# How to get my pup interested in fetching



## Reflected (Feb 17, 2013)

Hi, 
Okay so I've got a puppy, he's about 15? Weeks old and we've been trying to get him to learn to fetch for the past two or three weeks. The first week or so he just didn't seem interested in the ball at all. Now he'll only be interested in it if me and my sister are playing with it around him. Sometime we'll be tossing it back and forth and he'll go after it and we let him go after it, but he'll just sniff/lick/bite it and the leave it and sit down.
The odd time he did actually take interested in the ball he would pick it up and just run off to his spot where he hoards all his chew toys. 

If nothing else, I'd love to get some tips on getting him interested in the ball


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Get a couple balls on a string so that there will be interaction with you/your pup and the ball. Though he's teething right now so tugging has to be gentle. I'd also play 'keep away' so his frustration to get it builds, making it higher value. Then you can add in the two ball game.
Hallmark K9 - Premium Dog Training Equipment - BALLS








If you do order, make sure you get a medium, not small(small size can be a choking hazard)


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## Reflected (Feb 17, 2013)

onyx'girl said:


> Get a couple balls on a string so that there will be interaction with you/your pup and the ball. Though he's teething right now so tugging has to be gentle. I'd also play 'keep away' so his frustration to get it builds, making it higher value. Then you can add in the two ball game.
> Hallmark K9 - Premium Dog Training Equipment - BALLS
> 
> 
> ...


Thank you for the advice! 
I have one question though, we've played keep away with other things like this teddy bear he likes and he gets, what seems to me anyways, agressive after a while and starts barking, growling and biting. Is this normal or should I be curbing this behaviour?


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

I like my dog to get ramped up for toys, and then I'll ask for commands before he gets rewarded. Tug gets out the bite urge, so I'd maybe get a synthetic two handled tug with your order! Toys are great training tools.
Gappay Synthetic 2 handle tug 5x25cm


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## Annie's Mom (Mar 19, 2013)

hahahahahaha, please excuse my chuckle. i'm new here and still getting into the rythmn

fetching is annie's favorite play time. she will do it for hours if i was willing. balls, frisbees, small logs, tires ... she fetches them all. i never ever owned a dog that loves to play fetch so much.

"release" was a whole separate lesson though.


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## martemchik (Nov 23, 2010)

Fetch comes naturally when they get older. Right now she probably doesn't connect the...if I bring it back, he'll throw it again. It hit mine at around 5-6 months I believe. Before that, I'd throw the ball, he'd chase it, and then just sit down and chew on it.

If she has it in her to retrieve (most GSDs do) then she'll do it happily once she understands the game. Don't try to force it, just let her mature. Sadly, if she doesn't think of it as a game or fun (which you might do by forcing it), she won't want to play at all when she gets older as it will be more work than play.


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## Neko (Dec 13, 2012)

I rolled a ball and my puppy got in and brought it back, I popped a treat into his mouth and took the ball. Tried it again with few fails, and again and again and 2 days later he brings and drops the ball =) treats are like magic


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

Here's a previous thread with lots of tips on how to teach fetch: http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/how-do-i-teach-my-dog/136440-wont-fetch.html

I disagree that it will come naturally when they get older, for some it will and for some it won't, and they would need to be trained. 

I've always had natural fetchers, Dena was chasing a ball and bringing it back from the time we got her at 9 weeks old, and I've never really had to do a whole lot with any of my other dogs to get them to fetch either. They pretty much already had the general idea, I just needed to teach them to give the ball up on cue.


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## Cdn_Cuda (Oct 26, 2011)

Ah, I miss the days when Kenzie didn't want to fetch. In her younger days (closer to your dog's age) she wouldn't fetch at all. Now she will go until one of the two of us drops dead, and it'll likely be me... 

At some point she decided that she loves fetch more than anything else. She's just over two now, and I can't say when it happened, but give your pup the option, try it often. But be warned once fetch starts it will never stop!


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## jessac (Oct 29, 2012)

We played with a few balls at first. And just sort of rapid fire threw them, he'd go after them, we'd pick up the one he dropped and toss in the other direction - making a big circle of ball tossing basically. It was fast paced so he thought it was great. That's how we got him interested in the balls. Then, we started to teach "come" and would toss the ball, yell come and have him bring the ball back. Once he dropped it, we'd toss the next ball. He's about 6 months old now and he'll bring it back, but hasn't quite gotten "give" yet, so we still play with a couple balls so we can entice him to give up the first one. I don't know if we made him ball crazy or if he would have been a natural, but now it's his favorite. He'll come drop balls in our lap/ at our feet when we're not paying attention to him and he wants to play.


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## Annie's Mom (Mar 19, 2013)

Cdn_Cuda said:


> Ah, I miss the days when Kenzie didn't want to fetch. In her younger days (closer to your dog's age) she wouldn't fetch at all. Now she will go until one of the two of us drops dead, and it'll likely be me...
> 
> At some point she decided that she loves fetch more than anything else. She's just over two now, and I can't say when it happened, but give your pup the option, try it often. But be warned once fetch starts it will never stop!


oh i know what you mean. i can't even pick up a ball inside the house and toss it in the basket for cleaning .... my GSD thinks it's game on


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