# Possessive over ball/frisbee and won't let go



## Germanshepherdlova

One of my dogs will drop anything, immediately upon command. However, my other dog will let go of some things when told but if I am playing ball with him, or frisbee, when he brings it back to me I have to tell him over and over to release it. Many times I cut our playtime short because he doesn't want to let go and it is difficult to continue playing with him when it is almost a battle to get him to release it so that I can toss it again. How can I get him to let go of an item that he is possessive of?


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## Packen

One way is to use 2 of the same items, one is in dogs mouth the other is in your hand. Some side to side movement from your hand will get dog's focus on the "alive" object, dog will drop "dead" object from mouth, you throw the alive object and as dog is chasing, you pick up the dead object and repeat.

Somewhere along the way add the "out" command at the moment the dog drops the dead object. This is only one way to go, there are many others. You just need to figure out what works best for your dog.


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## jennyp

Brody is a little hesitant to drop the ball because he loves to chew on it. I tried using two balls much like what Packen said and it really worked. I threw the ball and when Brody brought it back to me I showed him the other ball. He immediately sat and dropped the ball he had in his mouth.


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## ken k

Germanshepherdlova said:


> One of my dogs will drop anything, immediately upon command. However, my other dog will let go of some things when told but if I am playing ball with him, or frisbee, when he brings it back to me I have to tell him over and over to release it. Many times I cut our playtime short because he doesn't want to let go and it is difficult to continue playing with him when it is almost a battle to get him to release it so that I can toss it again. How can I get him to let go of an item that he is possessive of?


if you don't let go, play time is over, it took awhile but it worked with Max, when he saw me head for the door then he would drop the frisbee, now he brings it and drops it, also having two method works well also


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## PaddyD

ken k said:


> if you don't let go, play time is over, it took awhile but it worked with Max, when he saw me head for the door then he would drop the frisbee, now he brings it and drops it, also having two method works well also


Have the same problem with Abby. She is learning to Drop IT and Leave It but it's a slow process. We're getting there .... I am not the most strict disciplinarian.


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## RichardMorris

jennyp said:


> Brody is a little hesitant to drop the ball because he loves to chew on it. I tried using two balls much like what Packen said and it really worked. I threw the ball and when Brody brought it back to me I showed him the other ball. He immediately sat and dropped the ball he had in his mouth.


I taught our 23 mo old GS with both another ball and/or a treat, in conjunction with a sharp "Out" command. Took a while, and she finally learnt that no "out", no more game. It also worked for the tug.
Richard


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## Germanshepherdlova

I have tried to show him another frisbee or ball while we are playing but he still will not let go of the one in his mouth. Not unless I throw the other one, and then he will run after it with the item still in his mouth and not release it until he is picking the other one up. 

I have considered using his shock collar for this, but I have not done so because I don't want to "punish" him while playing, and I haven't used that collar in a long time anyhow.

Maybe I will try a treat and see if that works.


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## jennyp

If the two ball method isn't working I would use a treat like you were saying. I've also done that with Brody and it worked. High value treats. I wouldn't use the shock collar for something like this. To me, the shock collar would be a last resort to a more serious problem.


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## stolibaby

I also would say having ntwo of the item but if your dog still isn't what we found working for us is I would grab the item while stoli had it and say "give" very firmly. Now this took a while as he would try and play tug then but eventually he figured out I wanted the ball and wasn't going too stop until I got it. Now he's a lot better about sharing his toys and keeping the game going


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## JakodaCD OA

Masi only gets her frisbee when I engage her,,she's way to destructive when it comes to them, so only gets them under supervision. And this dog is frisbee obsessed, along with tugging/balls, jolly ball.

Anyhow, she learned real fast, you don't drop the frisbee, game is over, I take it and you don't get it back..

In the beginning I did switch it up,,drop that one, you can have this one..

Now I torture her, and sometimes make her stay or down, or whatever, I throw the frisbee, and she has to wait until I release her ...it's torture for her, her whole body is quaking,,but it's a good exercise to teach self control)


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## puppy10532

Ive tried throwing two frisbees or balls. shell keep one ball in her mouth n then run to the other ball n then js come back with the same ball in her mouth chewing away at it. 

Also my dog for example with a ball will catch it, bring it back n then lay down next to my feet n keep chewing the ball . the frisbee shell keep thrashing it near my feet n then when i hold it n say let go, shell have to get at least 5 chews before she relases EVERYTIME! 
When she drops the toy, as im picking it up, shell automaticaly reach for the toy with her mouth when she's knows she not suppose to. what can i do?
everytime she does it i drop it n then do it again n then shell stop but its always the same ^^steps above...


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## Cassidy's Mom

Two ball and game over if the dog doesn't give up the object are what I've always done. Teaching the "out", or whatever you want your command to be, can be taught separately from the retrieve. I've always used a treat for that, held right up to the dog's nose at first. Most dogs will drop what they have for a yummy smelly treat - mark it ("yes!" or with a clicker), and let them have the treat. Once they're doing it consistently, give your command right before putting the treat to the nose. Work up to not showing the treat in advance, (keep them in your pocket or treat bag until after the dog drops the ball), mark and reward. 

If the dog won't drop the ball with a treat held up to the nose, use a different toy, one that you can also hold onto. A tug works great for this - hold out the tug, play for a few seconds, then go through the steps above. Since you're still holding onto the toy, she can't run off with it. Stop moving and simply wait for her to drop it. When she does, mark it, deliver the treat, then hold out the tug for more play. She gets the treat, AND she gets to continue playing. Do this for short periods several times a day until you've got a solid out command, and then integrate it into your fetch sessions. Keep in mind that there are several components to a retrieve - chasing the object, bringing the object back, and then giving the object up. If you've already got the first two parts down, concentrate on the third part. Teaching the end of the behavior first is a training technique called back chaining. 

If the dog goes after the toy after she's dropped it, that's where you'd use a "leave it" command, also taught separately, and ideally, generalized to both food and toys and anything else you can think of.


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## Tuckered

I was going to post a similar technique we were shown for our possessive humane society dog.

The obedience trainer worked with us on many things, this is what we were told:
When playing fetch, throw the ball. Our one dog (the possessive one) would go for the ball, but lay in the corner of the field after that. We began using soft canned cat food as a reward which is a very high value treat and only given when we say "come". He came to us with the ball or toy every single time no matter how far he had to run to get his cat food. We would not touch his ball but let him pick it up again and we would pet him. Then with our other dog we throw the tennis ball, she retrieves it and the possessive one just runs around in the field doing his own thing. Now we are at the stage where we call him back, he gets his cat food, we pick up the ball and give it a small throw where we know he will be the one to get it. We can now have toys laying around the house and he no longer pees on the toys to claim them! It has taken months, but we are really seeing the difference and he now is much more willing to give us the toys because he almost always gets them back from us. 

Good luck, it is worth the time and the patience!


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## Ucdcrush

It may be a bigger issue than just not knowing how to release a ball from it's mouth. All dogs know how to release something from their bite, but this dog for some reason is wanting to fight against you as you want to get the ball and he doesn't want you to have it.

I think setting some better ground rules, NILIF for this dog big time, practice taking other things away (progressing to his food if you think you can get away with it), making him move out of your way etc. Make him remember you're the boss and he wont fight you for a tennis ball or frisbee. He'll know when you want it, and he'll give it up.

try practicing giving and taking while he's not in "play" mode as you teach him the "out" command.


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