Drop!

[mcmsek]

My lab is 10 weeks old and it never wants to drop the ball, bumber, or whatever when she brings it back when we are playing fetch. Is this a problem at this age and how and when do I make her drop. Most of you guys seem really smart so this shoudl be an easy one for you!

[LABS4ME]

10 weeks old is to young to expect anything in the way of formal retrieving.... make it fun fun fun at that age. A great trick for those youngsters is to play fetch in the hall. Throw the puppy bumper and when they come running back to you grab them and play with them and in the process get them to drop the bumper. a little side pressure on the lips will usually get them to release. You can start to familiarize them with the "drop" command when doing this, just don't expect them to follow it at 10 weeks old. Never just rip it out of their mouth.

Good Luck!

Ken

[CodyDawg]

make sure you throw it right away after you get it. If you hold it for awhile, it turns into a possession game. There is no benefit I can think of to holding it.

[LABS4ME]

except maybe introducing the concept of being steady... short periods of expecting even a young dog to calm down before the bumper is thrown is totally exceptable. I hold mine with my hand under their belly till the bumper hits the ground before letting them go. I won't throw it till they quit thrashing around. Again 10 weeks is way to young for any formal field training, but working in little introductions is always good even at a young age...

Good Luck!

Ken

[duckbuster]

You need to start the force fetch!!!

Just Kidding. Ha Ha Ha

I agree with LABS. Make it lots of fun in short little sessions. If you happen to have a longish hallway use that to your benefit. Throw what ever it is you are throwing down the hall, this will get the dog in the habit of coming straight back to you.

Have fun & remember to wear lots of armour to protect your self from the piercing puppy teeth.

[setterguy]

Obviously 10 weeks is too young to expect any kind of obedience out of the young pup, but I thougt I would share a little trick with you guys. If you ever want or NEED a dog to drop something that it doesn't want to just grab the dog behind the front shoulder, almost like putting your four fingers into the "armpit" and apply a little pressure. 99.9% of the time, the dog will drop whatever it has...

[mcmsek]

Thanks for the help! I am sure I will have more questions to come!

[Stratosman]

Everyone has their own opinion and idea of what they want thier dog to do. I personally trained my labs to hold on to the bumper or whatever they fetch until I take it from them. Taught to heel on retrieve and hold onto the bumper for as long as needed. This way on a wounded bird, they won't drop it and have it run off again. It has worked on more than one occasion when dealing with a cripple.

Some might dissagree with me and that's fine, just posting my thoughts on it and what I want from my dogs.

Good luck and have fun with the training, they grow up fast.