Building Ball Drive

[5shot]

I am a new GSD owner, and I am wondering:

If you build ball drive in a new puppy will you create a monster in the house? Do they turn it on and off just by sight/or lack of the ball?

I am more interested in training him for obedience (not for any formal trials or anything), and the ball/toy reward seems like the way to go.

I want this pup to grow up being grounded and relaxed, and I don't want to head down this road and regret it later. We want an obedient, mellow pet, and not some high strung, Tazmanian Devil.

Thanks

[martemchik]

From my experience this really isn't something you can build. A dog either has prey drive (the want to chase a ball) or not. Most will have some sort of want but its not something you can take and train into them, especially if you want to use it as a reward. If your dog doesn't want to retrieve the ball it will never be a reward to him, you will be able to get him to retrive by offering a reward.

How old is your pup? Most don't develop a drive until they are about 6-7 months old. If you know what the parents were like you will be able to tell the kind of drive your pup might have. They never turn into tazmanian devils, but there are some that will do anything for a tennis ball. My dog will go to the end of the world for a tennis ball, but is able to turn it off once in a while.

[clearcreekranch]

You can start obedience by using food rewards. And as for ball driving making your dog crazy in the house, you can have house rules, i.e., no rough housing inside. My dog has crazy toy drive and we did let him play in the house when he was a puppy. As he got bigger and older, he was taught that play was limited in the house and the outside was the play area.

[Stella's Mom]

My girl has crazy ball drive when the ball is in the presence of other dogs or if you are throwing it in the park.

I sometimes hold it in my hand while walking her when I want to get her attention away from distractions, I am using it as a reward instead of food in that instance. I will make it look like fun in my hand and then give it to her, but she will drop it after awhile when walking because there is no competition for it.

I guess what I am trying to say is that in the house, my dog does not go ball crazy because I never throw it in the house and no one is withholding it from her in the house. It is there and that is it.

[5shot]

Originally Posted by martemchik

From my experience this really isn't something you can build. A dog either has prey drive (the want to chase a ball) or not. Most will have some sort of want but its not something you can take and train into them, especially if you want to use it as a reward. If your dog doesn't want to retrieve the ball it will never be a reward to him, you will be able to get him to retrive by offering a reward.

How old is your pup? Most don't develop a drive until they are about 6-7 months old. If you know what the parents were like you will be able to tell the kind of drive your pup might have. They never turn into tazmanian devils, but there are some that will do anything for a tennis ball. My dog will go to the end of the world for a tennis ball, but is able to turn it off once in a while.

I asked the question based on reading this article -

Playing with Prey Drive: The Key to Attitude and Enthusiasm in Performance Dogs - The Dog Athlete

If the dog can learn that it is only appropriate outside, then all should be good.

The pup is still at the breeder's right now, and I am just doing my "research" so that I get started on the right track. This is our first dog in about 10 years, and back then, prior to the far reaching Internet, we were more of the disciplinarian school, but I am going to do it differently this time.

[Cassidy's Mom]

Having good working drives doesn't necessarily mean he'll be a Tazmanian Devil in the house. Halo is a drivey little thing (she SCREAMS to get going at scentwork and flyball class when she's being restrained), but she's not at all hyper at home. I have spent a lot of time reinforcing calm behavior, and doing impulse control exercises from the time she was a young puppy - mat work is great for this. She knows, for example, that the way to make me let her get a toy is to lay down and look at me. When I work with her and a flirt pole I'll make her down on her mat while I tease her with the toy, then I'll release her to get up and play. I'll have her out the toy and then give it back a time or two, then send her back to the mat again. Calm behavior and attention are what makes the fun happen.

[5shot]

Thanks Debbie

[Cassidy's Mom]

Where are you getting your puppy from?

I like to use both food and toy rewards. I used to use pretty much all food, although we'd put some structure and rules to playtime too, but Halo is my first working line GSD and I've learned how to use toys more. I wish I'd started sooner, like you're going to do! I really didn't know what to do with her drives when she was younger.

As a general rule, no matter what you're training for, food is good for calm, slowing down, and thinking. Toys are good for building drive, enthusiasm and speed. (Great article by Denise Fenzi, she's awesome!) In agility, for example, if the dog is doing everything correctly but is too slow, working for a tug reward would be the way to go. If the dog is bombing through the course at high speed but blowing off contacts or missing obstacles, food might be better to get more control. Food is also easier to use whenever you want to get a lot of repetitions in. Feeding a tiny treat takes a lot less time than throwing a ball and waiting for the dog to bring it back, or whipping out a tug and playing for a few seconds or more.

But whatever you use as a reward, motivational, reward based marker training is going to be your best bet, especially when he's young. Marking and rewarding behavior that you like, such as attention on you, will build a great foundation for when you start actually training specific commands.

[5shot]

He's coming from Majestic Kennels, and both the sire and dam are from Ca-Ji Shepherds.

He is going to be a family pet, first and foremost, but I want to keep him active physically and mentally.

I work from my home shop, so we will be bonding 24/7.

[Germanshepherdlova]

Question: Do you build ball drive or are they born with it, and either they have it or they don't? My GSD has had crazy ball drive since he was a puppy-no teaching necessary. My lab-hardly any ball drive at all. I thought prey drive was genetic.