Wanted Please - Harrogate / York / Leeds area

[beach chick]

not as odd as it sounds I hope!

 

Ozzie is a Lab, he LUUUUUUUUURVES retrieving, but is very particular about what and where.

 

so, in the garden, he will chase a ball, either thrown or kicked, and loves it.

on the beach or in the woods, he will NOT have a ball (unless it's someone else's, and preferably someone else not me throwing it). it has to be a plastic bottle, (half filled with stones or water for flingability) or a stick or a stone (yes, I know.)

 

it's actually getting quite annoying, because I spend our entire walks bending down every 30 secs or so to lob the bottle, stick or stone again - I'd rather use the ball thrower and be able to move along a bit.

 

any ideas? I've tried just taking a ball out and only throwing that, but then he gets very mulish, refuses to pick it up and practically trips me up pointing at a stick or a stone that surely I must be clever enough to realise I should throw

[Old Speckled Hen]

Well, what is in the garden for him to sniff and investigate?

What does Ozzie do on your walks if you throw nothing? Will he let you amble along while he does his own thing?

My collie will chase and retrieve a ball in the garden till he drops with exhaustion (don't ask....I tried it once)

Once he's out, there are just so many sniffs and places to pee that he's not worried about chasing things I might throw and if he does find something I just give it a perfunctory nudge or ten, he picks it up and eventually gives up

[beach chick]

he wants to retrieve, so whatever I am throwing he is totally focussed on - loves people, will say hello, but then its a case of 'come on mum, chuck it again'.

if I dont throw anything, he is literally next to my leg - or in front of me, tripping me up - the whole walk, he wont go off and investigate further and therefore get the run he needs.

[Old Speckled Hen]

I know what you mean...........bloomin pain.

Put your hands in your pockets and walk on, avoid eye contact painful though that may be. ..........I bet if you did that for a week he'd get it, after all he is a clever boy training you so well

[Bramble]

Poor Ozzie, my dog doesn't understand the point of fetch - she looks at other dogs chasing balls/sticks etc as if to say "what you doin' that for"?

If I throw anything for her to fetch, I just get a look as if to say "you threw it, you fetch it"

[beach chick]

Poor Ozzie, my dog doesn't understand the point of fetch - she looks at other dogs chasing balls/sticks etc as if to say "what you doin' that for"?

If I throw anything for her to fetch, I just get a look as if to say "you threw it, you fetch it"

 

we reach a point when he's tired where he's run to whatever I've thrown, and I shout "I mummy, I throw, YOU Labrador, YOU retrieve" and then he will bring it back...

 

yes, perhaps a week of hardening my heart might work. thing is, I dont mind throwing the odd thing - but when you've done an hour of bending down every 30 seconds or so it does get tedious!

[Lesley]

Poor Ozzie, my dog doesn't understand the point of fetch - she looks at other dogs chasing balls/sticks etc as if to say "what you doin' that for"?

If I throw anything for her to fetch, I just get a look as if to say "you threw it, you fetch it"

 

We have one of those as well - Tali isn't interested and only goes after a ball to take it off Jazz - then she just drops it and can't be bothered. Jazz is another one who will retireve until she drops as well.

 

I hope you manage to retrain yourself

[Snowy]

Neither of my springers will retrieve, I thought it was a springer thing. But my friends springer drives us mad with a frisbee! When we are camping she will run after it all day - she doesn't need to be tied up as long as we keep throwing the frisbee we know exactly where she will be!