# Games to play



## Roger23 (Jul 14, 2012)

What kind of games to do you guys play with your German Shepherd. 

Also, what kind of toys what you guys recommend, I've already got my Pupp a Rope pull thingy; Idk if that is good or bad. I got her a squeaky purple toy. 

What else should I get? And what toys should I avoid.


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## cta (May 24, 2011)

my dog was never a fetcher, so we always played (and still play) games that involve searching. i used to play with his squeaky kong ball, but you can play with whatever your pup likes best. basically it's just as it sounds...go hide the toy and tell her to "find it." this game is also good because it taught my dog how to wait until i released him. when we play in the house, i used his ball, but if we play in the back yard i use treats. we also had a lot of fun playing hide and seek with him both inside and in the yard.

as for toys, tugs are good. there are a lot of videos posted on the forum about the benefits of playing tug with puppies. mine loves his rope and we play tug a lot. using the tug is how i taught him to have an "off" button and how he learned how to drop things from his mouth. he eventually learned that when the toy wasn't in his mouth his big hairy butt had to be on the floor until i said it was ok for him to take it again. no jumping allowed. mine was very easily amped up as a puppy (as most of them are) so this was a good way for me to help him learn his boundaries. 

as for other toys, your dog will let you know which ones she likes. i've bought toys for mine and some he could care less about, while he goes nuts for the others. i've stopped buying soft toys tho because he is a destroyer and an eater of stuffing. also, regular tennis balls aren't good because they can erode their teeth. whatever you buy, make sure it isn't a choking hazard as well. maybe your dog would like a kong? they have the capacity to keep a dog very busy. sorry for the rambling, i'm tired. hope some of this helped.


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## cptduke (Aug 22, 2012)

My pup loves anything that squeaks! His tug toy is has a squeaky ball and 4 little leg things to tug on, we play tug a lot. He also has a squeaky ball, and a plush toy we call his lovey because it is the only plush toy he wont destroy.

Hide and seek: (in the house) I throw the tug toy, he runs to get it, I hide, he comes to find me so we can play tug for a minute, then throw the toy and hide again. 

Chase/tug: throw a tug toy, then I act like I'm stalking it, he runs around the back yard like crazy, I catch him, play tug, start all over. I ONLY play this with a specific toy so he doesn't think he can run away from me with other things. 

Find it: I do this with his lovey, he's still young so I only hide it around me somewhere. 

Most favorite game of all time: The hose in the backyard. Doesn't matter what I do with it, he will chase the water for hours if I let him.


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## gaia_bear (May 24, 2012)

Hide and Seek is an excellent game to play, it's helped us start to build a wonderful recall. 

Gaia loves to play fetch with anything - tugs, balls, toys if it can be thrown she'll retrieve it. This being said, she will also try to play tug with anything. 

Jollyballs provide us hours of entertainment, I have a budding soccer allstar on my hands 

We played "gotcha" when she was younger to get her used to having someone grab ahold of her collar and the scruff of the back of her neck. She doesn't wear a collar inside the house so if she ever got out and we had to grab her fast without something to hold onto, I didn't want her to snap at someone grabbing the back of her neck..we've since worked on door manners but it was still a worthwhile game to play.

ETA: As for toys, I agree she'll let you know what she likes, Gaia LOVES the no stuffing toys, kong squeaky balls, any cuz toy but was never crazy about kongs, nylabones. We go to the petstore and as silly as it sounds, I let her pick out her toys for the most part. I know it's a keeper if she carries it around the whole store with us.


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## marshies (May 18, 2011)

My pup enjoys:
Flirt pole
EGGe Toy
Squeaky balls of any nature to either chew or chase
Tugging

I second the poster above for letting the dogs pick out the toys. I usually wave toys in front of her and see if she likes them.


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## gmcwife1 (Apr 5, 2012)

Nita loves balls, soccer balls, her jolly ball, kong balls, if it's a ball she will take it over.


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## Nigel (Jul 10, 2012)

I have large kong squeaky ball ( looks like a large tennis ball) I play fetch, but my yard is small so I throw it on the roof so it keeps them guessing where it will come down, they are pretty good at positioning themselves in the right spot. They go nuts for a soccer ball. I toss it kick it whatever, I think that's their favorite. Most important though is to put them away immediately when we are done. One of mine will destroy just about any ball and we as we found out about a week ago with a chuck it ball she will eat the pieces.


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