Training puppy to tug- pup won't clamp down

[Cassidy's Mom]

Originally Posted by Liesje

We had a braided fleece one and it lasted less than two training sessions. Pan bit it clear in half.

Bad Pan.

Halo is really good about targeting the ball and not the fleece. If she grabs the fleece accidentally I stop tugging immediately and say "ball" and she'll redirect onto the ball. It's not going to last forever, but keeping her teeth off the material has helped it stay in pretty good shape for quite a while.

[Liesje]

Also the brand new pink tug, he's already pulled the ball over the knot So that was one tournament and one practice. I'll try to push it back but I'm not sure there's enough cord left on to make a bigger knot.

[Cassidy's Mom]

Oh yeah, Halo's done that too. I have knots on either side of the balls, but they've tightened up from tugging so they're somewhat smaller than they were when I first made it, and the balls will migrate. I just push them back into place, but that may not work as well with your tug. I could add more knots to mine since it's around 5 feet long but then the knots would be HUGE! None of the balls actually came off, they just moved around.

Her original tug with tennis balls did not have knots, so the balls didn't stay in place at all, which seemed like a design flaw and was one of the things I didn't like about it - the quality of the braiding was very nice, but she (Tweak's Tugs) must not have been used to the tug power of a GSD, lol!

[AgileGSD]

I have always tugged with my puppies during teething but they were always willing. If inks isn't so into tug, it's probably best to wait. Instead you can work on developing his prey drive with the flirt pole for now. Just a few short sessions at a time, stop before he wants to stop.

Denise Fenzi has a couple excellent articles about developing tug drive:

The Dog Athlete - Selecting the Best Toys to Train and Motivate

The Dog Athlete - Playing With Prey Drive


Really though, dogs don't need to be tug crazy to be competitive performance dogs. Sure, people like it if they do but it's really not a requirement

[Pooky44]

Originally Posted by wildo

And he does have some softness, for sure. And as a young adolescent, he certainly has a long way to go with maturing. So yes, it could be all three of those things.

I think you nailed it right there. Softness. He may be intimidated by you even though you aren't intimidating. Try to find a very high value toy. Also try a little (friendly) growling and make it fun. Let him win every time.
My dog started out soft with regard to tugging also. Once she wasn't intimidated and knew we were having fun she became a real good tugger.

[lhczth]

Willy, tugging while teething isn't always an issue (heck, I used it as a way to get Nike's puppy teeth to come out), but since you are having problems it is something to consider. I remember we had a club member whose male was MISERABLE when he was teething. He moaned and his ears dropped and he was the most pitiful creature you have ever seen.

[carmspack]

"Wow- that was an awesome read! MANY of the things she said about the "sleepy" stage I see in Jinks. It's not totally fair to say since I haven't REALLY started any intense training, but the environmental curiosity, the lack of tug desire, the attention span, the lack of fetch, etc- sounds so much like Jinks. It must be (ahem- WILL be) fun when they come out of their shell and really start turning on the switch! Looking forward to it!
and then this "I'm hoping my new puppy Jinks (who desperately needs some recall training) "

Wildo , the little Jinks , was a rescue , who you so kind heartedly took in . Chances are that he was there because he was distracted and would did not engage with the person who had him , did not offer play , deciding to run away , maybe avoid getting collected.

You don't know his back story or his genetic history.

So -- you have to accept him for what he is without superimposing your expectations that you have based on a "breed norm".

What I would do long before tug , which is adversarial or oppositional and requires confidence and a connection allowing the dog to judge you , playing? means it ? , is to do everything with proximity and comfort in decisions the dog makes - positive , positive , and recalls with no option possible for not recalling .

[AgileGSD]

Originally Posted by carmspack

Wildo , the little Jinks , was a rescue , who you so kind heartedly took in . Chances are that he was there because he was distracted and would did not engage with the person who had him , did not offer play , deciding to run away , maybe avoid getting collected.

Why would you assume this is why a young puppy ended up in rescue?

I took in a rescue Mal pup who had no interest in tugging or toys for the first couple weeks I had him. None at all. Wouldn't chase things and was afraid of stuffed toys or toys that were thrown. I did happen to know his background and pedigree, I was surprised he seemed to have so little interest coming from such a strong working pedigree, rescue or not. I kept trying though and now you really would have no idea he was so weird about toys at first. Actually might be a little too into tugging now What did it for him finally was the flirt pole and just being more confident about things.

FWIW he was put up on CL 48 hours after his new owner got him from the breeder. He had no issues engaging with his new owner or running away or avoid being caught. He was anti-social towards strangers though and was just all around way more work than the young guy who had never had a dog other than a childhood GSD thought he would be.

Dogs are given up for all different reasons. People get puppies with unrealistic expectations than freak out when they act like puppies, cry at night, chew stuff up, "don't listen", etc. Sadly many of the Mals in rescue are from working pedigrees or out of dogs from working parents but bred by people who didn't carefully place them and don't care about what happens to them after the sale. There aren't "pet lines" of Mals the way there are with GSDs. There's what people call "BYB" but their dogs are working bred. Not all working bred dogs are going to be high drive but I'd be surprised if Jinks is going to be a low drive dog. Chances are fair that like with Roust, he didn't have any imprinting done early on, maybe hadn't played with toys much and just needs a boost in confidence and the right game to get him going.

[carmspack]

maybe expectations were high from or for a "working breed" and the guy did not have the time or patience to wait - wanted more of a guarantee , and since Malinois are not your sought after "pet" dog , took the easy route and had a rescue find the re-home. The important thing is that Wildo not go in to the same pattern expecting things quickly or on a schedule and possibly repeat what has already happened .
Doing the same thing does not get you a different solution.

That is why -- get the dog interested in you , engage with the dog in activities close by , non confrontational , win win for the dog.

I have had a very well known breeder of GSD (no longer active) that would breed Malinois , to cover both bases for service and then the market for malinois fell flat . I was offered an entire litter and the dam for no charge , would be driven up from US to my location.

It was hard to find homes for malinois .

[carmspack]

as KatDog said in the thread "I think I've got it" "I am absolutely not the expert but I have come to think that engagement and focus are foundations for just about everything else."

good advice there , good advice here . You need to develop a relationship with the dog first , not when you feel it , when the dog feels it . You will know because you will have a shift in behaviour . Also good piece of advice on that thread -- reduce , limit, or eliminate the exposure and playtime with the gsd.