Tug Of War For Pups Not Allowed?

[ZachAttack]

I;ve just read in my book that im not supposed to play tug of war with my pup till he's a year old. Trouble is that's all he really likes to play. He doesn't really fetch or anything else so what else can i do during play?

[mydiamond]

Tug of war is not good? Why?  I don't know that, but usually I give Diamond a stuffed Kong for him to play with. If he wants to play with me I'd grab a piece of cheese and teach him some tricks. He doesn't really fetch either 

[Jay]

I haven't heard that one before.  I would play that all the time when my dogs were little.  Does it say why you shouldn't? 

 

And yeah, huskies are not known for playing fetch lol.  Nikko will go get the ball or toy, but bringing it back is the problem.  Yukon, on the other hand will play fetch!

[ZachAttack]

Says I must wait untill he's got his second teeth so that they can strengthen. I think as long as I don't rag the poor thing all over the place he will be fine?

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[Storm Angel n Auroras Mum]

its fine. i do.

[Frenchie]

I didn't know that either, mind you I didn't get Mishka until she was nearly a year old so yeah lol

I think it should be fine as long as you don't do it too rough, we all know how much our fur babies love a good old tug of war

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[Removed #5]

I've just read in my book that im not supposed to play tug of war with my pup till he's a year old. Trouble is that's all he really likes to play. He doesn't really fetch or anything else so what else can i do during play?

 

I was kind of surprised but the reason they give is acceptable.  If anyone has seen a puppy grab hold of a pantsleg or a piece of burlap, you'll see that tugging is a natural.  I'd bet the concern is when someone reaches the "Look, mom, he's holding on so tight, I can pick him up!!" and I'd bet that every kid in the world who has a puppy has done that.

I wouldn't worry too much about playing tug of war if he likes to play, I'd just be careful about the foolish stuff.  I also wouldn't be surprised, as he gets older, that you pull some of the puppy teeth playing with him - they're loose, they will eventually come out, they may just come out a day or so earlier in a tugging game.

[LittleLuka]

i think tug of war is fine. i played with both of mine, plus when they start losing their teeth it helps.

[Chula]

I have actually read that you shouldn't play tug of war with a puppy that is still nipping or if you are struggling with "dominance" issues. I hadn't read it about teeth. 

[Elyse]

I've also read tug of war is about a 'dominance' thing. But, as long as you win 'most of the time', then I think its okay. Just don't win all the time, or your pooch won't think the game is fun anymore!

[CARRINGTON]

I haven't heard that one before.  I would play that all the time when my dogs were little.  Does it say why you shouldn't? 

 

And yeah, huskies are not known for playing fetch lol.  Nikko will go get the ball or toy, but bringing it back is the problem.  Yukon, on the other hand will play fetch!

Haha Balto is like Nikko!!!! Balto loves for you to throw the ball first but after that forget him bringing it back or he just plays fetch with himself.

[HuskyGuerl]

I play tug of war with my three all the time! And they play it against each other ..when echo was a little puppy he use to love playing tug of war with towels and blankets lol

[Mazz]

Tug of war with their baby teeth?  Not good.  Tug of war with their adult teeth?  You control the game, not the dog.  When it's over, you decide.  When it gets too rough, you decide.  But you gotta let the dog win sometimes.

[Chula]

Hahahaha we never let Chula win, but she keeps coming back for more because she is just absolutely positive that THIS will be the time she wins. She is such a stubborn little brat. 

 

I've also read tug of war is about a 'dominance' thing. But, as long as you win 'most of the time', then I think its okay. Just don't win all the time, or your pooch won't think the game is fun anymore!

[Frenchie]

Hahahaha we never let Chula win, but she keeps coming back for more because she is just absolutely positive that THIS will be the time she wins. She is such a stubborn little brat.

Lol! I felt really mean as I was just thinking ''Well I never let Mishka win?'' and she never gets enough ahah, I do ask her to leave it when I'm done and when she's calm again I let her chew it for a while which makes her really happy

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[sarahjng]

Bears 10 months now and has always played tug of war, we were even told how to do it properly in puppy class,  believe it or not you go up and down not side to side lol,  

[Bec]

Bears 10 months now and has always played tug of war, we were even told how to do it properly in puppy class, believe it or not you go up and down not side to side lol,

I definitely disagree with what you were told - tug should be played by moving it side to side in a swishing movement. Up and down can actually hurt their neck.

I don't like calling playing tug "tug of war" or talking about winning or losing etc, it isn't a battle it's a game I play with my dog and she "wins" all the time. If you make it about winning or losing or being dominant I think you are approaching it the wrong way.

We teach pups how to play tug from day one.

You also want to develop the muscles in their jaw from early on.

There's a lot of technique to playing tug right!

[Stormy]

I use Tug as a form of reward with my female

[Jase]

Here is an extensive discussion on tug-o-war and training. Dr Ian Dunbar also discusses setting rules for the game to foster the advantages of the game and eliminate the negatives. I have read a lot of Dunbars' works on dog training and like his approach. I believe he is also a Sibe owner??

 

http://www.sfspca.org/sites/default/files/tug-of-war.pdf

[richd514]

You control the game, not the dog. When it's over, you decide. When it gets too rough, you decide. But you gotta let the dog win sometimes.

+1

...and in addition, when the game is done, YOU have the toy.. Not the dog

[Frenchie]

+1

...and in addition, when the game is done, YOU have the toy.. Not the dog

I'm curious, why not let the dog have a go on it afterwards?

When I'm done playing, I tell Mishka to leave it, and she'll come down, and five minutes later I choose to give her the toy to chew for a while but I can just as well choose not to give it to her and she won't beg for it.

But then it depends how you've raised your dog, Mishka knows that her stuff is ''mine'' and I am the one that controls when she has it, she won't even flinch if I take her food bowl, toys or whatever away.

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[Bec]

When I play tug with my dog, if I let the toy go she will shove it back at me to get me to make the game happen again. Without me, it's just a toy and is missing what we call the reward experience that the handler gives the dog.

I start and finish the game and the dog can only strike the tug when i give the command and outs the tug as soon as i tell her to but its not a contest or war where I am fighting the dog to have the toy. The dog should play with you not against you.

I wrote a blog post about the reward experience a while ago some of you may be interested to read

http://blog.k9pro.com.au/creating-the-reward-experience/

[Chula]

I think it's an issue of semantics. You say she has to let go when you say. I say I don't let her win. Not sure the difference there.

[Bec]

I think it's an issue of semantics. You say she has to let go when you say. I say I don't let her win. Not sure the difference there.

I think it's a huge difference if you approach the game as one of winning/losing. My dog outs the tug immediately because she understand doing so starts the game again. If she thought letting go of the tug mean losing she wouldn't do it. I train it as a motivational command not something that means "I said so, therefore you have to do it".

Tug should be a highly motivational game not a battle or way to attempt to assert dominance. You want your dog to play with you not against you. What does letting the dog "never win" mean? If you never got paid, would you be motivated to work?

[Alisande]

I was told the same thing about my dobe however, he loves it. Only problem, he is so strong he always wins unless my husband is playing with him. I saw no reason to stop.