# DO YOU ROUGH HOUSE WITH YOUR APBT?



## BullyTheKid (Aug 21, 2009)

So I made this post in response to a dog passing, and thought it may be a interesting topic over here in the general discussion.

Do you rough house with your dogs? Wrestle, tease, taunt, take from or growl at them? What are your dogs responses do some get fearful, dominant or do they tolerate it, or play back?

My dogs play hard and growl in play but never attempt to bite. I generally do it inside the house, but have had them fired up outside, and once had a neighbor ask why was I making them mean, which I had to explain it was just play and did not make them aggressive in any way. Afterwards I thought about it and realized it probably wasnt the best for public perception, but if I had a Lab doing the same thing would it be percieved as making the dog mean?

Sidenote my dogs all have to be engaged to play rough, and they play the roughest with me, my daughters can push, pull and tease them and they never really play rough, mostly just run around in crazy circles, my wife will try to rough house with them sometimes and they dont put up nearly the fight, but with me it sounds like the return of the gladiators lol! But in the middle of hard play I can say enough and the game is over. I think its appropriate APBT Temperment but wanted to get some more opinions.

Here is what I wrote on the other thread.

*RIP peace Scooby Doo.

I commend you for doing the right thing, as APBT owners we have a responsibility to protect the breed and its temperment, as a producer of a litter we have a further right to educate new owners of this very responsibility.

I however disagree with telling the family that Bully Breeds are not right for them, or to own a different breed. Any of my Bullies would allow a child to take something from them, especially a 9 year old. If the boy has rough housed with the dog from day one, and played a certain way, I would not expect a APBT to bite, at least not mine.

I play extremely rough, tease, taunt, run away from and charge my dogs. I still put my hand in their food bowls, they eat raw and I still make them take the food gently from my hand on occcasion. When I see they are really enjoying something I will command them to drop it and take it from them. I am constantly testing their temperment, and putting them in situations that may evoke a negative response, not once have they tried to bite. This in my opinion is the true testament of the breed. My children do the same they play rough, lay on pull, tug and take from all of my dogs. They of course taught to respect dogs, but I want the dogs to recognize them as pack leaders as well as me. Now my 18 month old son pushes the limits, and I give the dogs breaks from his wrath, but I have no fear of them biting him. If one even growled it would be a problem.

I believe that the breed to have with a rough child is an American Pit Bull Terrier as I feel that their sturdy temperments is the most trust worthy when when well bred and socialized/trained. What this child did should not have evoked a bite from this breed, from another breed I could see it happening, but not from a APBT.

Once again sorry for your loss, but you did the right thing, and I have a great amount of RESPECT for the fact that you did. I hope by posting this long comment I did not offend anyone, just thought it deserved to be said. *


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## aus_staffy (Nov 10, 2009)

I think you hit the nail on the head when you said "But in the middle of hard play I can say enough and the game is over." I do the same thing with Nitro and to a lesser extent with Roxy (she doesn't really get it) but they know it's a game and that I am always in control of it. We don't know what was going on with the family in question.


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## ZildjiansMommy (Mar 19, 2006)

I push Z around and He looks at me and is like...pffft please. Then if he is in a playful mood he'll growl and bark and lick me all over. then I call it quits cause I don't like having a dog bath. lol.


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## Notabluehippo (May 23, 2010)

i rough house with my dogs but like you said i always have control over the situation. They will play with others but im the only one they get rough with.


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## PitbullOutlaw (Dec 16, 2009)

I agree... I believe that there isn’t anything wrong with rough playing with your dog. It all depends on the dog and the amount of respect it has to serves his/her master. If you are able to get the dog going and kill his drive with a command he understand it just play and that where it ends. As long as the owner is in control and can stop in command I do not see it to be a problem.


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## davidfitness83 (Jul 7, 2009)

I don't rough house at all, it teaches the dog its ok to wrestle and be pysical with a human. I can do some serious tug of war but I never let him think it's ok to put a paw on me or jump on me.

Dogs don't know grey or maybes, they know black or white. They either know its ok to do something or it's not. Being how dominant the breed can be it is a terrible idea to do that with the dog. They probably will stop when given the command by a higher ranked pack member but I am sure it will take longer for a lower ranked member to make them stop. In general, visitors are lower ranked and sometimes kids are at the bottom as well. That is why you see so many people asking how they can teach their dog to stop jumping on people or nipping. All this jumping and invading of personal space is a display of domination. You never see a dog jump all over and rough house with a higher member of the pack without approval. This is why my dog knows it is never ok to do that with any human, because I know not everyone is going to have the personality to tell a 80 pound ball of muscle to stop jumping on them when he is happy, hyper, excited or in the mood to rough play.


