# I think I may need this



## sidewinder (Feb 3, 2016)

With a new puppy this summer, and an aging body, I'm thinking that this little device may be very handy later this summer!

https://youtu.be/Tw0pXBLjGnM?list=FLt-o6ErXyiIbe8h-lujuHDA


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

Abolutely! I've been thinking about ordering one.


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## sidewinder (Feb 3, 2016)

Does Maizie like to fetch? Seems like puppy will have to learn several other skills before he/she can play with the GoDogGo. Wait...Drop it...and of course, the whole bring the ball back concept. There are some really fun videos with this device on youtube.

I have a bad right shoulder...I know 2 throws and it will be done in for the day. This thing looks like it will do all the work...as long as the dog brings back the ball!  I can just sit on the grass and feed the machine until I can teach the puppy to feed the machine!


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## Mfmst (Jun 18, 2014)

If you get a ball with a great bounce, you really don't need much of a throwing arm. Buck has always loved soccer balls, which is great because I can kick farther than I can throw. Summer's not that far away, Sidewinder!!!


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

sidewinder said:


> Does Maizie like to fetch? Seems like puppy will have to learn several other skills before he/she can play with the GoDogGo. Wait...Drop it...and of course, the whole bring the ball back concept. There are some really fun videos with this device on youtube.


Does Maizie like to fetch...only completely obsessively! 
She got great marks on her retrieving skills when she was temperament tested. I bet your pup will be the same. Oh, and they'd learn how to use that machine in a New York minute!

Here's a short video of Maizie fetching old-fashioned style, made just for you  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5cJVFP-fpc


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## Deblakeside (Oct 2, 2015)

Maizie is both beautiful and athletic! I wish I could get Billy interested in retrieving!


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## sidewinder (Feb 3, 2016)

Maizie is gorgeous! She is so well proportioned, and has such beautiful movement...lovely. And her color is to die for. I am so ready for one of her sibs! Thanks for the video fetching demo...I hope my pup will be as talented.

I know the Scotties won't want to play with the new baby much..the youngest is 7, and they all take life much more seriously than any poodle. When the pup is little, I can probably tire him/her out with a walk, but that won't last long. I'm planning ahead for a teenager who needs lots of exercise to be a civilized person in the house! I have a feeling I'll be spending lots more time outside in the rain next winter. I just hope it doesn't rain as much as it did THIS winter!

Mfmst...pups will be born in a week or so! I should have my puppy by mid-June! Gives me time to puppy-proof the house.


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## Mfmst (Jun 18, 2014)

Sidewinder, get a flirt pole. I still use mine inside. Puppy countdown


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

I actually don't like the idea of caving to a dog's obsessive behaviors around things like balls. What I see in the video is a dog being rewarded for obsessive crazy behavior. Lily is the queen of retrieving, but I don't allow her to have access to balls at all except when I choose. There is a ball on our pool deck right now. She knows it is there and is looking for me to get it for her almost every time we go out the back door. She is obsessed!

I think a better way to exercise a puppy is to make it think. Thinking is super hard work and burns energy in invisible ways while teaching the dog useful things rather than encouraging obsessive behavior as seems to be the case with the dog in that video. Work on having an impeccable recall, focused attention, rock solid stays, excellent leash manners and the like. Your pup will be tired from that work and it won't wreck your shoulder.

I was at a trial over the weekend this past week. Lily and Javelin spent much of the time (about 5-6 hours) each of the days we worked in crates. When I took them out we worked on practicing the things we needed to do in the rings along with working on focused attention. You might think that they would be all wound up after having so much crate time, but no they were very tired when we got back to our hotel each evening. If you look in this thread http://www.poodleforum.com/3-poodle-pictures/197954-2-poodles-road-trip-spring-2016-a.html you will see very tired, nicely relaxed dogs that didn't play ball at all during the trip.

Mfmst I think you posted while I was writing. A flirt pole is a great idea that gives physical exercise, but also mental exercise. Used similarly to playing tug a flirt pole is a great way to encourage appropriate drive while also teaching great impulse control.


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## blueroan (Dec 28, 2015)

I love this!  Honey at 10 weeks already loves her ball (she was doing puppy zoomies with it in her mouth lol) 

But we have a very small yard so maybe not something THAT powerful lol


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## TeamPoodle (Aug 10, 2015)

lily cd re I think that is great advice. Riley looooves balls but we keep all of them in a basket on a high shelf. He doesn't beg for them, he knows it wouldn't get him anywhere. He only gets his ball if we decide to play ball with him, and once we're done playing, the balls get taken away. If we didn't, then ball-ball-ball would be all he thought about!

