Perfect Puppy Activities Guide – Chapter 2 – Recreational Activities

Chapter 2 – Recreational Activities

Not everyone enjoys competitive sports, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t have fun with your puppy. From playing a simple game of fetch to learning how best to travel with your puppy, you can participate in a variety of recreational activities together.

Fetch

Playing fetch is a great, fun exercise to play with your puppy. It also can be very useful when she learns to bring you specific objects, and it can help to prevent destructive behavior. For example, if your puppy learns to bring you an object, she’s not taking it somewhere and chewing it to bits.

Some puppies are born retrievers. Some breeds are also genetically inclined for the activity. But even some Labrador Retriever puppies can act like they’ve never heard of fetching before. If you want your puppy to play a good game of fetch, you have to teach her. It may sound like a simple task, but if you teach her incorrectly, you can ingrain bad habits into her that will last for a long time to come.

Step 1:

• It’s best for fetch if your puppy has already been trained in the “take it” and “leave it” commands. If this is not the case, teach her these before you continue.

Step 2:

• Have treats handy. Find a toy that your puppy just loves. Instead of offering her the toy to take from your hands, set it on the ground. Give the cue “Take it.” If she picks it up, mark “Yes!” and praise her. Then give the cue “Drop it.” If she drops it, mark “Yes!” and give her a treat. If she doesn’t pick it up, practice holding it for her two times, then try it on the floor again.
• Gradually work toward longer times while your puppy holds the object before you mark “Yes.” Try for three or four seconds. If you find that she’s dropping the object before you mark “Yes,” take it back a few seconds and work up more gradually. Your goal is to try to get her to hold the object for longer periods of time.

Step 3:

• When your puppy is reliably taking the toy off the ground and holding it, it’s time to move on to this step.
• Toss the toy up and down, and act excited until your puppy gets excited, too. Throw the toy a very short distance, and encourage your puppy to go after it.
• If she runs after the toy, praise her.
• When she reaches the toy, say “Take it.” When she picks it up, mark “Yes” and praise her.

Step 4:

• Repeat Step 3. When your puppy takes the toy, move back a few steps and hold out your hand. Give her the cue “Fetch!” using a friendly, but authoritative voice.
• When she reaches you, give her the “Drop it” cue. If she drops it in your hand, mark “Yes” and give her a treat.
• Gradually work up to longer distances. Keep training sessions short. If at any time the training session starts to break down, take a break. When you try again, break the training session into smaller steps.

Once your puppy is reliably fetching, you can use different items. Keep in mind that if you introduce a new item, you may have to start at the beginning with training the exercise. This is normal because the new item may confuse your puppy. Also, remember to be strict with what you allow her to play fetch with. For example, if you allow her to play fetch with a stuffed animal, she will likely associate this with a toy and will attempt to find them in the house.

If your puppy has something in her mouth, don’t yell at her! This is a surefire way to teach her to go and hide the prize, where she’ll destroy it or swallow it. You may never find it again.

Don’t chase her, either. If you chase your puppy, she’ll run away from you. That’s not what you want to teach her. Instead, sit still. Hold out your hands and excitedly give her a cue, such as “Bring it!” or “Fetch!” using a friendly, authoritative voice. If she comes toward you, praise her. When she reaches you, say “Drop it” and mark “Yes” when she releases the item.