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## PitbullOutlaw (Dec 16, 2009)

davidfitness83 said:


> I don't rough house at all, it teaches the dog its ok to wrestle and be pysical with a human. I can do some serious tug of war but I never let him think it's ok to put a paw on me or jump on me.
> 
> Dogs don't know grey or maybes, they know black or white. They either know its ok to do something or it's not. Being how dominant the breed can be it is a terrible idea to do that with the dog. They probably will stop when given the command by a higher ranked pack member but I am sure it will take longer for a lower ranked member to make them stop. In general, visitors are lower ranked and sometimes kids are at the bottom as well. That is why you see so many people asking how they can teach their dog to stop jumping on people or nipping. All this jumping and invading of personal space is a display of domination. You never see a dog jump all over and rough house with a higher member of the pack without approval. This is why my dog knows it is never ok to do that with any human, because I know not everyone is going to have the personality to tell a 80 pound ball of muscle to stop jumping on them when he is happy, hyper, excited or in the mood to rough play.


I heard this before but because my dog does not jump on any one and only like to play with me I never saw it as a big problem.. But then again it's like you said if you condone the behavior it could pose a problem since a dog see black and white and there is no gray for them. Which believe or not that little part rite there made a lot of sine to me&#8230; I do play a lot of tug and war with him and her I really do not ruff play that much with my boy its once in a while when I am board at home that it raining and I can't take him outside. For the most part my girl will not even try to ruff play with me but will tug so I guess that's a good thing.. lol, she such a lady.


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## davidfitness83 (Jul 7, 2009)

PitbullOutlaw said:


> I heard this before but because my dog does not jump on any one and only like to play with me I never saw it as a big problem.. But then again it's like you said if you condone the behavior it could pose a problem since a dog see black and white and there is no gray for them. Which believe or not that little part rite there made a lot of sine to me&#8230; I do play a lot of tug and war with him and her I really do not ruff play that much with my boy its once in a while when I am board at home that it raining and I can't take him outside. For the most part my girl will not even try to ruff play with me but will tug so I guess that's a good thing.. lol, she such a lady.


I haven't owned a female yet so I am excited to see how they differ from males. My males have always respected me with just a stare they know they did something wrong lol now a girl might be a whole other story. I've heard female dogs are more independent and they get their moments lol I can def see a female getting away with a lot more than my males.


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## OldFortKennels (Mar 10, 2006)

> I don't rough house at all, it teaches the dog its ok to wrestle and be pysical with a human.


Respectfully, I disagree. I play rough with my dog all the time. He loves it and so do I. I think it teaches just the opposite becuase when its over, its over and he has to learn the difference. We are just playing and while I allow it its ok but when I am done he has to respect it.


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## apbtmom76 (Nov 4, 2008)

Justt like my response to you in my thread BTK, all of my dogs, Demon is still learning, is why his play is even more supervised with the kids than the others, but I can take anything away from my dogs, I can runmy hands thru their food and take it away from them, everything, I do not however rough house with them, Phoenix we do on occassion but when we put our hands up and say enough, he knows that we are done. 
Because I am a nanny, ANY child that comes into my home is properly introduced to my dogs and my dogs KNOW how to behave around the kids, this si because I taught them HOW to behave around kids, i.e., being easy and not too rambunctioous around them.
Any kid could do the same as I do with my dogs and food, I do not let them all the dogs get crated when they have rawhides or treats, and my boy Phoenix has helped more than one kid learn how to walk. ughh I am rambling but please know I did try to educate thema nd before she and I quit talking, I was the person she called to about everything abotu the dog, his shots, when to get him neutered, when we fell out, no more advice for her, ughhh.

Thanks for making this thread BTK


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## dixieland (Aug 14, 2009)

My kids and I play rough and wrestle with Pretty Girl sometimes.She has never tried getting too rough or out of hand with any of us while doing it.As soon as I or my kids tell her to stop,then she does.
I have taught her from day one of being with us what is acceptable while playing and what is not.And I keep reinforcing it. 
I still have my children and myself go over and play with her while she's eating or has bones.And I have them stick their hands in her food.I want to make sure she never forgets what's right and what's wrong.

I think as long as it's monitored and it's with a dog you trust then playing rough or wrestling is ok.


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## cEElint (Oct 6, 2009)

i rough house my 2 at the same time.. they play back, play w/ each other etc... but when i say enough, they go lay down


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## American_Pit13 (Apr 23, 2007)

I rough house with all my dogs and it is something I do with my pups when they are young. For starters the puppies learn young what is to much and what is unacceptable play it makes things funner when they get bigger.


