Post by Aussienot on Nov 19, 2004 23:26:25 GMT -5
Teach Your Dog to Catch
Uses – An amusing pastime. A fun trick to show friends, when your dog gets really good. Good prep work for Frisbee dogs. A great play idea. In obedience, rewarding from the mouth is very effective to keep the dog focusing on your face. (Warning, may generate strange looks from others if you do it in class.)
Prequisite - Dogs need to know sit and wait. You must have patience. All dogs can learn to catch, really they can. Some will shake your believe in this, BUT ALL DOGS CAN CATCH. Some dogs are just really slow learners.
And you must be quick and nimble in the beginning. This trick is actually harder for the owner than the dog.
Equipment - Food Treats. Good food to use include: popcorn, rice crackers, pieces of bread or toast. Food that to easy to see and soft and sort of floats on the way down. Rice crackers are very good because they fall slowly. Small pieces of soft cheese or raw chicken are good beginning choices, too.
Toys – small, furry toys. Soft terry towling toys. Hold off on balls, Frisbees, Kongs or plastic toys until the behavior is established.
Method
Dog is off lead. Have the dog standing in front of you and paying attention. Kneel in front of the small dog, or if your dog is large enough, you can stand
You should be about 1/2 a foot to a foot away from the dog, throw toy towards and above the dog’s mouth. Underarm throw upwards, and very softly. As you throw toy dog say ‘Catch’. Try to throw it very close to the dog’s mouth
This trick has one golden rule:
The dog only gets the treat if he catches it.
The dog is likely to miss. If the dog misses the toy, dive to get to it first. Be sure to get to it, before the dog does. He only gets the toy when he catches it himself. You may find it easier to grab the treat first if you sit cross legged on the floor even with a big dog
Keep each session short – three or four attempts, but try several times per day. Use before dinner time, when the dog is likely to be hungry, as a highly motivational session.
Keep perservering. Sailor missed the first 23 million times, maybe more. I have heard that some dogs learn catch right away, but none that I know of.
Big celebration when he makes the first catch.
Once the dog gets the hang of catching, make it harder. Have the dog sit and wait before you throw the treat. Your throws must be accurate as you don’t want to pull the dog out of the sit to make the catch.
Then start moving further away and try different articles. This trick may take many, many, many sessions so be patient and keep it fun.
Uses – An amusing pastime. A fun trick to show friends, when your dog gets really good. Good prep work for Frisbee dogs. A great play idea. In obedience, rewarding from the mouth is very effective to keep the dog focusing on your face. (Warning, may generate strange looks from others if you do it in class.)
Prequisite - Dogs need to know sit and wait. You must have patience. All dogs can learn to catch, really they can. Some will shake your believe in this, BUT ALL DOGS CAN CATCH. Some dogs are just really slow learners.
And you must be quick and nimble in the beginning. This trick is actually harder for the owner than the dog.
Equipment - Food Treats. Good food to use include: popcorn, rice crackers, pieces of bread or toast. Food that to easy to see and soft and sort of floats on the way down. Rice crackers are very good because they fall slowly. Small pieces of soft cheese or raw chicken are good beginning choices, too.
Toys – small, furry toys. Soft terry towling toys. Hold off on balls, Frisbees, Kongs or plastic toys until the behavior is established.
Method
Dog is off lead. Have the dog standing in front of you and paying attention. Kneel in front of the small dog, or if your dog is large enough, you can stand
You should be about 1/2 a foot to a foot away from the dog, throw toy towards and above the dog’s mouth. Underarm throw upwards, and very softly. As you throw toy dog say ‘Catch’. Try to throw it very close to the dog’s mouth
This trick has one golden rule:
The dog only gets the treat if he catches it.
The dog is likely to miss. If the dog misses the toy, dive to get to it first. Be sure to get to it, before the dog does. He only gets the toy when he catches it himself. You may find it easier to grab the treat first if you sit cross legged on the floor even with a big dog
Keep each session short – three or four attempts, but try several times per day. Use before dinner time, when the dog is likely to be hungry, as a highly motivational session.
Keep perservering. Sailor missed the first 23 million times, maybe more. I have heard that some dogs learn catch right away, but none that I know of.
Big celebration when he makes the first catch.
Once the dog gets the hang of catching, make it harder. Have the dog sit and wait before you throw the treat. Your throws must be accurate as you don’t want to pull the dog out of the sit to make the catch.
Then start moving further away and try different articles. This trick may take many, many, many sessions so be patient and keep it fun.