Low Drive - Help!

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xN0Cx
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Low Drive - Help!

Post by xN0Cx » Wed Mar 09, 2016 12:27 pm

I got a 4.5 Month old Chesador with low drive. I have tried frustrating him while holding a toy or bumper and telling him to get it and praising him when he does but his excitement is severely lacking. The only time I see the drive I want to use is with him chasing down the kids in the yard. When we play fetch i was having him sit but then he was waiting on my "OK" to go retrieve and he would casually trot out to get the bumper and then back. Lately I have attempted his immediate release when I throw his mark and give verbal encouragement as I want to improve his drive in these exercises. Nothing seems to be working. 2 months ago he had so much drive I could barely get him to concentrate now it seams I have worked to much on obedience and now his drive has faded. He is so close to going to the next step of his training but I want that puppy drive back before we do.

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ezzy333
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Re: Low Drive - Help!

Post by ezzy333 » Wed Mar 09, 2016 1:09 pm

Can't really tell from just reading but my first thoughts were a bored little pup that isn't real sure why it has to do all of this crazy stuff rather than play with the kids who never bore it. Puppies have to grow up on the inside as well as the outside and I think you may find a very young immature little puppy that needs to play on the inside. But that will probably change as the pup matures especially if it has learned how much fun it is to spend time with you. That is what it is doing now with the kids. Your job is to make the pup want to be with you and that isn't going to happen if you can't let it be a puppy and explore the world with you at it's side.
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xN0Cx
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Re: Low Drive - Help!

Post by xN0Cx » Wed Mar 09, 2016 2:01 pm

We spend a lot of time together. Walking in the woods I see the excitement but playing and play-training I don't.. I think you may be on to something with is maturity level. With the kids its almost a dominance thing trying to pull them to the ground and such but I nip that in the but when I see it. I just see the drive I want him to have when hes doing that.

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Re: Low Drive - Help!

Post by birddogger » Wed Mar 09, 2016 5:05 pm

ezzy333 wrote:Can't really tell from just reading but my first thoughts were a bored little pup that isn't real sure why it has to do all of this crazy stuff rather than play with the kids who never bore it. Puppies have to grow up on the inside as well as the outside and I think you may find a very young immature little puppy that needs to play on the inside. But that will probably change as the pup matures especially if it has learned how much fun it is to spend time with you. That is what it is doing now with the kids. Your job is to make the pup want to be with you and that isn't going to happen if you can't let it be a puppy and explore the world with you at it's side.
Good post Ezzy and I totally agree FWIW. Let this puppy have fun and stay enthused for a couple of more months, with just basic obedience, such as recall. Retrieving is fine but keep it a game at this point with no pressure.

Charlie
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Re: Low Drive - Help!

Post by CDN_Cocker » Wed Mar 09, 2016 5:17 pm

It's a puppy. Make it fun and don't worry about it too much. I see its a mutt but were the parents hunting dogs? If so, I'm sure he'll be fine. I am willing to bet you've done too much retrieving with him if he had lots of drive for it before and now doesn't. A pup that age should only be getting 1 or 2 retrieves every second or third day. You need to leave them wanting more. Too many people get a retriever and overdo it playing fetch. It's bred to retrieve - you don't need to do it constantly, it won't forget what its bred to do.
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gonehuntin'
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Re: Low Drive - Help!

Post by gonehuntin' » Wed Mar 09, 2016 6:23 pm

So, basically you own a mutt and are wondering why it won't retrieve. When you buy one of these accidents you have to look at the parents; were they from field trial dog's? Hunt test dog's? Were the parents good hunters? Just because a dog is a retriever doesn't mean he will retrieve. Many don't that are not from hunting lineage. Most good retrievers are retrieving maniac's from 6 weeks on. Yours is 18 weeks. I'd give him till six or eight months and if he doesn't exhibit retrieving tendencies, dump him. Did you get him free? Sometimes those are the most expensive dog's you'll ever own.
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Re: Low Drive - Help!

Post by Sharon » Wed Mar 09, 2016 7:05 pm

xN0Cx wrote:I got a 4.5 Month old Chesador with low drive. I have tried frustrating him while holding a toy or bumper and telling him to get it and praising him when he does but his excitement is severely lacking. The only time I see the drive I want to use is with him chasing down the kids in the yard. When we play fetch i was having him sit but then he was waiting on my "OK" to go retrieve and he would casually trot out to get the bumper and then back. Lately I have attempted his immediate release when I throw his mark and give verbal encouragement as I want to improve his drive in these exercises. Nothing seems to be working. 2 months ago he had so much drive I could barely get him to concentrate now it seams I have worked to much on obedience and now his drive has faded. He is so close to going to the next step of his training but I want that puppy drive back before we do.
I'd say you have answered your own question.
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birddogger
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Re: Low Drive - Help!

Post by birddogger » Wed Mar 09, 2016 7:18 pm

Sharon wrote:
xN0Cx wrote:I got a 4.5 Month old Chesador with low drive. I have tried frustrating him while holding a toy or bumper and telling him to get it and praising him when he does but his excitement is severely lacking. The only time I see the drive I want to use is with him chasing down the kids in the yard. When we play fetch i was having him sit but then he was waiting on my "OK" to go retrieve and he would casually trot out to get the bumper and then back. Lately I have attempted his immediate release when I throw his mark and give verbal encouragement as I want to improve his drive in these exercises. Nothing seems to be working. 2 months ago he had so much drive I could barely get him to concentrate now it seams I have worked to much on obedience and now his drive has faded. He is so close to going to the next step of his training but I want that puppy drive back before we do.
I'd say you have answered your own question.
Yep.

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Re: Low Drive - Help!

Post by Trekmoor » Thu Mar 10, 2016 4:59 am

I agree. I think you have overdone the obedience and maybe the retrieve numbers too. It's a pretty common mistake and I made it myself 40 years ago. I bred a litter of lab pups and kept one and trained it . She won a puppy test at 4 months old but she never won any trials ..... she looked like she needed another turn of the key in her side to bring her spring up to full speed !

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xN0Cx
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Post by xN0Cx » Thu Mar 10, 2016 6:49 pm

Thanks for the advice everyone. I know his parents and both are good hunting dogs. I will take the next week or so off from my training plan and work on play time and revisit my training approach.

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