Should I play tug-of-war with my Golden Retriever Puppy?

Question

I've read and heard different opinions on this subject- but it's getting tough to find things to entertain him with and tire him out, without him resorting to chewing on our arms and ankles. Some people say you shouldn't do it because it encourages aggressive behavior- others say you should because it helps strengthen their teeth (and tires him out)- he has 2 Kong chew- toys and a favorite stuffed animal, but he has the attention span of well... a Golden Retriever Puppy. Looking forward to hearing what the community has to say. Thank you-

Answer 1

I played tug-of-war with both my German Shepherds back in the day and never had a problem. I play tug with my current three dogs also. The key, in my opinion, is to always win. (At least until he learns to fetch reliably). This eliminates any potential aggression because it helps teach the pup that you are boss. I like to encourage the mindset that it is your toy and he is just borrowing it.
If he bites at your fingers/hand/arm while playing tug, shout 'Ow!' and stop playing for a minute. He'll be confused at first but will get the idea eventually.
I do feel that if you have dominance issues already with a dog/puppy, then don't play tug-of-war, but stick with fetching, etc.
Good luck!

Answer 2

I've had a number of dogs and always played tug-of-war. The dog loves it and it's one of the best ways to play with it. As a puppy it is going to become more inquisitive and aggressive, but the key is to tell it NO whenever it does something you don't like. Give it the opportunity to bite your hand, then yell NO!, then do it again, if it bites, yell NO! repeating this training over and over again will assure that the dog will realize the difference between playing and hurting. Only play tug of war with things you want the dog to bite, don't wrestle with the dog and encourage it to bite your hands while playing. As a puppy it doesn't hurt much, but when the dog gets older, it will hurt and the dog won't understand why it was ok before and isn't ok now. I'm not an expert by any means, but I've had dogs all my life and this kind of logic has never done my wrong.

Answer 3

Oh yeah, nothing like lil puppy teeth. I had a german shepard who was very hyper as a puppy. If I was you id get him into puppy class. Large breeds want to work and please there owners. Labs are very intelligent. So he's probably just lacking ways to stimulate him. You cant just get a large breed and say, heres a few toys sum water n food, have a great life. haha Class is only once a week you do the rest at home. I used fat free hot dogs cut up in pieces to train my dog with. He went all the way to agility training top of his class. Sometimes i thought he was human. Toooo smart. If you live in a warm state get him his own plastic pool and throw some tennis balls in there. Labs love water. If he gets bored with that turn on the sprinkler. Take him for walks and to the park. Get him used to being on a leash, no choke collars, use a pinch collar if you have to. Its like power steering for dogs and it dont hurt them. Let the leash drag behind him while hes in the house. Only do this when your home. you dont want to leave it on him when noones there. It could be life threating if he got caught on something n was hug up and unable to breath. Large breeds need constant attention and when there puppies you want to train them asap so as an adult dog he will be obiedent. I also wouldnt play tug-of-war with him. It does encourage aggresiveness and rip out his puppy teeth befor there ready to come out. Train him! He'll love it and you'll be suprised how smart he is. He will strenghten his teeth by chewing on bones. Also when you train puppys you have to always keep it interesting cuz puppies do lose that attention span fast. That dont mean hes stupid, just a puppy. Lots of encouragement and keep him moving. Treats do the trick. I used the hot dogs cuz they love um and there soft so he can eat it fast and not lose that attn span. Good Luck

Answer 4

I have personally played tug-of-war with ALL of my dogs when they were puppies until the day they passed and not one of them has had any 'aggression issues'.

If you let the puppy get out of hand with it and start biting you while your playing then - yes you can have aggression later on. As long as you are in control and control your puppys behavior then you are going to be fine.

Trust me, with a puppy running around you need a good way to tire him out! :]

Good Luck & Hope I Helped!

Answer 5

A little tug-of-war can't hurt, but doing it all the time can make it a habit. Imagine trying to get something off of your puppy by pulling it - and making the puppy pull even harder. (It's amazing how strong they can be...)

To tire your puppy out, throw a tennis ball for him to fetch. They especially love it since they're retrievers.

Good luck!

Answer 6

Yes, they love it. Just be warned that he will want to play tug-of-war for the rest of his life. Just don't play it aggressively and for short periods at a time so YOU don't tire. Let him win sometimes and teach him to bring it back to you for more "fun". Also vary different games. Golden Retrievers can have a super varied bag of tricks as they are highly intellegent. You are a lucky dog owner.

Answer 7

i work with dogs, have 2 of my own (one is 10 weeks old) and have owned many in the past. playing tug of war is FINE! it doesnt encourage aggressive behavior at all. puppies play naturally and this is one of the games they play with each other. my 2 dogs play it all the time. tug of war is by NO MEANS aggressive. if u push ur dog and kick it gently playing with it and encourage it 2 bite ur arms etc, THAT is encouraging aggression. playing a game which comes naturally to them anyway is not bad at all, have fun with ur pup! =)

Answer 8

As long as you train him to only play rough with his toys and not your stuff, its a great way to play! My sister managed to train her dog this way and all we have to do is tell him 'No!' when he gets too rough, 'enough!' when he wants to play but we don't, and 'Leave it!' when he gets to something hes not supposed to have. He responds right away, it works every time. Spray bottles work great and reinforce training and good behavior with treats. Of course, it depends on the personality and breed of the dog with how well they respond to training. Golden retrievers are smart, so it should not be too difficult for you!

Good Luck and congrats on your new family member!

Answer 9

We had a rottweiler puppy and sometimes played tug-a-war, she isn't at all aggresive now but she will grab a towl and "kill it" by shaking it like she would a tug-toy.

Answer 10

well people who say you shouldn't are wrong. first not playing
tug-o-war with a rope or toy makes them want to tug on you because they play it naturaly so they thing your a giant tug toy, teach them to play with rope not people