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Winning tug causes aggression??

2K views 17 replies 15 participants last post by  doggiedad 
#1 ·
I recently posted this picture of Brutus on a popular social networking site



And I recieved this comment from a friend who has 3 GSDs:
"when playing tug never let the dog win, makes them aggressive, instead teach him to drop it. Obviously he wont the first few times so stick your thumb in the back of his jaw he'll open up"


I've never heard of this theory and I always figured I have to let him win every once in a while to keep his interest.... Will that really cause him to be aggressive or is this just a load of hooey?? :help:
 
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#4 ·
I agree w/Montana Scout, tug builds confidence, not aggression.
You control the game and it ends when you decide. Tug is a great mental game for pups, and it has an outlet for their oral"ness"
When teething begins, tug is put on hold...
 
#5 ·
I'm with the above posters. It is all about confidence. If your pup needs more - let him win more. If he needs a little less (we are talking about GSD puppies after all)- let him win less often =) If your pup is going to be biting and tugging anyway, better that it is a game with a toy vs. socks, pants, hands...
 
#7 ·
I hear this often on another forum as well. It one of those things that will cause your dog to feel they are dominant over you. Stronger dog wins, the are dominant.

I personally think it is ridiculous.
If you have control over your dog and the game, that is you dictate when it starts and end, you can out the dog and it doesn't get out of control (jumping and biting when you try to end it), I see nothing wrong with it.

The K9s here are trained with a tug toy and a good game of tug with their handler as a reward for everything from a good session of obedience to a good track. They always "win" (as someone else said, it builds confidence) and are allowed to take it back to the car (they go back into their vehicle between sessions). At the car, they are given the command to "out" and the toy is removed.
I haven't seen one develop aggression towards the handler over it.
We play tug with all three of our boys, no issues yet.

And really though, who wants to play if you always lose.

ETA-
Also, most dogs when they "win" will come back in for more play.
 
#11 ·
I hear this often on another forum as well. It one of those things that will cause your dog to feel they are dominant over you. Stronger dog wins, the are dominant.

I personally think it is ridiculous.
IMO its no different than "never let your dog on the bed or furniture, they will think they are dominant over you"

Bull****. I don't believe a dog can't tell the difference between a human and another dog. Tug is a game, and like said it can be used to build confidence.
 
#8 ·
Brutus looks like a terribly aggressive puppy,,you should send him to me so I can straighten him out LOL!
 
#9 ·
I agree, he's a snarling monster already! Nothing wrong with a healthy, fun game of tug- it's great physical as well as mental exercise. We played it a lot this summer in the house when it was too hot to play outside for very long. Don't listen to THEM- listen to US
 
#10 ·
I've heard this a lot as well, and think it's nonsense. I've always let my dogs "win" at least once in a while, and after 8 dogs I've never had a dangerously aggressive one.
I do think it's important to control the game, as with any else to do with the dog.

I'm not saying it can't happen, I suppose anything is possible, but I've never seen or heard of it, and by the looks of it, not many others have either.
 
#13 ·
Thanks everyone... I'll have to tell her to take her advice and shove it from now on lol.

And brutus is and extremely vicious horrible monster of an attack puppy... One wrong move and he'll rip you limb from limb!! Burglars beware!
 
#15 ·
Complete nonsense. In fact I would actually go the other way with. If you NEVER let the dog win, you can create a resource guarder because you are unfair with the toy.

I actually ALWAYS let my dogs win the tug game...but when I say "out" at the end...we're done and the toy goes away. So I'm the one who controls the game.
 
#17 ·
Complete nonsense. In fact I would actually go the other way with. If you NEVER let the dog win, you can create a resource guarder because you are unfair with the toy.

I actually ALWAYS let my dogs win the tug game...but when I say "out" at the end...we're done and the toy goes away. So I'm the one who controls the game.
I agree.

We read that advice too, so we started out not letting Bison win. But, as with most dog advice I get, I watch and see how my dog response and how I feel about it in action. I decided it wasn't advice that worked for us and started letting him win. I still control the toy when we are done though, because keeping the toy does make him what I call "bossy".

Glad we changed the strategy becasue now that he is 98 lbs of muscle, there ain't no way I am winning a game of tug. :whistle:
 
#16 ·
When we play tug I let Molly win all the time. I totally let go of the toy and she will walks back to me proudly with her head up high to play again. Molly is a very friendly and gentle GSD with absolutely no aggression:)
 
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