roughhousing and he seems to love it. If he gets too worked up (as can happen and at 53 pounds, he is getting a tad big) I can say "alright, time to calm down" and he will. But am I creating a monster or doing a bad thing by him roughhousing with him?

[Labradorks]

This does not sound out of line to me. Labs love to rough house!

My rule of thumb is, if it's not cute/fun/safe with a 90 lb dog, it's not cute/fun/safe with a puppy. Mouthing, biting, jumping are the things you have to be careful of. Even then, when they are a mature, respectful, well-trained adult, sometimes I let some of these things make their way into play or training as long as I can train it the way I want it. But with a puppy, you just have to have hard, fast rules that you relax later, depending on the dog.

One thing, when he shoves into you, if the result is a play fight, he will figure out shoving self into mom = play. If you are OK with that, I don't see the harm. But if you're not, you're better off ignoring the shoving by stepping away or by getting up (if you're sitting) and walking away.

[Laura]

That's not a way that I like to play with my dogs, but to each his own. I think that the leaning into you, or pushing up against you that you dislike will be hard to break if you keep rewarding him for that behavior though. Sometimes behaviors like that are hard to break even when the attention is negative attention. When he pushes into you, he gets redirected by having a wiggly, roughhousing blast.

[beth101509]

That's not a way that I like to play with my dogs, but to each his own. I think that the leaning into you, or pushing up against you that you dislike will be hard to break if you keep rewarding him for that behavior though. Sometimes behaviors like that are hard to break even when the attention is negative attention. When he pushes into you, he gets redirected by having a wiggly, roughhousing blast.

About 95% of the time his pushing into me doesn't result in play. It was just one day I was so sick of him doing it that I shoved him away from me and it turned into a play session. Most of the time when he shoves himself into me, I just tell him "no" or "off". I don't want that behavior to continue because it will knock me over when he gets much heavier. So that, I need to make sure it never turns into a play session. That was on me. I just wanted to make sure rough play wasn't causing any harm to the dog or teaching him bad things.

[barry581]

I know it's kinda cute when they are puppies, but wait until he's full grown with 80+ pounds of muscle. In addition, if he does this with you, he will most likely want to do it with others, who may not find it so charming. If you want to play like this, you also need to teach him when you say it's enough, he stops, not the other way around.

[Snowshoe]

Sounds like fun, can I play? REally, I'm not fond of a full on body slam at warp speed but what you describe sounds like fun. And if Oliver will stop when you say so then great. I like to actually encourage things I don't want the dog to do. Then I give them a name, then I have more control over when we/he does them. A counter name helps too. So jumping on me is allowed if I say HUG and not if I say FEET. Wild tearing around the yard is ZOOM and fighting is DUKE, as in put your dukes up. These latter two are ALL DONE when we want to quit. Oh, correction, when I want to quit.

[CraftHer]

I think as long as you're in charge and can stop the rough housing when you say. Also, that he doesn't rough house with other who don't want it.

I don't play rough with Mocha because I get hurt. He either paws or scratches me or I get my hand hung on his tooth or his head smashes into my chin. I can't take it, so I don't start it. Also, we've taught Mocha "enough" (and hold our hand up in a stop gesture) which basically means "stop doing what you're doing". This could mean play or dropping his toy in my lap or generally aggravating me (like when he slobbers all over his toys and then wants to rub them on my bare legs).

[beth101509]

I know it's kinda cute when they are puppies, but wait until he's full grown with 80+ pounds of muscle. In addition, if he does this with you, he will most likely want to do it with others, who may not find it so charming. If you want to play like this, you also need to teach him when you say it's enough, he stops, not the other way around.

He knows how to shut it off when I say we are done. As for anyone else, I'm not too worried about it. It's just me and the husband. No kids or anything. Family lives 11 hours away and none of our friends have dogs so he won't be going to any of their houses.

[Woodrow_Woodchuck]

I agree, Labs LOVE to play rough! Just watch any two lab pups or adults get together and have fun, it looks and sounds like they are killing each other! If you have control over Oliver, I say give the game a name and go for it, it makes him happy and you smile.

[ZoeysMommy]

I play rough like that with Zoey and my corgi all the time, i see no harm in it and we have fun. We wrestle in blankets alot, its Zoeys favorite game. Sure sometimes i get scratched, get hit with a tooth on occasion, Zoey has head butted me a few times but its all in fun. When ive had enough, the game is over. I grew up with german shepherds who i rough housed with, i couldnt own a larger dog and not rough house. My corgi is just as fun, sometimes funner, she is a little beast

My girls are otherwise very gentle and well behaved, our rough housing has had no negative effect on them. If you enjoy it and he knows when to stop, carry on