OverWatch K9 Academy

Jul 11, 2024 1:47:40 PM

When a tennis ball goes flying into the air it is mimicking prey running away from the dog. This pulls instincts that can be traced back to their ancestors, the wolves, who needed to hunt and catch prey for survival. Think a lion chasing a gazelle, or wolves chasing down a deer. When something moves quickly, it kicks a dog into prey drive. They react to it instinctually. Fetching allows dogs to channel their predatory instincts in a controlled and enjoyable way.

There are varying levels of prey drive in each dog, and certain breeds are purposely bred with the intention of having a higher level of prey drive or a lower level of prey drive. For example, hunting dogs are bred to have a high level of prey drive, to chase down and retrieve birds. Meanwhile, breeds with the purpose of guarding in mind, such as the English Mastiff or Great Pyrenees, are bred to have a very low level of prey drive. With the Great Pyrenees job of guarding a flock, a low level of prey drive means they will have no urge to chase or bite a member of their flock.

Some dogs will naturally bring a tennis ball back while others will be unwilling to, they would rather run around holding their prized prey in their mouths. Codependency and independence play a large role in whether a dog naturally brings the toy back to their person. In your dog’s mind they have just caught their prey, and they aren’t willing to share it (without being taught to)! 

Dogs that naturally return to their person with their toy are genetically predisposed to want to retrieve due to their codependency and strong willingness to please. Dogs that don’t want to bring the ball back have a high possession of their prey, and have to be taught to retrieve. Typically this high possession will be paired with the dog also being independent by nature.

The game of tug puts a dog into defensive drive, meaning that the dog wants to fight for the prey or the toy. Resource guarding is a common phrase used to describe a form of defensive drive. Just like prey drive, every dog has varying levels of defensive drive, and there are specific breeds that are bred with the goal of having a higher level of defense. These breeds are usually also bred with a higher level of independence, which is necessary for their job.

When the dog stays engaged in the game of tug for a longer duration and then wins the toy, they typically have a higher possession and aren’t predisposed to bringing the toy back. In the dog’s mind there is a risk of losing the prey!  

To engage in more tug play, the owner needs to restart the game of tug and continue to let the dog win the game. Begin with short durations of tugging, followed by releasing the toy to let your dog win. With several fast repetitions of this your dog will quickly become more willing to bring the object back to their owner, knowing that they will get to engage in the game of tug again, with the guarantee of winning the “fight”.