Does your retriever, retrieve?

[Miller1412]

My Yellow lab would retrieve until she stroked out if I let her. She lives for it. The only thing that makes her happier is food.

 

[QueenRocks]

I have a black and a yellow and they love to retrieve. Our black lab won't come back unless she has at least 2 balls in her mouth. We use the rubber practice baseballs and she can get 4 in her mouth.

 

[leight]

My two year old golden will retrieve but try to get you to play tug even with a tennis ball. She'll nudge you to try to take the ball then pull back. What a tease! After the third or so throw, she basically gives up and gets her tug toy.

 

[Big Cuddly Bear]

That is exactly what my two goldens do. I can throw a tennis ball and they run and get it and then lay down and chew on it. After 25 years of shelties, my DH wanted a dog to retrieve a ball. He feels cheated.

That's how I feel, a little bit... cheated. I used to LOVE throwing branches into the water while Thor retrieved them. He would LITERALLY carry a 20 pound branch in his mouth while we took an hour walk.

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

I have a golden retriever. She'll retrieve the first couple of times and then she'll give an exasperated look that says, "You threw it. You go get it." And she just sits there.

My 2 year old chocolate lab does this as well. Then I have to go get the darn thing. I consider it a success if we both decide to be done at the same time.

 

[clh2]

Our old dog would play catch with you for HOURS. And, if he thought we weren't interested, he would take a ball up the stairs and let it drop, wait a couple of seconds until it started down the stairs and go fetch that.

Our new dog (6 YO yellow lab) has the opinion that you must have wanted the ball across the room, otherwise you wouldn't have thrown it there.

 

[Lanshark]

My golden does retrieve any food I drop on the floor.

He will retrieve a tennis ball but unlike my past goldens hates water, doesn't like going outside except to do his business, can't stand to ride in the car and is the biggest scaredy cat I've ever seen. He is however, a great foot warmer on a cold winter day.

 

[sunnyday123]

My Newfie will retrieve balls, frisbees and logs from the wood pile.

 

[JDX4]

My golden loves to retrieve what we throw, whether it be a stuffed animal or a ball or whatever, but she doesn't like to give it back to us right away. She would rather stand there next to us with it in her mouth. We have to say "drop it" and sometimes even pry it out of her mouth to get her to give it up. But she seems to enjoy running to get it when we throw it, and she always brings it back. She could do it for hours! She also loves to play "tuggie" with a stuffed animal.

 

[PrincessKsMom]

I have a yellow Lab. Doesn't retrieve, HATES water (refuses to go outside to use the bathroom if it's raining, although she LOVES snow), and it horrified of fireworks or any loud noises. I thought these dogs were hunting dogs? However, to counter all of this negativity, she's a great lapdog and loves to

 

[MM27]

My dog is a chow/lab mix and she has brought some interesting things to my doorstep. She has a habit of grabbing oppossums and birds when she can grab them. It's really gross, but she thinks she's doing something good. Always very proud of herself.

 

[Hillbeans]

We have a Labrador Retriever but we adopted her when she was 2 and she didn't play fetch when she was a puppy I guess.

She'll sometimes chase a ball but doesn't ever bring it back. She'll sit where it lands and just roll around.

 

[Schminston-Mo]

I believe that our black lab would retrieve herself to death if we let her.

She's 3 and we adopted her in September. I would play fetch with her at the dog park and she would get all foamy and wheezy. I hide the ball so we could walk the path a little to rest.

She'd then run ahead, find a ball and then find someone else and drop the ball in front of them to throw.

She also loves the water.

 

[Liberty Belle]

My lab doesn't, but my beagle does.

 

[MichelleVW]

My Golden loves the water and will swim all day if we let him, but won't retrieve anything, never has, and never will. Just likes to wander around and smell things.

My Australian Shepard mix (in my avatar) will retrieve anything and everything all day long until she drops dead if you would let her.

 

[MushyMushy]

Our black lab mix is constantly bringing things to us. She's a retrieving fool.

She's 11 and can barely walk right now because of hip problems, and I was trying to get my younger dog to bring a toy to me. The older one dragged herself across the room to do it while the younger one ignored me. It's sad to watch, but she's still a happy girl.

 

[Parkers_girl]

I think my border collie thinks he is a retriever. He is obsessed with his tennis ball, throw in a body of water and he is the happiest dog on the planet!

 

[quentina]

Nope. Minnie has stolen the kids stuffed animals and carries them everywhere with her.....we call them her babies. She must have 15 babies! That's it, no fetch, no catching food, nothing. Just walks around carrying stuffed animals all day.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

When I was much, much younger, my family had a cocker spaniel who had been bred by a fellow who bird hunted with his cocker spaniels. Well, that cocker spaniel had puppies with a terrier mix that was used for hunting and my parents kept one puppy. Later the cocker spaniel was bred to a neighbor's cocker spaniel, who was just a very, very pretty dog but dumb as a post and one pup was kept from that litter as well.

The momma cocker instinctively pointed birds. We'd let her roam fields for hours and she'd set up quail after quail for her own amusement then flush them out.

The puppy that was part terrier mix loathed and despised squirrels and would tree them and point them out any time you took her walking in the town park.

The daughter spaniel. . .she just went to people to be petted and loved on.

In each case, the genes showed through as all were raised in the same household.

 

[Val]

MichelleVW- we have a golden and an Aussie, too, and they are the same way. Our golden will retrieve just to take it away from the Aussie, but otherwise, no way. He does like to "eviscerate" the toys and remove the squeaker and stuffing, though. He also likes to "act", and has been in several theater productions (currently he is in Two Gentlemen of Verona). I swear he likes the lights and knows when he is on stage. He is extremely laid back, and his personality is best described as Dug from UP! Not the brightest golden on the planet....and goldens aren't the brightest to begin with!

Our Aussie, OTH, is obsessive about retrieving. She wakes me up by bringing me something to throw, and it continues until she goes to bed at night. I bet I throw the ball/toy easily at least 200 times/day. She also will herd the cats- had both of them stuck in the master bathtub the other day and wouldn't let them out. She is congenitally deaf and loves to chew on the squeakie toys....drives me nuts because she makes it squeak over and over and over and SHE can't hear it. Sometimes I just have to bait and switch to get some peace and quiet!

We also have an ancient Aussie/greyhound mix. She will hoard the toys (puts them all in her bed), but can't see well anymore, so she no longer retrieves. I think she takes all the toys just to irritate the other two- and it works.

As irritating as they all can be, I wouldn't live without the dogs.....at least you can train and crate a dog. Now teenagers....that's a different story!