We started this system inadvertently but it works great for Riley. As soon as he sees the ball go in the basket he looks at me like "okay, what's next?". 

A balanced play approach works for us. We work on commands and tricks 2-3x a day, we'll play ball, or fetch or tug, and "Find it!" games where we make him sit & stay and go hide his ball or a treat and tell him to go find it. So, some of it is educational, some of it is educational and fun, and some of it is just plain ol' fun.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

And TeamPoodle, by making Riley think to earn his ball time you are giving mental exercise that is just as good as (if not better than) pounding out a long walk up and down your streets and you are deepening your connection to your dog.


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## West U (Jul 30, 2014)

Great idea if you have a big back yard, MFMST. I will be you the purchase price that neither Buck or Lola will put the ball in the bucket.


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## TeamPoodle (Aug 10, 2015)

I found this video over the weekend and it is so timely to this discussion:
https://www.facebook.com/CalgaryHumaneSociety/videos/1097295830311596/?fref=nf

I'm planning on making Riley one!


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## sidewinder (Feb 3, 2016)

I love this forum, the various views are always so interesting. Lily, I always follow your exploits, and vicariously enjoyed your road trip. I've been busy lately or would have said Congrats! Especially on your first rally win with Javvy! My Scotties always came home from conformation shows exhausted, as well...all the stimulation did it, even though they had significant amounts of crate time.

I understand what you are saying, and understand your approach to your time with your dogs. You work full time, and have limited time with your dogs. Your dogs are your main focus, and you are concentrating on some serious goals with their training. You need to use every opportunity to create the dog that you need.

On the other hand, my dogs are with me almost all the time. They are my friends and companions. I need them to have some obedience skills, such as a really good recall, but otherwise, they have no demands on them. I am an artist, and at least one dog (usually Connie) comes with me daily to my studio. While we are there, I'm actively "making", I'm in a creative zone mentally and very busy. I need my dog to be my companion, but not demanding constant attention. A TIRED puppy would be best!  I take breaks which could used for short training sessions, but otherwise, I need my space. Puppy toys that can keep little brains occupied are good! Puppy naps are good! X-pens are good! I'm thinking that taking the pup to the studio will provide good opportunities for individual training throughout the day, on actual obedience tasks as well as impulse control, without having to isolate the Scotties, who will be putting their noses in when ever food is involved. 

That said, my post about the GoDogGo bucket ball toy was mostly because I found the silliness of the dog in the video amusing. The toy itself (if I ever sprung for it...it's expensive) would be used under supervision, and put away just like Teampoodle puts away her dog's balls when we were done. I think it looks like good doggie fun, used right. I have had dogs that were fetching fiends, and it can be bad...not a good thing to encourage in a companion dog. They just bug you all the time with stuff for you to throw. I once had an Irish Setter who would bring me rocks to throw (I wouldn't) or huge branches that he had to drag...silly dog.

Teampoodle, thanks so much for the snuffle rug link! I am making one of those! I'll be able to use it in the studio when I have one-on-one time with the pup. The Scotties would be in there pushing the puppy around otherwise.
Love the flirt pole idea also. I have only seen things like that for cats!


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

sidewinder said:


> Love the flirt pole idea also. I have only seen things like that for cats!


Warning, since this is a Maizie sibling: she was so obsessed with the flirt pole, I had to donate it to the local shelter. She can accept that the ball goes in its drawer when we are "all done." But with the flirt pole, she had a hard time with "leave it, all done" and would try like a crazy wild animal to get it back. Also, I had the kind with the polar fleece lure, and she would try to eat it. Of course, with better training, these issues could be kept under control. But for me, too much headache!


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## sidewinder (Feb 3, 2016)

OMG, yes, Zooeysmom! I do NOT want an emergency toy removal surgery! Thanks for the heads-up. I may try making a flirt pole and see how it goes. I can trash it if it's too attractive. Any other suggestions for good puppy toys? though I once raised a pup every year, they were Scotties, they like to chew, but not big toy-lovers. Not like a poodle. I do have lots of stuffies left over. We'll see if the new pup is a de-stuffer or not.


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

If I had it to do over again, I would skip the stuffed animals. I would stick with high quality, tough rubber toys (especially Kongs stuffed with kibble), Nylabones, rubber frisbee, and balls--all supervised, of course. That's about all we have here now.


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

*P.S. Sidewinder*

Did you see the pic of Lucy? She looks ready to pop


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## sidewinder (Feb 3, 2016)

Nope, I've been on the website, but didn't see Lucy! I will go look right now!


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