Do you play fight with your dog?

HeatherAnn

HeatherAnn

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I was just wondering if play fighting with your dog is harmful?
I fight with my dog regularly, and it gets quite rough from both sides, and I'm not implying that I have him super well trained but if it is getting too intense or if I just want it to stop then all it takes is "Shush" and that is it game over, let's wander in the garden or roll over for a belly rub.
A girl I know is in college studying animal care and believes that she knows everything about caring for a dog (mainly mine by the sounds of things, even though she has never met/seen him or us together) and basically everything I do is wrong.
Just wondering if anyone does this and if it is making my dog believe he is "more dominant"?
 
My OH play fights with one of our dogs. They kinda wrestle. Like you once he wants to stop he just says "enough" and the dog knows the game is over.
 
Depends on the dog. Play fighting tends to wind my young dog up, it is in him genetically, possession, grabbiness. He is in a training system which involves a bit of controlled biting and I have been encouraged not to agitate him myself, which I can understand, let the trainers to it instead.
Older dog likes it, has a bit of fun.
 
GSDs. All the training for the young one is play/game based, I play ball with him all the time, just not anything too 'high' or it sends him hyper.
The older one is completely different, different breeding/lines, temperament type, bit insecure, it gives him a bit of confidence if anything.
 
I can play fight with Daisy (doberman) as she is quite lazy and not very high energy at all so as soon as I say 'stop' she does.

Never play fight with Boris (german pointer) as he is very high energy anyway and becomes very hyperactive and can start to nip your clothes etc and it is very hard to calm him down afterwards.
Don't think it is fair to wind him up and then struggle to control him for 1/2 hour afterwards and he ends up getting told off because he doesn't understand it has ended.

He does play fetch and tug a lot though and understands the word 'finish' where his toys are concerned.
 
Another 'know it all then'!

I play around with mine all the time and they love it! I have both of them (cocker spaniels) jumping all over me and vice versa, I role around on the floor and all sorts with them. Tails wagging at all times and no teeth. When I get up and say 'enough/stop/no' then they know its game over and just stop.
 
I can see the know it all's point though, in theory its not the best thing to do, especially with a young dog or if you're a novice owner..

We play fight with ours, but as with a lot of the above posters, I would watch out that it is not winding up the younger dog. You have to know your dog and when you are about to cross the line from play to bad behaviour that you've asked for!
 
Thank God I'm not the only one then.
Our playfights involve a few woofs (from both parties :P), I wouldn't say my boy is a dog that tries to be dominant, but he is high energy (labrador x border collie).
I want to tell her to **** off and mind her own business but unfortunately I don't have the relevant qualifications...
 
I play fight with my 2 yr old GSP. He has a toy in his mouth and pretend to chase him around getting it off him. However as soon as I say enough he stops and I can remove the toy from him. So yes we are messing, but I feel totally in control. If he ever went to mouht me (which he has never done) it would be game over.
 
I dont do it, Im too old to roll about the floor :rolleyes: but my daughters bf does it and the dogs love it, they jump all over him and lie on him but they do stop when told.

I do think it depends on your dog I would not recommend it with my last dog as he got too wound up very easily.

Lol at Daisy Dobermann being lazy, Ive never had a lazy Dobe before, mine have been out for a long walk and come back and tear around the garden.
 
I don't play fight but I will do tug of war and Storm loves a game of tag :)
I don't like to encourage play fighting with having a child in the house plus visiting children :)
 
Dobiegirl said:
Lol at Daisy Dobermann being lazy, Ive never had a lazy Dobe before, mine have been out for a long walk and come back and tear around the garden.
Click to expand...

I've never owned, or known, such a lazy dog.

Her favourite hobby is sleeping.
Her 2nd favourite hobby is sunbathing.

She likes her walks but only if it's not raining.

She spends around 20 hours a day snoring or lying out on her sun lounger!
 
