3 Important Safety Rules When Playing Tug Of War With Your Dog
Tug-of-war is a behavior cubs and puppies engage in with each other. Each animal grabs one end of a stick or toy and pulls and pulls, trying to get it away from the other. It’s usually accompanied by growling. This type of play is practice for serious adult battles. It’s actually a war game that brings out aggression in any puppy or dog.
When a person plays tug-of-war with a puppy or dog, he too is playing a war game, competing with his pet for an object. Tug-of-war forces a puppy to become a rough competitive player, whether it wants to or not. If the puppy is a naturally aggressive breed, tug-of-war encourages it and gives it an excuse to be aggressive with you. This behavior often escalates until a dog becomes aggressive with all humans.
Playing tug of war with your dog can be lots of fun and provides great exercise as well, but is it safe to continue to play this game as your dog grows up and gets much bigger? Will the aggressiveness that the game of tug of war provides safe for your children?
Rules
1. The single most important rule about tug-of-war is this: If there are children in your world, your own children or neighbors’ youngsters who might wander into your yard, don’t teach your dog to play tug-of-war, no matter what it’s basic temperament is. A dog that’s learned to play this game may easily decide to grab and tug on a child’s clothing or a toy and become aggressive when the child resists and tries to pull away.
2. If no children live anywhere nearby and you’re intent on playing tug-of-war with your pet, use your best judgment. Don’t allow your dog to become too intent or aggressive. If it begins to growl seriously, put its ears back, or raise its hackles, tell it “No” and stop the play immediately. You must retain your leadership role at all times, especially if your dog is at all aggressive, or the game will soon convince it it can bully you.
3. Be careful your dog doesn’t decide everything you pick up is a potential tugging object - otherwise you’ll end up with lots of torn clothes and towels. If a dog that regularly plays tug of war tries to grab something out of your hand, don’t pull away and turn its actions into a competitive game. Drop the object, scold the dog, and immediately take the object away. Don’t allow a dog that grabs your belongings to have the pleasure of keeping them or you’ll never train it to stop grabbing things.
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