sandgrubber Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 My 20 mo old Labbie, Bonza, cannot catch. If I throw a treat . . . easy throw . . . toward her face, she'll allow it to land on her nose with no snap and gulp whatsoever. Same with toys. Otherwise she's a pretty normal pup. All the dogs I've ever owned mastered the food catch. . . if I remember right, they usually get it down by around six months. I wonder if this means something about Bonza's vision. Perhaps she's farsighted and can't see the flying food? Ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Esky the husky Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Does she pick it up off the ground after? I taught Esky to catch by throwing food, then if she missed I would quickly stand on the food so she couldn't get it. The only way to get the food was to open her gob and catch it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rozzie Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 My Belgian can't catch. You throw a treat to him and he scrunches his eye closed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
perrin Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Georgia can't catch food either. It either hits her in the face or she snaps and misses. She has no co-ordination. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
felix Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Bruno doesn't want to catch as well. He actually moves out of way so it doesn't hit him. And then after thorough inspection eats it or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty Miss Emma Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Kenzie will happily catch a tennis ball, but will let treats hit her in the head and then eat them off the floor!!! She can catch the treats - when she wants to!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bedazzledx2 Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 (edited) I've had three dogs who could catch brilliantly and two who cant. Brookie is stupendous! He could catch food for the world series!!!! Jasper, my 12 yr old BC never could catch but he tries hard...food just bounces off his nose and Brook's there to catch it on the rebound Zac (11 months) doesn't have any aptitude for it but I am actively teaching him as its a useful skill for training purposes and its good for mouth eye co-ordination Its easier to start when he is sitting and you virtually drop the food into his mouth from about an inch away. As he gets the hang of it its useful to add a cue word...'catch' so he can mentally prepare. Progress slowly so you can do it on the move...for heeling you can hold you hand with the food high so he has to look up and then drop it in. Another thought...use soft food that doesn't crumble and is easy to see...cheese cut into largish bites. Edited October 23, 2011 by bedazzledx2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 not every dog can catch just like not every person can either :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlet Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 One of my BC's won't catch food - anything else she is brilliant with, fanatical actually -go figure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fuzzy82 Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 My dogs can't catch food either. Hubby thinks its weird, I think it's normal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weasels Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Are you sure she trusts that it is actually something she wants to eat being thrown? Some dogs like to do a thorough inspection before they eat something :p I like bedazzled's idea too, will she take food that is dropped while she paying full attention? This is how i get rid of my roast chicken scraps :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandgrubber Posted October 23, 2011 Author Share Posted October 23, 2011 Interesting. I've always though all dogs got 'catch' without training. So Bonza's not unique. It amuses me more than it bothers me . . . it looks really dopey for a dog to get hit in the snout by a bit of flying cheese. But, hey, dopey is cute! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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