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Retrieve Problems


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Just looking for some advice, I've recently got my first lurcher, she's around 7 months, she's a rescue and I'm guessing a saluki/whippet. I've been practising retrieveing with tennis balls and dummy's. Though I have not given her any game. On two occasions she has found mankey rabbits, which she will not bring back she just runs off with them, and lays down, if I approach her she runs away. I didn't want her to think it's a chase game so I walked away, eventually she followed without the rabbit. Any advice or similar experience. I'm new to all this haha. Many thanks

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Get her used to carrying things, play tug and then drop the rope and let her hold it for a bit and follow you trying to play more, then keep doing it and practice the "leave it" command and give her lots of praise if she drops it at your feet so she sees giving stuff to you as fun.if she's retrieving toys and dummies then try chucking a fairly fresh (dead :laugh: ) bunnyif you can get your hands on one, she might not bring back the ones she's found beccause the smell's getting her too excited and you just have to desensitize it and make it a normal smell for her because she''s seeing them as too high value to give to you

 

another thing that worked with mine is chucking something in a pond, she'd go and get it then drop it when she got out so she could shake the water off and you can take that time to take whatever you threw and praise her lots for it and it will click, good way to get them swimming aswell :D:D

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Try working in a long hallway go back too basics like puppy basics you got too get the dog interested in retrieving wether it's for reward Ie a treat or a fuss like make it a game make it fun not sure how long you've had the dog but keep at it it should come good with patience

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Cheers for the reply lads! I've just started practising again simple close retrieves down our yard so she can't run round me and giving her a treat. I've had her just over a month now, think she may of just got a little possessive of the rabbit she found. I'll keep working on it hopefully she turns out okay ??

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Get her used to carrying things, play tug and then drop the rope and let her hold it for a bit and follow you trying to play more, then keep doing it and practice the "leave it" command and give her lots of praise if she drops it at your feet so she sees giving stuff to you as fun.if she's retrieving toys and dummies then try chucking a fairly fresh (dead :laugh: ) bunnyif you can get your hands on one, she might not bring back the ones she's found beccause the smell's getting her too excited and you just have to desensitize it and make it a normal smell for her because she''s seeing them as too high value to give to you

 

another thing that worked with mine is chucking something in a pond, she'd go and get it then drop it when she got out so she could shake the water off and you can take that time to take whatever you threw and praise her lots for it and it will click, good way to get them swimming aswell :D:D

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Also thanks rosered I have been dragging her toys on the floor abit which gets her excited then throwing it for her. She doses bring it back, but sometimes drops too early so I've been trying to slowly move back so I can take it from her. And haha yeah I asked someone to get me some rabbits so I can try do some work with that. I didn't really think of it like that me spoiling her fun with my scent ?? Explains it.

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I did also take her to a pond the other week, it's shallow and slowly gets deeper to introduce her, she retrieved it but I wasn't aloud that one either, took a while to get it back she just ran circles round me. Maybe just a little too excited and a little headstrong ?

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The only thing about dummies and toys is they may not be high prised enough to substitute for the huge emotional high of the real thing,

 

If you equate food as highly prized item , I would be encouraging the mutt to feed in your space , not talking about a bowl here get the dog making contact to eat , front legs up on you , getting plenty of contact , dogs are very aware of their own space and very instinctive with food

 

If you nullify the instinctive behavior , which is fear , you can ease out a lot of other little niggles ,

 

What I'm banging on about is that before you approach the retrieve on its own , you need to be conifident that the pup is at ease in your space bud with emotionally charging items

Edited by Casso
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My pup been doing this. Chased the c**t all round the woods today as he hides the catch and i cant bear losing a catch its pisses me right off he only does it when other dogs around if just me and him hes fine although he has done it [BANNED TEXT] just me and him are out. Quite frustrating ive put it down to lack of game and going to pile the work into him.this season he will retrieve anything else. Fine also i think hes doing this as i fed him alot of rabits with there jackets on

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That does sound about right, that she values the rabbit much higher, I have just read skycats retrieve training and thought that also had some good ideas, with the whole tug playing to make it more fun. I'll have to try the eating techinique! Thankyou, and it's a pain in the arse isn't it, I was trying to not get frustrated but when she just refused to come back I couldn't help it. Think I'll just start to go over things slowly working the way up, and try some dead game retrieves. Mines the same with other dogs though she won't concentrate on commands so I just walk her on my own

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