Another question! ;)

I've noticed a lot of posts stating that pup's favourite toys should be given as a special treat only. Also chew strips etc should be given under the same circumstances.

My situation is that my 16 week old GSP is SURROUNDED by toys and various types of chew treats and the like.

My better half and her mother are constantly buying him new toys or treats, and it has probably conditioned him into thinking that they are the norm, whereas another dog may think all his Christmas's had come at once given he same circumstances.

Should I remove most of the goodies and save them for special occassions/rewards etc?

If he chews something that he shouldn't, I produce one of his many goodies, which he takes for a minute but very quickly becomes disinterested.

I know that most will say that he is spoilt, so what should I do?????

Hi talizman, you have a roomful of goodies so put them all in a drawer except a couple of chewy toys and his bedtime toy. Then you can keep some for playing with when you choose to have a play session and make sure he only gets them then and rotate the chewy/play yourself toys. If they all lie about he will stop noticing them. Keep treats for training and really nice ones for first time recall ( I read the post about clickers) unless they re chewy things. You can also notice which toys hes most interested in and keep these in your pocket for walks to encourage him to stay with you. Doing a swap for things hes allowed when hes chewing something not allowed will be easier because he'll be keener on the toy and itll increase your status with him to see you control things he likes - availability breeds contempt. Sounds like a normal pup to me, up to mischief and exploring:)

Thanks Lorelei, some good advice there... I've put most of his things in a drawer out of the way, so fingers crossed.

I have to say I think it depends on your dog, and what you need to do to motivate him/her. We have a box FULL of toys. The girls have access to it all the time. We don't keep any for 'good', except perhaps the kongs - which are only stuffed and given (though they are available empty all the time) when we go out.

They are often found rummaging through the toy box and coming out with a toy they haven't played with in months - they know it's there it keeps them busy. I don't feel the need to keep a toy as 'special'. My girls enjoy them whenever they want to.

Treats are saved for special times and for training.

Okay - I lied a little - they ONLY get their Frisbee on a walk as it is the one thing guaranteed to get them back if they decide they don't want to come back. We only play frisbee on walks and only when WE initiate the game - the dogs are not allowed to initiate or end the game.

Wendy

my dog has to many toys to count and she knows them all by name, we just shout go get barney and she will go get him from where ever shes put him, haha it dosent matter how many toys a dogs got mental stimulation is good for them.

But treats there a different matter ,treats should only be used as treats , its a great way of training them or rewarding when good,or i give my dog a bone at the end of the week , its just somthing for her to look forward to, although she dose sniff out the shopping bags each time i go just to check i havent bought some early hehe.

LADY XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As far as toys go, I was always told that you should control playtime, deciding when it starts and when it ends. So most toys should be put away until you decide to instigate playtime. As for treats, well just that, for rewarding good behaviour and as training aids.

JMHO

liberty :)

i only had a puppy for a fortnight (now 10 week old) so am not exactly an experienced expert but we had some problems with ruby play-biting and generally being attention-seeking. Controlling the toys is definitely something that helps. Also it helps keep her well interested in them if she only has restricted access - otherwise she finds things like trouser legs, electric cables become far more exciting (esp as she definitely gets plety of attnetion if she tries to play with them!) So she now gets ignored when she behaves badly and doesn't get attention or toys until she's good pup - to learn that bitey hyper pups have no friends!

Controlling toys is def a good idea though. Then you can always distract her with them as she'll always be interested and also it def helps reinforce that you're The Boss! (We only have a Cavalier King Charles SPaniel so its not overly difficult to get her thinking that people are Top Dogs - i imagine its somewhat more important & difficult to impress that on a GSD while (s)he's still young....) Ruby does have a heck of a lot of toys though to help keep her interested in them and stop her getting bored - she just only has them when we decide.

Plus if you control the toys, then you control the games too - Ruby's already beginning to learn to drop on command with all of her toys (very helpful when e.g. she scavenges a snail shell in the garden, means with a treat i can get it off of her rather than let her chew it till she cuts her mouth....) and i guess must be beginning to learn to control frustrated feelings too. [We only use food treats to reinforce good behaviour [& to help train her to do things] in fact even at meal times she sits nicely while waiting for her food, if she starts getting hyper and bouncing around in anticipation i would not give her her food until she was calm.]

Wish me luck though - she's been an angel so far today but mum & i are off to give her her first bath later on today. Should be fun......

GOod luck with your pup too :) PS sometimes i can tell ruby;s chewing to get attention so she gets ignored or even put out of room, but sometimes i can tell she just chews cos she needs to chew. Then i divert her chewing on to a chew strip, i don't give them to her as normal toys for games with really. But i try not to make it look like a reward. I'll at least wait until she lets go of what she's chewing before she gets it......