# Playing Rough with his toys



## goldencity (May 26, 2005)

Dont worry about him chewing the toys, a puppy's teeth will be very itchy!

Rather him chase and chew the toys than your best shoes, the newspaper, socks ect.

As for being possesive with his toys, remember, he does not have any toys. YOU have toys which you let him share. Every so often, pick up all the toys while he is watching and put them out of reach where he can still see them. You could "play" with one yourself. Then you can let him join in with the toy you choose. 
You choose what sort of toy, when to play and for how long. 
We always used to take their toys away for a few minutes while they were playing, pretend to play with it or look at it carefully, then give it back. This way they learn to share , that you are in control and that its fun to be good.


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## pixiepurls (May 10, 2005)

Practive taking the toy from him, you have control when he's a puppy. Take the toy from hima nd have him sit (hold it high above his head) once he sits give it to him. Do this a few times in a row, a few times a day. Teaches him that your hand doesnt mean bad things, it means you get the toy back and gets to interact with you! Let him get out any frustration he wants on those toys!!! If your worried, dont play tug of war cause some say not to.


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## Tracy (May 15, 2005)

I've heard and read that it's best not to play tug of war with your puppies or dog, even if you can win now, once he gets older and bigger, you'll probably end up loosing and he'll begin to think he's the pack leader.

Although, I think he thinks that his leash is a form of tug of war. He'll always try to pull and pull each time I put a leash on him. So now, whenever he does start to pull I let go of the leash.


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## pixiepurls (May 10, 2005)

Yes and other research has said tug of war isn't bad. It's all up to you! So don't do it if you think it's bad, but get the puppy used to your taking the toy, and when you take it give it right back when he's calm so he learns two things. A) Giving up a toy isnt bad and B) Sitting pretty gets him a toy


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## goldencity (May 26, 2005)

Some dogs realy like to play tuggy- of ours, millie loves it but Daisys not botherd. If you start now by having a command like "leave" or "drop" and say that when she lets go of the toy you will end up ith a dog who will play nicely, and let go when you say. You can make the letting go of the toy and then being alowed to tug again part of the game
Sarah


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## goldenspirits (Jun 3, 2005)

I assume your puppy is still very young? Mine used to growl and bark at his toys too...I think it's normal. I have a very submissive pup/dog, so I don't think it means he is going to be agressive. At least it didn't for me. As long as it's only with his own toys, it's fine.


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## gold'nchocolate (May 31, 2005)

*Playing tug of war:*

:wavey: My dogs love to play tug of war. I have a Chocolate Lab and Sasha was my Golden ( she recently passed away ) . Neither breed is known for their aggression so you probably don't have to worry about them becoming aggressive just by playing that game with them. Hershey, my lab, even loves to play a game where I act like I'm stalking her and she'll wait until I just get to her and run off and then keep coming back so we can do it all over again. I have been playing this way with her since she was a pup (she's almost 11 yrs ) . I guess you have to know the disposition of your own dog. :wave:


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## Tracy (May 15, 2005)

I've let him play with his toys however he wants now, but it looks like he's getting worst, when he plays with any of his toys, it looks like he's trying to tear them apart. He bites them then swings his head left and right thinking that'll break the toys. 

We usually stand there to watch him play, most of the time he starts off just tearing his toys then he'll come attack us, like our toes, our legs and our clothes. It gets even worst outside, he'll jump up and bite us.

I'm worry that he might be too aggressive. He's always growing and barking at us. Just today i brought him outside in the yard to play, he stood there glaring at me waiting for me to move, right when i took one step he barked and started to jump and bite me. Should I get a professional trainer to stop this, or is it still too young to judge? He's right now 8 weeks and we've had him for one week.


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## goldencity (May 26, 2005)

Hi Tracy, First of all, dont worry, he's only 8 weeks old and you've only had him 1 week! He's just a baby.

You say he picks up his toys and bite them and shakes them from side to side? Thats normal- remember, Goldens are hunting dogs , he's playing at "killing" it.
My Millie had one particular toy she loved to do that with, we called it "mr. Squeeky" she would pounce on it , bite it , growl ect much like your dog does.Keep a eye on the toys and get rid of any that get damaged- I had quite a high turn over of toys when they were pups!

You can join in the game, choose the toy, hold it and wiggle it he'll pounce or chase and so on. If you are in charge of the game, by choosing the toy holding it , throwing it and so on, he'll learn that playing with you is fun and he'll bond with you more.

Remember YOU are in charge! Every so often , take the toy away from him, look at it pretend to play with it and then let him have it back. You could use a command like "leave", "drop" or "dead" as he gives it to you. Then he'll learn the command for letting go and also that its good to give you thigs- he gets them back!

As for the bitting you and your clothes, again dont worry they all do it!
But they have to learn not to.
EVERY time he bites you or your clothes yelp loudly or give a loud and angry"NO". If he gets really silly, give him some time out in his crate or bed. Ignore him untill he has been calm for 5 minutes. Then you could try another game. Also have a look at the threads on bitting in this section of the forum...

Sorry to have gone on so much, bur your post sounded quite worried, hope the above helps, Sarah.:wavey:


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## timberwolfe (Apr 15, 2005)

You may end up needing professional help, but it will be counselling for you.  

The puppy's behaviour sounds normal. But there are times where you will want to pick it up and strangle it. This is where you need to keep your cool, take a deep breath, and remember, by the time they are 1 year old they are pretty good, by 2 years old they are nearly perfect. But there are times in the middle where they will push the limits. The important thing is to set the rules and be consistant.


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## Tracy (May 15, 2005)

thanks everyone! well if this is normal behavior in puppies, I guess i should stop being such a worry wart. It's just that in all these puppy guild books I read, they always say that puppy aggression is very serious and should be dealt with immediately by a professional trainer. 

Actually, there's never been times where I wanted to pick him up or strangle him, I've never actually been mad at him, i just worry for his sake and mine. I don't want him to grow up to be an aggressive dog and have to be put down if he attacks anyone


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## shadowsmom (May 27, 2005)

Goldencity is absolutely right!! My 15month old golden baby absolutely HATES time out. I know it sounds silly to say "time out" regarding a puppy but Goldens HATE being seperated from their family or "pack". They NEED to be with us so when he does a totally 'wrong' behavior, I tell him NO and then put him , in my case, I have a closed in porch behind my kitchen, close the sliding glass door AND close the blinds so he can't see you. Even for 2 minutes. He will come back in with a totally "sorry " attitude. While in time out, don't speak to him or anything. A minute or two is fine. They just relate the fact that whatever they did seperated them from their beloved family and they HATE it. An excellent training school I went to a while back used these types of methods and I found them better then a different one I went to that used the more traditional types of corrective behavior. There is a really good book thati have that elaborates on this type of training. Let me know if you are interested. Talk to you soon. Good luck


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