Tug of War

[lilLostduckie]

I am hoping to train my pup as some sort if sporting dog, but she isn't a huge fan anymore. She is 4 mos as of yesterday. Could it be related to teething? How can I build her drive?


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[TrickyShepherd]

Some dogs should not do tug during teething... while others could care less.

I've seen dogs start teething and literally just become lame in training. No urge to tug, sleeping during bite work, could care less about OB, and so on. Once teething stopped, they came out of their shell again and are doing fantastic.

Also, if she is teething and her mouth hurts and you tug too hard... depending on your dog's temperament, she may have associated tug with pain and doesn't want to do it. You can work her out of this, but you'll have to wait until she's finished with all her teeth popping out and in.

Depending on the dog, I usually just play softly with them... let them win everything automatically with no fight. Once they grab the toy... they get it. Or I use very soft treats. Lots of fun playing motions, high energy.... just have fun... but no pressure on the mouth.

Let her finish teething before you judge her ability/drive. For now, you can still play with her... just use soft toys.. and throw them instead of tug of war. Once it's all done and her mouth is comfortable again.... go back to it.