Do you think this is a good game to play with my dog?

[JPuckett1989]

I've decided to do a little game with sadie to try and build her creativity and maybe confidence? Pretty much all I do is take a box thats big enough so she cant reach the bottom by just bending over and i place a treat like a dog biscuit in the bottom of the box and let her figure out how to get to it. Does this seem like a good game to build her thinking and confidence? Any other games yall have used?

 

[Artfish]

That is a good one! We are doing something similar. We have also taught tricks by just shaping behaviors with the clicker, no luring, none of me showing him what to do, that's a big brain boost. I also like to hide toys and food in increasingly difficult areas. I also find safe things that do scare my dog and encourage him to work through it, praising and playing big time when he does.

A really big confidence boost is teaching games that has the dog doing a job. When you are carrying laundry and drop a sock, having your dog come and fetch it is very helpful, not to mention I do think the dogs feel some sense of satisfaction when they know they have done well and helped. Mine will take stuff I had over to him and toss it in the wastebasket (still a work in progress) and will also put his toys away. His demeanor really changes when he knows he is doing a job that is appreciated.

 

[JPuckett1989]

That is a good one! We are doing something similar. We have also taught tricks by just shaping behaviors with the clicker, no luring, none of me showing him what to do, that's a big brain boost. I also like to hide toys and food in increasingly difficult areas. I also find safe things that do scare my dog and encourage him to work through it, praising and playing big time when he does.

A really big confidence boost is teaching games that has the dog doing a job. When you are carrying laundry and drop a sock, having your dog come and fetch it is very helpful, not to mention I do think the dogs feel some sense of satisfaction when they know they have done well and helped. Mine will take stuff I had over to him and toss it in the wastebasket (still a work in progress) and will also put his toys away. His demeanor really changes when he knows he is doing a job that is appreciated.

Thats awesome with the laundry deal. Sadie just brings me stuff she's not supposed to have so I can take it away from her :rofl1: I think having mostly retriever in her blood works to her disadvantage

 

[Artfish]

Oh wow but think of how you can harness Sadie's power! She can bring the laundry one piece at a time (talk about a tired dog!), put empty cans in the recycling, throw away opened envelopes, fetch you a soda or beer from the fridge (and hopefully not a steak for herself), find AND fetch the remote and car keys, pick up things you drop, the list goes on! Yes, this is a dog who is begging for a job and Sadie can be your own personal assistant.

 

[JPuckett1989]

Oh wow but think of how you can harness Sadie's power! She can bring the laundry one piece at a time (talk about a tired dog!), put empty cans in the recycling, throw away opened envelopes, fetch you a soda or beer from the fridge (and hopefully not a steak for herself), find AND fetch the remote and car keys, pick up things you drop, the list goes on! Yes, this is a dog who is begging for a job and Sadie can be your own personal assistant.

The day i teach sadie to bring me a beer...will be the day I die the happiest man alive hahaha

 

[Snark]

A guy I used to work with taught his Lab to open the frig, grab a beer, close the frig and then bring him the beer. He said the hardest part was teaching her to close the door...

 

[Artfish]

I think closing the fridge can be taught by targeting a flat square on the floor with a paw, then moving the target up onto the fridge door, then gradually phased out. Opening the door can be solved by attaching a rope tug to the handle. But how to train the dog to not help itself to an early dinner...?

.....yes I am indeed going to try this! Our house must be slanted a tad because the fridge door doesn't always want to close, so it would be a big help to just send the pooch to shut it.

 

[Criosphynx]

heeling between legs is a great confidence booster if the dog has proximity issues..


what are your dogs specific issues, it would be easier to recommend a game that way.

 

[Doberluv]

Tug of war boosts confidence. Rules need to be installed though. Must "give" when asked, no grabbing or lunging for the toy uninvited, no teeth on skin or game stops for 30seconds before another try. Some people like to use only one specific toy for tug. Some people want to always be the one to start and stop the game. Letting the dog win most of the time builds confidence.

Whenever you take something from your dog, be sure to give something just as good or better as you take the thing away. You don't want to spoil your dog's ambition for retrieving. Constantly taking things or punishing when taking things can make a retriever or any dog hesitate to pick things up and bring back to you.

101 Things to Do with a Box | Karen Pryor Clickertraining

Teaching tricks, I think builds confidence...obedience training, dog sports, like agility, using positive methods all go toward building confidence. Anything that makes them use their minds and bodies, playing with their owners etc adds to a dog's enrichment in life. Having the dog earn things makes him feel secure. He is participating in how he gets his resources (things he needs and likes) and how he goes about things. That all goes toward building creative thinking and confidence.

 

[Maxy24]

That would be good to build her confidence as long as she succeeds, so if it's too hard for her to get by herself and she fails it won't work. If it is too hard you might shape it instead (click and reward for steps in the right direction).

Great confidence boosters are games involving obstacles the dog has to use (like agility but you can use whatever types of obstacles you can come up with, even something like walking over tarp or other different surfaces). Again if the dog is nervous shaping can help them be sure they are doing it right. Good for socialization too.

 

[lizzybeth727]

I think closing the fridge can be taught by targeting a flat square on the floor with a paw, then moving the target up onto the fridge door, then gradually phased out.

Yep, and then you have to teach the dog to paw the door closed WITH the beer in her mouth. THAT's the hard part.

(Hey, that's adduction training. )

 

[JPuckett1989]

heeling between legs is a great confidence booster if the dog has proximity issues..


what are your dogs specific issues, it would be easier to recommend a game that way.

Her only issues is just being reserved towards strangers,and being in a new place and hearing sounds she's not used to. We just moved a couple weeks ago and sometimes she thinks she hears someone outside and starts huffing and snorting,sometimes growling,and she has barked once though rarely barks. With new people shes very reserved going up to them and when people come to her. I always have people giver her treats but we dont have people come over very often,and all my friends are back home in atlanta. Overall just trying to build her confidence towards new and foreign sounds,and objects.