Sounds like my dobie. Loves a run but in the house you wouldn't know she is there. Either sleeping or sunbathing. The look I get if I suggest she may like to get up and go out for a wee!!
 
I get down on the floor and wrestle with one of mine pretty much daily. :o

Not to give any credence to the dominance theory but it is the more confident, 'dominant' dog that likes to playfight, the wussy neurotic one would freak out if I tried it with him.
 
Yes, regularly. It does send him hyper (he's a collie, doesn't take much!) but he will stop a soon as you tell him to drop and he's very submissive naturally. All you have to do is raise your hand and he drops "dead" :rolleyes:
 
There is a big difference between teasing a dog and play fighting with a dog. Dogs reared in a litter learn that if they bite too hard in play, they get bitten back! Dogs that haven't had that experience need to be taught not to bite. But the rules cut both ways and a dog should never be intentionally hurt in play. Maybe that is what the know-it-all was referring to?

I've a friend who is rough with his dogs. He had a spaniel that he would tease unmercifully. To me, the dog was clearly saying he didn't enjoy the games and wasn't play fighting back but was genuinely trying to protect himself. The dog became aggressive and was eventually put down. I can't say I was surprised.
 
@dry rot - I've never hurt my dog whilst I've been playing with him and he loves the games, I grab him and do big, gentle pinches of his excess skin, they obviously don't hurt but it's like me "biting" back.
I know what you mean but that's not how we play :)
 
No because i can not be bothered/ do not have the time to teach his bite inhibition to the extent required, he has a BIG gob, so its easier to train "no teeth on human flesh AT ALL"
 
Brig waits to ambush me at the top of the stairs and rolls round more than fights, nutter. Zak refuses to play fight, but must gently put his mouth round finger tips at head height. Bear is still very puppy mouthy and likes a nibble, but with no pressure. His favourite thing is to chew the end of the lace on a sweatshirt-it's like a baby thing, I think, like having a dummy, almost.

All of them know the leave command when they play tug.
 
i play but not play fight with any of them, the mastiff is bigger than me and he'd win!! The shiba is getting too old and grumpy to even want to play much, he still has his mad moments but not as often, you could never play fight with him as he is so touch sensitive he'd scream the house down, :o the JR needs no encouragement to play or fight:rolleyes:
 
I play fight with my JRT quite often- don't know if I'd do it with a bigger dog though. She loves it, because she's so small I just use one hand and 'bite' at her with it, and push her over and generally wind her up :o she will mouth my hand and arm but has never got rough and hurt me (I usually end up hurting myself by getting carried away and falling off the bed :rolleyes: ) Like many of you have said, I just say the word and she instantly turns into a cuddly doggie again. I've found it useful because she's learnt I'm not scared of her teeth so threatening to bite me is pointless (she would be top of the pack if I let her). She just plays with me like she used to play with her brothers and sisters when they were puppies :)
 
Yes. Always have with most of the dogs I've had. But never with pups & once they have enough training that I can control both the start of play & the end. My dobie x playfights with my now 7yr old daughter too, but not roughly, he lies still & just uses the weight of his head & neck & front paws to push her arms around.
 
I play fight with mine regularly. The neurotic shepherd will do it with me but not anyone else, little mutt will do it with anyone but both stop as soon as they're told enough.
 
millitiger said:
I've never owned, or known, such a lazy dog.

Her favourite hobby is sleeping.
Her 2nd favourite hobby is sunbathing.

She likes her walks but only if it's not raining.

She spends around 20 hours a day snoring or lying out on her sun lounger!
Click to expand...

Sounds like my dog! but she is a weimeraner :D

i can play fight with my dog but she knows to stop when i say 'stop/enough'. Usually it is just a game of tag where she tends to leap about. i can send her away and she goes loopy and then comes back to me for me to send her away again.
 
I do but last time I admitted that on here I got lynched! I will play fight with my dog and he does mouth me - BUT he has been taught to curb his bite and won't leave a mark let alone break the skin. He loves it but as soon as I say enough then it's game over.
 
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