Encouraging play with appropriate toys?

I have to teach my dog, Ixa, how to play, too!

(see:http://forum.dog.com/asp/tm.asp?m=266580&mpage=1&key=񁅔"

A few tricks I've picked up:

just put dry kibble in the kong, so it falls out easily, and your pup can win

put kibble around the house so your pup can sniff around and find it

play hide and seek (get under a blanket, and call your dog, when he finds you, have a party!)

think of "training" as a fun game to play

teach stay and come. I have Ixa stay in the living room, then I go into another room and "hide" behind furniture and call "come", we have a party when she gets there!

my girl likes a challenge, so when we walk, we stop at the triangle park near me where I put her on a long line and we run circles and figure of eights, then jump up on rocks or benches and "sit".

go to a playground and climb up on the play equipment and have the dog sit in your lap on the slide down []

look up agility and find stuff to play on to replicate (being sure its age appropriate if your pup is young): jump over stuff, crawl under stuff, walk on something narrow, dowm on a particular spot ....

run around in a sand pit at a playground

We spend time learning tricks: speak, shake, spin, say hello, whatever ... its a mind puzzle

capitalize on what she likes - the only thing my dog liked was kleenex, so I shove some kleenex in a toilet paper tube with some kibble and let her rip it apart. I extended the game to paper bags and cereal boxes (I hand her a crmpled bag, she "takes" it to her mat and rips it apart looking for the treats)

I taught Ixa "take" with raw meaty bones, and now she'll "take" other stuff I offer her, like toys (hey, it's a first step!)

Don't teach your dogs to play - take them to class and let the other dogs do it!  Puppies will wear themselves out in fifteen minutes at class.  You will learn how to train (and what to do to amuse your dogs at home), plus you might meet some people who live nearby that you can make "play dates" with.  Keep them playing with other dogs routinely until they are adults, and you go a long way to avoiding the leash reactivity and dog aggression problems you read about on this forum...[]

Also, take advantage of the fact that your pup finds you more interesting than toys!  That's good when teaching the attention exercises, loose leash walking, etc.
[linkhttp://www.clickerlessons.com]www.clickerlessons.com[/link]
If you don't, when she's eight months old, and much readier to leave your side and go explore the world, you will wish you had LOL.

Thanks for the advice! I can try some of the things you mentioned, but at 80 pounds he might be a bit big to go down a slide with me, haha! Also, Beau is already 3 1/2 years old. I will be enrolling him in obedience classes this summer after school gets out and I have all the time in the world to focus on just him. I have taken him to be around other dogs too - which he gets along with fine, he just doesn't show any interest in their games.

Thanks again for the advice

ORIGINAL: spiritdogs

Don't teach your dogs to play - take them to class and let the other dogs do it!  Puppies will wear themselves out in fifteen minutes at class.  You will learn how to train (and what to do to amuse your dogs at home), plus you might meet some people who live nearby that you can make "play dates" with.  Keep them playing with other dogs routinely until they are adults, and you go a long way to avoiding the leash reactivity and dog aggression problems you read about on this forum...[]

Also, take advantage of the fact that your pup finds you more interesting than toys!  That's good when teaching the attention exercises, loose leash walking, etc.
[linkhttp://www.clickerlessons.com]www.clickerlessons.com[/link]
If you don't, when she's eight months old, and much readier to leave your side and go explore the world, you will wish you had LOL.

 
Anne, he adopted an older hound.  I don't know if taking an older dog to puppy class is acceptable though...[]

well, he seems to like to play with dishes-- maybe get some of those cheap disposable plastic containers, put a treat in, and let him have at it?
 
Best way to convince a dog to play is to activate prey drive-- get a fluffy toy that looks kind of like a rabbit, tie it to a rope, and make it flick and dance around erratically and then make it run away from the dog. Most dogs can't resist and will give chase.

What a cute doggie!
Do you know anything about his history? Or other breeds that might be in him? If Beau was deprived of human/dog interaction, he will probably find a little value in it at the beginning. And, it might take weeks or months for him to understand how rewarding close communication with another being can be. But it looks like he is already getting into it, and thats' fast considering you just got him this month. (Everything seems fast too me now, after it took us *9 months* to help our cat get over depression after we got our pup.)
I'd let him do it at his own pace, and I would keep it low key. Look out for his shy little signs that he wants to interact, draw him in, and praise. If he has some hound in him, he should enjoy searching and finding. So, you could hide bits of food, guide him, let him find it, praise him when he does. Does he like it when you rub/massage him? What about swimming? If he finds no value in interactions yet, you could just do these little things that make his body feel good. Get a clicker and do some training with him at home to build his confidence.
I wouldn't worry too much about him not being playful just now. They all have different personalities and different energy levels...

ORIGINAL: Xerxes

ORIGINAL: spiritdogs

Don't teach your dogs to play - take them to class and let the other dogs do it!

Anne, he adopted an older hound. I don't know if taking an older dog to puppy class is acceptable though...[]

That's my situation, too. Adopted a 14 mo old with no prior socialization. She's already fear aggressive and we are working on socialization. I feel funny trying to teach my dog to play ... I'm not a dog, how can I "teach her to be one"? But, what else do I do? If I can get her interested in playing fetch, I'm hoping her dog socialization might go better, cause she'll have something to focus on besides her fear.

ORIGINAL: TinaK

What a cute doggie!
Do you know anything about his history? Or other breeds that might be in him? If Beau was deprived of human/dog interaction, he will probably find a little value in it at the beginning. And, it might take weeks or months for him to understand how rewarding close communication with another being can be. But it looks like he is already getting into it, and thats' fast considering you just got him this month.

Beau's a 3 1/2 year old Hound mix - I'm suspecting either Catahoula or Coonhound, considering he came from a breeder in Louisiana. He lived the first of his life in a kennel/run type housing with about 20 other dogs that are all involved in work in the veterinary medicine program at my university. He isn't aggressive towards other dogs at all, and likes horses too! He mostly gets really shy around humans.

I agree that things are going fast with him. When I came home from class during a break today he wagged his tail and was so excited to see me. I'm just hoping it means he sees me as trustworthy. I've really been working on petting him a lot, just spending time with him, and he loves to be bathed!

I'd tried tossing some of his toys around and being really excited myself and seems to be working. Last night at about 4 in the morning he was chomping away on the Rawhide like it might disappear tomorrow!

I have found a local trainer in the area and plan on enrolling him in "basic" obedience classes, which are apparently for dogs of all ages. He seems really smart and able to learn quickly (he already knows "load up," "go potty," "kennel," and "bath" and he comes when I call his name) so I think it will be good for him.