I’ve made a video to show you how I play fetch with Sadie Mae. She’s always been a ball chaser but the “chuck it” triggers her excitable behavior.

I believe dog training is happening all the time. There are tons of opportunities to ask for respect, to teach, and to lead, and working with triggers can be a time to train AND a time to play. Playing with the “chuck it” offers us a great training opportunity to work on basic commands, focus, trust, and patience…on her part and ours!

We learned early on, in order to keep S M in control of herself, we needed to behave in a certain way also: Opposite of her.

She’s come along way and she does very well controlling herself…most of the time. I’m very proud of her when she can give me a sit and remain that way for a few moments. I know how difficult it is for her.

Just remember some rules to follow and then get out there and have FUN!

Keep your own energy low and movements calm because reactive, excitable dogs, don’t need us to get them up; they do that all on their own.
Keep your praise calm and voice in a lower tone if praise or high voice seems to be making your dog anxious.
Stop the game if it proves to be too much for your dog. Remove the toys, treats whatever tools that make up the game and put them away.
Make your dog work by asking for sits, downs, waits, speaks etc. Having him focus on your requests helps him channel his energy and give him something to focus on. *Don’t ask until they are focused on you and calm.
Only play when he can keep himself calm. Don’t respond to anxious or out of control behavior.
Keep the session short unless she’s doing really well with the self control.

*You may not see it, but I can assure you, she’s vibrating several times in this video.