Ok I know it's probably not a type of question to ask here, because the question here seem to be about the health of pups and dogs, but I don't know what to do. Lol. Okay, I did Google fetch, and I found one that seemed promicing. It says to toss the toy a few passes away, still in your reach, then once the dog has it, to hold a treat under his nose until he lets go then praise him and give him the treat. But my dog caught on to something else, when I toss the toy, he pounces it, bites it, then runs back at me looking at me like "give me a treat" but he doesn't accually bring the toy, just bites and leaves. Its very funny but I need this kind of trick, because he's a terrier, and has a lot of energy, sometimes keeps me up at night. So I would really like it if you could advise me. Thanks

You play with the dog and you don't need treats. You just need to talk with the dog and reward with love. When you throw the toy do tell the dog anything? Do you play tug of war with the dog ?

Terriers are not known retrievers. Just because it is a dog, doesn't mean its going to be an All-American fetching monster.

If you want your dog to fetch, you can find a trainer who trains for a forced fetch. Its not any fun for the dog.. and unless this is going to be a hunt/sport dog, I see no reason for you to do it.

There are other things you can do with your dog to tire them out such as tug-o-war. You can also sign up for obedience classes or agility classes... Or just plain ol rough housing...

Not every dog fetches. Sad but true.

Good luck.

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Originally Posted by califdadof3

You play with the dog and you dont need treats. You just need to talk with the dog and reward with love. When you throw the toy do tell the dog anything? Do you play tug of war with the dog ?

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Yes I do play tug of war. Though it doesn't seem to be burning enough of his energy. We don't have obedience schools in south africa :( but I wouldn't want to force this on to my dog. I would like him to enjoy fetching and retrieving. I know terriers need a lot more patience, but if fetch won't work, could you maybe give me another excersize? Because he kept me up again last night. I need one that really burns energy.

Well how long is he home alone? Do you have a back yard?

Getting a dog to play a game, such as fetch, needs lots of practice. Throw a ball and let him run after it. When he comes back (even if he comes back with nothing) throw a second ball.. and so on. Its not really fetch.. But it will get him to run.

Do you ride bike? Go jogging? Enjoy walks? You can always try those as well.

You can order DVDs on how to train your dog obedience. You don't always need someone telling you what and how to teach your dog. Obedience is always a great tool to tire a dog out mentally. A mixture of play and obedience will work even better.

With him keeping you up at night, have you ever considered a crate? It would keep him in one area instead of wondering around and waking you up.

You can try taking him to dog parks or even take him over to a friends house that has another dog that he can plan with.

Terrier breeds are very smart.. sometimes too smart. If you don't exercise their brain as much as their bodies, you're going to get a naughty pup. Its just going to take some time to figure out what the two of you enjoy doing.

As far as him keeping you up at night.. that's just bad behavior. I would suggest a crate and maybe even some discipline. Night time is for sleep, not play. Dogs are smart, they know the difference.

Thanks. I will look into these things and let you guys know how it's going later on. :)