All Things Dog Blog

Friday, October 7, 2011

Multi-Toy Fetch:
Tanner's New Mental Game

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

Tanner has become so good at Fetch that I began to notice he was getting less exercise when we play. Gone are the days when he romped around the pool with the toy in his mouth, celebrating his retrieval from the depths.

Tanner now dutifully returns the toy to my feet, and gazes at me with a stare, as if to say,

"Well, boss; when's the next toss coming, huh?"

I began to wonder if I would soon have a couch potato on my hands, when one day I realized he may need an additional mental challenge. The game had gotten too easy and not as exhilarating. Enter the Multi-toy Fetch Game, our new invention.

Tanner's newest challenge is to remove all of the 4 toys that I toss into the pool at different locations, before I will toss any one of them again. Sounds easy, right? Not so much! This was definitely the mental challenge I had hoped for when I first tried it yesterday. I now have my ADD Dog back!

The Retrieval game looks something like this:

Tanner is released to Fetch and heads off after one of the toys.
Seeing another toy in his peripheral vision, he suddenly changes directions and swims toward the second toy.
Before arriving at the second toy, he sees yet a third toy floating nearby and redirects himself once again. You get the idea, right?
When Tanner finally grabs a toy, I think he's going to bring it to the pool deck. Oops. New redirect and suddenly he's swimming for the steps with 2 toys in his mouth. Great!
Oh no! Now he has dropped the 2 toys and is swimming after a third toy that he's spotted in the far end of our lap pool.
And so the game goes. Thirty minutes later I finally called Tanner out of the pool and rinsed him. He was unsuccessful in retrieving 3 of the toys. One managed to make it to the pool deck, but was not even returned to my feet.

This is going to be a long training period, I fear. Yet I'm excited to see how it goes and to learn what there is to learn from this new approach. I'll keep you posted. Please cheer for Tanner. He may be feeling like a bit of a failure tonight.

This post is part of the Saturday Pet Blogger Hop hosted by Confessions of the Plume, Two Little Cavaliers, and Life with Dogs. Their rules for participation follow, as copied from Life with Dogs' site on 10/5/11:

Link up your pet blog name and URL using the Linky Tool below. You only need to add your link once to be seen on all the Saturday Pet Blogger Blog Hop Linky Tools for that week. Note that if your blog is not pet related your link will be removed. Also note that only one post per blog is acceptable, and links promoting giveaways that are unrelated to the pet blogger hop will be removed. This is a community building exercise and not a promotional vehicle – please treat it as such.
Grab the “Saturday Pet Blogger Blog Hop” button on the right hand side of this site and include it in your Saturday Blog hop post so that your readers will know what is going on. *Note – posting is optional. Feel free to just link and follow.
Follow your co-hosts listed in the first 3 slots of the Linky Tool.
Follow as many other blogs on the linky as you’d like.
Take a moment to comment on the blogs telling them you’re from the blog hop.
Follow back when you get a new follower through the Saturday Pet Blogger Hop.
Make friends and grow. ♥

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Exercising Fido When You Can't Join In

by Carrie Boyko, CEB

Home from vacation, I'm grappling with more than just jet lag. After a minor scuffle with a scooter turned into more than just minor, I find myself stitched up, swollen, sore and worse yet--unable to walk the dogs. Ugh!

So here I am, gimpy and unable to do the one thing I talk about the most on this site--exercise my dog. It's time to get creative and use my mind to wear out Tanner and Oliver. Here's the plan. If you can add anything, please leave a comment or join in the conversation on our Facebook page. I'd love your help!

Start the day with a treat dispensing toy to make mealtime last longer
Laser tag mid morning
Fetch with soft toys at mid-day
Mind stimulating puzzle toys on and off throughout the afternoon
Practice the Call command on and off all day
Train the Stay command in various locations as I get up and move
Serve dinner in a scatter, giving each dog a room to play "go seek your food."

Too bad I can't train Tanner to bring me a drink from the kitchen. Better yet, I'd really like to get him to take Oliver on a walk around the yard. Tanner knows the boundaries and won't leave them, but Oliver always goes outside on a leash because of birds of prey in our area. Tethered to Tanner by a leash, Oliver would be quite safe from predators. Is there anyone out there that has tried something like this? What an interesting skill for a dog to learn. Maybe it's time to call on our trainers, huh?