# Puppy doesn't want play with me anymore?



## MRBennett (Jan 26, 2017)

Hello, everyone! I've been perusing these threads for a while, taking advice where others have already asked what I have wondered. Finally decided to join in! So a bit of background -- this is my first German Shepherd Dog, and also my first puppy. The dog I have right now, Maia, I rescued when she was about 6months old. So this whole puppy behavior is super new to me, and I must admit, no matter how much I had researched puppy and dog behavior (both online and in the library), it never really preps you for YOUR puppy, if you know what I mean.
So onto my new little one. His name is Ronin, and he has working lines, which I wanted. I'm an active person, and I love to run, bike, and go hiking. I also want to introduce him to rally-O, and possibly agility (one, or both, or whatever he seems to take to!). I will most probably enroll him in puppy classes once he is old enough, especially to help me into the mindset of training a puppy, and not an older puppy/adult dog. But here's my problem. . .
Lately, Ronin doesn't seem to want to really play with me anymore. Now, we've only had him for about five days. but within those five days, we've played chase outside (where he chases us, we don't chase him), and tug of war (his favorite game to play with toys). He does decently well on his leash, but I've only formally walked him once (for about 5 minutes, with my other dog Maia. We were practicing heeling off leash for her, so I decided to work with the both of them together, especially to help the two dogs bond with each other. They did great, by the way!) But after that he doesn't want to play with me anymore. If I initiate a chase, he walks maybe one or two steps, and then he is bored and stays where he is, or goes inside. He never brings me one of his toys, so if I want to play I have to wave a toy around like a lunatic to get him to start playing with me. Once he decides it could be fun, we could play for a while, but if I throw the toy or try to initiate in any other way of play, he would just rather chew on his toys by himself on his bed. He doesn't even want to walk on the leash anymore, which he seemed to have thoroughly enjoyed the last time I did it. Now if I pick up the leash, he just swings his head back and forth and refuses to move where I'm headed. I thought maybe I was pushing him too hard that he didn't like it, but honestly I didn't even tug on his leash when we went on our formal walk, and he was happy to walk up and down our driveway for a couple minutes. 
Its kind of breaking my heart at this point. I try and call him outside, I try and initiate play, an he just ignores me and decides other things are more fun. I'm used to 6 month old Maia behavior, she was glued to my hip by practically day 2, and now I have this boy who used to love to run around outside with me but now dislikes the idea.
I know this is a novel, and I apologize, but I'm hoping this is normal and I shouldn't worry. I just want a good bond with my new pup, because I want our relationship to be close and at least start on some sort of bond before we go on to a formal puppy class. I'm not expecting to be his absolute favorite right now, but I was expecting some sort of relationship other than "Yeah, I guess we can play tug of war for a minute." 
I thought maybe he was just bored playing the same game over and over again, but I've now tried several others and he still doesn't want to. The only thing he'll do with me right now is pretty much formal training, which involves treats nie times out of ten. This is good and all, but I don't want our friendship to be based on me having treats.
I really thought I was doing good in being both fun and keeping him disciplined, but am I being too harsh? Am I being too sensitive about this? It just seems to be a blow to have had a puppy who wanted to chase me around and play, and lick my hands, to the next day having one who would rather chew on toys by himself and hardly shows any affection.
I apologize for the novel! I just thought it'd be best to explain everything, haha! Thanks for any and all help!


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## cdwoodcox (Jul 4, 2015)

How old is ronin. Maybe it's just too much too soon. Let him get acclimated to everything.! 
How does he and Maia get along. Do they play together a lot. If so maybe he is conserving himself to play with her. She's a dog. She's way cooler than you. 
If not then just give him time. My female wasn't into playing a whole bunch as a puppy. The more I trained with her the more of a bond and trust she formed and now she will play anytime anywhere. She is still a more serious dog than other two but she's lightening up a little. Give him some time. Don't smother him and keep whatever you do really fun then when he's super excited to play put the toys up for a while. Build his desire to play. 
Good luck.


