Playing fetch?

[GypsysMom]

At what ages did your dogs begin to play fetch? Gypsy plays inside with her squeakies but she doesnt play too much outside, Chopper never plays he is too lazy. My FIL's Lab loves to play ball she gets her bat and her tennis ball whenever people go over there, One thing Gypsy does like is soccer she will get the ball when I kick it back and forth.. but no catch

[SaranBear]

Bear started playing fetch at about 3 ish.... He's still not very good at it and much prefers hide-n-go-seek or tag....or chase the ball... or "run like a maniac".....LOL

[Luvs]

All of my dogs start playing fetch as soon as they come home. They don't always bring stuff back to me in the beginning, but it doesn't take long for them to figure the game out

My 11 week old puppy Karisma plays fetch

[Cherry Heart]

Arwen played fetch when she came home at 8 weeks. It was one of the ways the breeder used to see what puppies should go to what home based on the energy/enthusiasm the puppy showed. It shows drive and she used this game to help get to know her puppies. We use "bring" with Arwen, and "give" to put in our hand.

[Crees]

I've recently been trying to teach Newton to play fetch and he hasn't taken to it as fast as other dogs I've known. He loves to chase the toy/ball when you throw it but once he gets to it he usually picks it up and goes and lays down or runs around with it for a bit. I've started to reward him when he brings the toy to me, and the other day he actually played fetch for a few throws. So I guess my point is, I think it's a behaviour that does not neccesarily come naturally to pups. Have you tried rewards so your pup understands what game your trying to play?

[Ayoka]

Bear didn't learn till we after we got him...at around 10 months...it took a while to learn. Bear loves a tennis ball so I use 2 balls: one to throw and one to entice him back or else it can turn into his favourite game...CHASE ME!

I always thought retrieving was a normal dog thing until we started flyball where I found out that it's something that comes naturally for many dogs.

Maybe your dog would be more interested if you could find a throwable toy that is motivating (buy 2)

What about those squeaky kong tennis balls, or those furry tennis balls...or a kong....

[spoiledbabies3]

Deja has learned how to retrieve the ball well...but she had help from a big brother. Moses taught her all about the game. We use the squeeky tennis ball as it entices her and regains her focus when she gets interested in something else.

[JemarsSerena]

Serena has chased the ball since day one. Not until the last couple of weeks has she figured out that I won't throw it again unless she brings it back.

[molochai2580]

My first dog will not play fetch, she seems to think it's beneath her dignity or something....lol.

Pandy though we brought her home when she was about 8 weeks old and when she was around 10 weeks I threw a ball for her and lo and behold she ran to it, picked it up and brought it back to me. I don't know if the humane society played fetch with her or not, but I would assume not, since they were severly under staffed at that point, but I know we hadn't taught her anything about fetch or chasing toys. It was just came naturally to her I guess.

[VANCOUVERISLANDROT]

Oscar played inside as well as a pup but never really showed much interest in outdoor fetch until about maybe 8 months old (somewhere in there). Now he LOVES it but not for long lengths of time, he gets bored I suppose (not like a Lab for example). He's big on fetching/swimming for stuff in the water though and will go forever if you let him.

[rottix2]

Caine has shown great interest in chasing and returning objects since I brought him home. I think he would rather play fetching games than just about anything else, including stopping for dinner.