encouraging pup to play? toys/balls/chew toys/ropes and getting active...

Ok guys another question for you all. As I have said in my earlier post my new boy is a little timid and is still settling in, he is slowly getting there but still unsure. The lead training is still at the very beginning stages and still doesnt like it and potty training is slowly starting to get there.
However, my boy doesnt seem to have any sense of play in him, he doesnt seem to like toys, ropes, chasing ball, paper rolls, he just has no sense of it all. He just plonks his bum down and stares at me. He will barely even run.
He does play with my fathers dog a little bit and will chase the ball a little if the other dog chases it but he soon gives up and has no interest. I wonder if he gives up because the other dog constantly gets the ball?
I have tried to get excited about it all and encourage him to play but to no avail. I have noticed he likes to chew on bones so filling toys with food such as kongs is a good place to start but it is the getting him active and interested in other forms of activities. I dont want him just laying around bored and getting fat!
Any ideas and tips you can give me guys would be greatly appreciated.

A bit of an odd problem. Sorry I can't remember how old he is. Normally they take a bit to settle in and with all dogs being different I would say not to worry at all. They are a very active breed and love to play and I'm sure yours will catch on.

If he is being shy but likes his kong try playing tug with that to get started.

i bet you will look back at this post in a few weeks and think is this the same dog, dont worry every dog is different

It could be he is just taking some time to settle in. Don't worry just yet. I'm sure he will make up the time

Now this could just be because he's not feeling confident enough to play yet. I would focus on relationship building through other areas right now, until he's feeling more confident. Use yummy treats (cheese, steak - whatever he loves ) and teach him his name and perhaps a few fun tricks. Some training success with the "not important stuff" will likely make it easier for you to get the leash walking down as well.


Here's one on teaching a dog its name


Here's one on conditioning a clicker (you could do the same to condition a word marker like "yes" instead - but using a non verbal marker like the clicker makes the training slightly more precise and effective)

A positively conditioned clicker (what's taught in the video above) will actually stimulate the amygdala in the brain in a good way that's likely to help a shy dog come out of its shell. Now there are many other good ways to train as well, but in cases like this I'd really suggest trying the clicker training as it's likely to work better.

The yahoo group Clicker Solutions is a good place to ask for help: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ClickerSolutions/ lots of qualified trainers with years and years of experience

Here is a good online clicker training course where you get an e-mail every day for a week teaching you the basics. http://www.canisclickertraining.com/

You can also read a little about it here: http://wrigglebutts.com/training/clickertraining/


Now - if time goes by and it turns out it's not just a phase but that he actually isn't into playing then it is possible to transfer value from other things he likes (for instance food) to toys through training. But I wouldn't worry about doing that yet.

Thanks a lot guys, much appreciate the help, especially the clicker training. I have noticed that when he is outside by himself with the other dog and no humans around he plays, he seemed to be jumping at a bottle a little this afternoon and barking at it and throwing some things around and chewing on them but when im around he doesnt want to play too much, just sit beside me. Ill keep encouraging him and certainly try clicker training with him.