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## Daisy&Lucky's Mom (Apr 24, 2011)

I have very little experience w/ puppies but Im wondering how old Ronin is ? He could also be teething .


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## MRBennett (Jan 26, 2017)

I don't know how to directly reply to you all, so I apologize if you don't see this! But he is 8 weeks old and super busy! Maia and him didn't do a lot the first few days, but now they're get along very well. When she's in the mood the two of them will play keep away and wrestle a little bit. I am wondering if I'm smothering him a little bit. He seems to want so much stimulation that maybe I'm overdoing it? Usually I just do a formal training about 5 minutes a day, once maybe twice a day, and then try to play the rest of the time I'm home and he's up and about.


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## Misha111 (Oct 31, 2016)

5 days isn't a long time for a rescue pup. He is still trying to work out how you and his new home works. The pup i adopted at 5mths was totally different from the one I had at 6mths. 
Also my pup who is now 8mths, is really aloof. Sometimes it seems that we are of only interest to her if we have food, chews, tennis ball or are training with all of the both. That being said, she needs to know everything I am doing and if she is unhappy in a situation, she looks to me to deal with it. I feel we do have a bond that will get stronger but not the type I had imagined.


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## Shooter (Nov 19, 2016)

Misha111 said:


> 5 days isn't a long time for a rescue pup. He is still trying to work out how you and his new home works. The pup i adopted at 5mths was totally different from the one I had at 6mths.
> Also my pup who is now 8mths, is really aloof. Sometimes it seems that we are of only interest to her if we have food, chews, tennis ball or are training with all of the both. That being said, she needs to know everything I am doing and if she is unhappy in a situation, she looks to me to deal with it. I feel we do have a bond that will get stronger but not the type I had imagined.



Good points for the Pups owner!! (MRBennett)
German Shepherds are by nature aloof.
Food is the foundation of all relationships especially the human/animal. I watched a Stoney Dennis video and he stated when you bring a new pup into your home that initially 50% of his daily rations should come from your hand. Have a fanny pack with his rations and just feed him constantly as you go thru your day. He will make the connection that "Hey, I need to hang with this person" The bonding will take time and since the dog isn't a baby pup it may take a little longer but it will come. Just don't force it you will get frustrated then discouraged. Easy does it, your heart is right it will work out.


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## MRBennett (Jan 26, 2017)

He's about 9 weeks, now, so I don't think he's really teething yet. Maia and him get along pretty well, now. The first few days she ignored him but now they run around with each other and play keep away with toys. I've noticed, too, that if we're not home he seems to listen a lot better. Think he just likes Maia better? Should I be worried he's bonding more to her and not us?


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## LuvShepherds (May 27, 2012)

He may be too young for that kind of play. How old?


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## Swithins (Jan 25, 2017)

I've had Sasha since she was 8 weeks old, she's now 6 months and in the past 10 days she has turned from an obedient puppy to a stroppy teenager. When we are out, the slightest distraction will hamper training and recall efforts, meaning me having to yell at the top of my voice and wave chicken at her to get her to listen as she bolts after anything that seems more interesting at that moment. We walk with an experienced GSD owner who currently has a gorgeous in looks and temperament 3 year old 56kg GSD who says Sasha is getting along well and that this is just an annoying faze of growing up she's going through. I also have a 21 year old daughter out of this faze now for a few years and a 5 year old daughter prematurely entering this faze. BTW I am in no way suggesting that this is a gender specific problem


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## Kyrielle (Jun 28, 2016)

MRBennett said:


> He's about 9 weeks, now, so I don't think he's really teething yet. Maia and him get along pretty well, now. The first few days she ignored him but now they run around with each other and play keep away with toys. I've noticed, too, that if we're not home he seems to listen a lot better. Think he just likes Maia better? Should I be worried he's bonding more to her and not us?


