Tugging With a Toy While on a Leash – Bad Dog Agility Academy

Tugging With a Toy While on a Leash

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  • emeraldcov@gmail.com says:

    My dog who is 2, so not a puppy, is tugging some now. Is it better at this point to build duration or add some distraction?

    • Esteban Fernandezlopez says:

      Distraction, including having both hands on the toy at the same time, touching/petting the dog, and doing this in new places or around people. Avoid thinking about duration and focus on quality of the tugging, always praising MORE for strong tugging, especially when faced with a distraction.

      • emeraldcov@gmail.com says:

        She has a good strong tug now, and holds on when I touch her side or head. I am limiting or practice sessions to just a few good tugs and some tossing the toy for her to retrieve. Next steps? Changing rooms, touching other parts of her body?

        • Esteban Fernandezlopez says:

          No need to teach other body parts for now, try in some new environments with no (or few) distractions, and also try her usual environment, but add some distractions, like empty food bowls on the ground, obstacles like the tunnel, perhaps some low value toys. You can also add a person standing, and then walking around, and then clapping softly or waving their arms around.

  • Lisa hagelstein says:

    How do you build duration. My pup will bite and tug for a few seconds and then release.

    • Esteban Fernandezlopez says:

      With puppies and young dogs, it’s not as important to build duration. Simply praise them when they are tugging with a little extra praise when they tug with a challenge (like petting them) or when they weight shift backward. Sessions should be less than a minute total, with a dog tugging for a few seconds at a time. For puppies everything should be a lot of fun with encouragement for tugging.


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