Game of Throw and Retrieve

As most Golden Retrievers, like to carry objects in their mouth, you have to give you young dog as many chances to do so as possible. Of course, you have to keep them away from the previously mentioned "forbidden" objects. When doing the "Aport" exercises you will be channeling that enthusiasm for carrying things. Just because Golden Retrievers belong to the group of the retrievers, not all of them have to like the "Aport". Do you throw a ball, you dog chases its, plays with it, and sometimes brings it back? Well, that is not "Aport". Aport means: you throw the object, the retriever register is the place where it fell, and only once he has received the order to run, he will go directly for it, picks it up and brings it immediately back, without hesitating or going around in circles. He sustains the object in his mouth until you take it out with an order. A lot of time and patience is necessary until this complicated procedure is completely mastered. Use a soft rubber doll to do the "Aport" exercise with your retriever. This softness of the ball will be more comfortable for the retriever than a hard piece of wood. In theory, the retriever also has to retrieve ducks and pheasants without hurting them or breaking their ribs with his strong bite. The doll must be used only for the "Aport" exercise, and once the exercise has finished, you should take the doll away, as your Golden has other objects to play with. With your little puppy you can start out by doing the first "Aport" exercises, focusing on the joy of having the doll, the enthusiasm of collecting it, and naturally returning it to the master. The important thing is to keep him happy when playing with the doll, but if he begins to chew on it or bite it, take it away without making any comment, perhaps changing it for another toy. If you are planning to later on use your Golden Ridge reserve for hunting, it would be convenient to get him use to smelling, picking up and carrying the prey. The "Aport" exercise is something so serious and complicated that I can't correctly describe it in this section. "Aport" is the activity for which the retriever was raised, which is innate in him and since he has the aptitude with training and application, he can be that ideal golden retriever you have in mind. Later on in the courses with dolls, you can practice the following forms of "Aport": tracking, searching, indicating the place; "Aport" in similar groups as hunting requires obedience. The necessary conditions to participate are resistance to gunshot, a good basic obedience, enthusiasm to retrieve and a good physical condition (of both the dog and the owner).