At 8 weeks old, Jack really only walked for a few minutes before he got tired. Sometimes, he didn't want to play much, because he was tired. Sometimes, he'd chase a ball around or run in the grass outside for maybe 15 minutes, then he'd be tired. He didn't cuddle with us much, because he was tired from playing. The vast majority of his time was spent sleeping.

At 8 weeks old, puppies are growing super fast and are therefore, lacking in energy much of the time. It doesn't take much to wear them out. In terms of bonding, I'd work on teaching your puppy sit while your other puppy isn't in the room. Only do it for a few minutes, because, again, your puppy will get tired and bored pretty quickly. You could also try letting the puppy sleep near you.

I bet your puppy is bonding with your other dog more, because he's still a tiny puppy and is trying to learn how to dog. Plus, he just left his family and is probably scared. Having another dog around likely makes him feel safer as he gets used to his new home and to you. Don't worry about it. Let your puppy be a puppy and gain some confidence.

It wasn't until Jack was about 10-12 weeks that he had enough energy and confidence to *really* want to play with us and walk for extended periods of time. He still slept a lot, but he had a lot more "get up and go" and was more interested in the world around him.


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## MRBennett (Jan 26, 2017)

Kyrielle said:


> At 8 weeks old, Jack really only walked for a few minutes before he got tired. Sometimes, he didn't want to play much, because he was tired. Sometimes, he'd chase a ball around or run in the grass outside for maybe 15 minutes, then he'd be tired. He didn't cuddle with us much, because he was tired from playing. The vast majority of his time was spent sleeping.
> 
> At 8 weeks old, puppies are growing super fast and are therefore, lacking in energy much of the time. It doesn't take much to wear them out. In terms of bonding, I'd work on teaching your puppy sit while your other puppy isn't in the room. Only do it for a few minutes, because, again, your puppy will get tired and bored pretty quickly. You could also try letting the puppy sleep near you.
> 
> ...


Ok, that makes sense. I've taught him how to sit and we're working on "down", and we've also started handfeeding, which I think he likes.

Thanks for the advice everyone!! It really helped, I appreciate it!


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## cloudpump (Oct 20, 2015)

I wouldn't play chase, unless you are working on teaching his name or working on recall. You can teach some bad habits if he's viewing you as a toy or to chase anyone running.


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## MRBennett (Jan 26, 2017)

cloudpump said:


> I wouldn't play chase, unless you are working on teaching his name or working on recall. You can teach some bad habits if he's viewing you as a toy or to chase anyone running.


We play chase only to teach recall and his name, which had worked wonderfully. We tend to run backwards and call him,we only run a few steps just to get his attention and then stop and crouch down to greet and praise him when he comes.


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## LuvShepherds (May 27, 2012)

MRBennett said:


> We play chase only to teach recall and his name, which had worked wonderfully. We tend to run backwards and call him,we only run a few steps just to get his attention and then stop and crouch down to greet and praise him when he comes.


That isn't chase, that is recall. You used the wrong term. Chase is when you run away and he follows. He is only 9 weeks old. Give him a chance to be a puppy. Any training you do now should be relaxed and fun.


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## MRBennett (Jan 26, 2017)

LuvShepherds said:


> That isn't chase, that is recall. You used the wrong term. Chase is when you run away and he follows. He is only 9 weeks old. Give him a chance to be a puppy. Any training you do now should be relaxed and fun.


Oh! Thanks for the clarification. Everyone I had talked to referred to it as either chase or recall, so I figured it was a sort of "to each their own" kind of thing.

Since the posting I've played less recall and more tug of war. I start with one toy and as soon as he lets go, I throw it, and then go to another one. He loves playing with our dog Maia, but I've noticed now that when he doesn't want to play with her, he'll grab a toy and give me a look and come a little closer to me. Slow progress, but I'm seeing it, and since I've had to work for it I think it makes me even happier, haha! Thanks for the advice everyone! I better stop being an "over excited mom" and start being more laid back.


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