Does He Play With Toys?
A common answer to the above question is yes, he loves to chew and destroy toys and sometimes he will toss them around and play by himself with them. Sadly, only a small number of people ever describe a dog that will play with a toy with their owner. e.g.. fetch or retrieve.
Toys can do more than keep dogs entertained and occupied. Games with toys helps strengthen social bonds, and exercise both minds and bodies.
I recommend every dog has at least two sets of toys, and if they are a dog that likes to chew and destroy things, I recommend they have 3 sets.
Chew Toys: One set that they have access to all the time to satisfy the need to chew.
Toys to Entertain: Interactive treat dispensing toys to entertain and keep them busy.
Toys for Play: A set of toys that they only have access to when they are playing with their owners.
An important game to play and teach our dogs is retrieving/fetch. Since retrieving contains an element of chasing which most dogs love to do, we can use toys in our training put some controls on this behavior. We can also use the retrieve game in our training as the foundation for teaching a puppy/dog to come back when he is chasing something. If we get our training right, we can place our dog’s instincts under our control. If not, it results in those instincts being completely out of our control.
But before we can start to teach our dogs to play, we first need to select the right toys and know where they place on the desire scale. Start here for guidance on breed specific toys to get started. https://www.homeskooling4dogs.com/breed-specific-dog-toys
After selecting our dog’s toys, we can then move on to how to teach our dogs to play.
No toy is indestructible.
Anything the dog considers fun can be a toy.
Toys must be nontoxic, large enough that they cannot be swallowed, destroyed or ingested.
Rotate the toys your dog has access to at least every few days so they do not get bored with them.
Supervisor your dog with any new toy to be sure it is safe for your dog.
If your dog likes to chew and destroy things start here: https://www.homeskooling4dogs.com/chewing-destructive
Does your dog only listen if you have a treat? If you want to achieve control & cooperation, not submission from your dog, get started today with our online course “On The Right Track” so you and your dog can have a more abundant life!
You’re already training; the question is, are you going to get better at it?