[bernokarl]

I like to think of my self as a decent dog keeper/trainer , My dogs are
both healthy and well balanced in the brain/body great family pets .

I am having a hard time getting my apbt to release its tug rope ,
When I get him amp up to play he gets beside him self and all of a sudden
he cant listen to my command (DROP ! is the command I use to release).

Dose anybody have a tactic they use to make this a littler easy ?

My german also has a problem listening when she has her ball she also
shuts out my commands all she can think of s me throwing that ball .

[Miakoda]

Go back to the basics. While inside in a controlled environment (no distractions), start by giving the dog the rope yet never release your hold on it. Instruct the dog to "take." Once the dog has the rope in his mouth, offer a small treat with your other hand while saying "Drop!" at the same time. (I really like to use small pieces of uncooked hot dogs as dogs LOVE these!!) As soon as the dog releases the rope, give him the treat. Repeat this 5-10 times. After that, put the rope toy away.

As your dog gets better and better with the "Take!" and "Drop!" commands, vary it up by doing the exercise in other locations and outside where distractions occur. It might take a while, but more than likely, your dog will figure out real quick that if he wants to play, he's got to listen and if he listens he will get rewarded (of course eventually the reward will be verbal praise and to throw the toy upon the well-done "Drop!".

In the meantime, do not play tug-of-war or anything else with the rope! The dog should never have access to it unless YOU grant him access to it via the training. This will teach your dog a) that this toy is sacred and much desired and b) if he wants to play with it, he must obey the laws.

Edit: I also want to mention that at any time the dog refuses to give up the toy or puts his mouth on you while you are attempting to pick up the toy or whatnot, the game is over......the rope gets put away and you ignore the dog.

Excellent advice, but one thing I'd like to clarify is the use of treats when teaching the "drop". When you use treats to teach, make sure you know the difference between a lure, a bribe and a reward. A lure is to teach the dog by "luring" them into a desired position, i.e. hot dog over the nose and pulled up and back to teach a sit. The "reward" is given when the job is done. A bribe is to stand at the back door with a box of Milkbones yelling "Cookies!!!! I've got COOKIES!!!!" to get the dog to come inside.

That's a no no .

That being said, when you use a lure to teach "drop", keep the lure in a closed fist so the dog cannot see it, but can certainly smell it. If the dog can see the treat, you turn it into a bribe ("I'll give you this for that"). If the dog can only smell it, then it turns into a lure.

Get it ?

[Rai_77]

Originally Posted by bernokarl I like to think of my self as a decent dog keeper/trainer , My dogs are both healthy and well balanced in the brain/body great family pets . I am having a hard time getting my apbt to release its tug rope , When I get him amp up to play he gets beside him self and all of a sudden he cant listen to my command (DROP ! is the command I use to release). Dose anybody have a tactic they use to make this a littler easy ? My german also has a problem listening when she has her ball she also shuts out my commands all she can think of s me throwing that ball .

What do you do following the command? When I say 'drop', if it is not dropped immediately, he gets a 'no', if he still doesn't drop it, it gets removed from his mouth.

[Miakoda]

Originally Posted by Rai_77 What do you do following the command? When I say 'drop', if it is not dropped immediately, he gets a 'no', if he still doesn't drop it, it gets removed from his mouth.

I'm confused by this. Why tell your dog "No" when the dog still has the ball in his mouth? I reserve the word "No" for serious actions that the dog is actually partaking in such as actively digging in the trash or like Chipper did today, putting a head through a fenceboard to get at a neighbor's dog.

I don't get what standing there telling a dog "No" will do if he's just standing there looking back at you. I would think it would confuse him.

As for this training, I've never had an issue with it when starting at the beginning and not progressing to the next step until the dog has mastered the previous one. And if the dog tries to keep the rope in his mouth and refuses all verbal attempts to give it up, then I will manually take the rope from him, turn my back on him, and walk away putting the rope toy away. The game is now over.

[bernokarl]

Originally Posted by Miakoda Go back to the basics. While inside in a controlled environment (no distractions), start by giving the dog the rope yet never release your hold on it. Instruct the dog to "take." Once the dog has the rope in his mouth, offer a small treat with your other hand while saying "Drop!" at the same time. (I really like to use small pieces of uncooked hot dogs as dogs LOVE these!!) As soon as the dog releases the rope, give him the treat. Repeat this 5-10 times. After that, put the rope toy away. As your dog gets better and better with the "Take!" and "Drop!" commands, vary it up by doing the exercise in other locations and outside where distractions occur. It might take a while, but more than likely, your dog will figure out real quick that if he wants to play, he's got to listen and if he listens he will get rewarded (of course eventually the reward will be verbal praise and to throw the toy upon the well-done "Drop!". In the meantime, do not play tug-of-war or anything else with the rope! The dog should never have access to it unless YOU grant him access to it via the training. This will teach your dog a) that this toy is sacred and much desired and b) if he wants to play with it, he must obey the laws. Edit: I also want to mention that at any time the dog refuses to give up the toy or puts his mouth on you while you are attempting to pick up the toy or whatnot, the game is over......the rope gets put away and you ignore the dog.

Good advice : I also read and got the bribe , lure , and rewarded with hot dog .... Thanks for good help sometimes you just need to check your
self and this is mine . I have to control my emotions I do not put my hands
on my animals in any bad way but in my head im pissed off my dog will
not listen and I think it reflects in my training

[Miakoda]

Originally Posted by bernokarl Good advice : I also read and got the bribe , lure , and rewarded with hot dog .... Thanks for good help sometimes you just need to check your self and this is mine . I have to control my emotions I do not put my hands on my animals in any bad way but in my head im pissed off my dog will not listen and I think it reflects in my training

No problem. How do you think I learned?......I asked.