I have never had issues from roughing up the dogs. Not just my current crew but every dog I have had. Pitbulls play rough and we play back. It all comes down to your dog knowing how to properly play that way.


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## davidfitness83 (Jul 7, 2009)

OldFortKennels said:


> Respectfully, I disagree. I play rough with my dog all the time. He loves it and so do I. I think it teaches just the opposite becuase when its over, its over and he has to learn the difference. We are just playing and while I allow it its ok but when I am done he has to respect it.


Thank you for disagreeing in a respectfuk way I agree that your dog will stop when you tell them too. However, will a stranger or a family visitor have the same effect with your dog? I can put a piece of cake on the ground in a family gathering and my dog won't touch it unless I release him, heck I can put the bowl of food down in the kitchen and walk out to another room and both my chihuahua and my Bernie won't get up until they are released. I just think that this type of play shouldn't be done by someone who has no experience with the breed specially if they live with kids and even more if the kids were never around dogs and don't know how to behave around them.

I am sure in your scenario with all the experience you have and I am sure your family is more than used to being around the breed and they know it inside out. A newbie or someone who is just getting the breed for the first time shouldn't be doing this but again this is just my opinion. Some people are blessed with a submissive stable dog while others aren't and sometimes what one member of the family can do with the dog, the others cannot do and it usually turns into a news segment on the 5'0 clock news or the dog sent to the pound because it nipped one of the kids and then they wonder why.


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## dixieland (Aug 14, 2009)

I don't think having a child should make it any more of an issue.It is a learning tool for the child as well.The proper way to play and interact with a dog.You can't not play with them just because you have children.Then what are you gonna do when your child is around another dog and doesn't know what is appropriate and what is not?
It is very important IMO to socialize the dog while it's a puppy in this type of way.
Now would I do it with a dog whose background I'm not familiar with or with someone else's dog?No and I sure as heck wouldn't be having my kids do it.
Like I said,if it's monitored and with a dog you trust.


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## Mcleod15 (Jul 17, 2009)

I rough play with my dog all the time, and we play extremely rough. With that being said I'm the only one that he will get this rough with, and when I say "calm down" he stops the playing instanly. I have thought him to be this way. Even if other people try to rough house with him he will play back but not at the same level cause he knows he is not allowed too.


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## BullyTheKid (Aug 21, 2009)

*Thanks for all of the participation!!! I wanted something tragic to result in positive discussion that could help others in the future.

I think another key to all of this is my dogs play when I say its ok to rough house not the other way around. They may nudge me to let me know, but they never over exert themselves with anticipation of being rewarded with rough housing.

As far as strangers, I have a couple friends that will wrestle with the dogs, but they are few and far between. Overall my dogs are stable dogs and any human is off limits in regards to biting.

I have always believed as someone stated earlier as puppies roughhousing also teaches a puppy to be aware of their mouth. I do the whole puppy yelp when they bite too hard, as puppies its any pressure and I make a loud noise. As adults my dogs are very south mouthed and never have broken skin.

I hear alot that rough housing is wrong, or detrimental in some way, but I think that physical contact makes a more sturdy dog. Tug of war in a lot of ways increases a dogs confidence and dominance in some cases if not done with the owner winning and controlling the game.

I have dogs as old as 12 that I have roughhoused with and have never had a bite. I will state that all my dogs come from lines of dogs that have sturdy temperments.

Would I go up to a strangers APBT and begin rough housing,uuhhhhh NO lol!

As a breed, I feel that the APBT should be able to be rough housed, certain other breeds I think are not suitable to be rough housed with, especially if its a guardian breed.

Has anyone had a personal bad experience?*


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## davidfitness83 (Jul 7, 2009)

dixieland said:


> I don't think having a child should make it any more of an issue.It is a learning tool for the child as well.The proper way to play and interact with a dog.You can't not play with them just because you have children.Then what are you gonna do when your child is around another dog and doesn't know what is appropriate and what is not?
> It is very important IMO to socialize the dog while it's a puppy in this type of way.
> Now would I do it with a dog whose background I'm not familiar with or with someone else's dog?No and I sure as heck wouldn't be having my kids do it.
> Like I said,if it's monitored and with a dog you trust.


Maybe because my dog is huge but I wouldnt want to see him rough playing with another kid even if it's supervised. They can play fetch or other games besides rough house. Strange children can pet my dog but I am sure as heck will not let any kid rough play with my dog. Even the few kids in my family get to pet him and lay next to him but not instigating.

I let Bernie play tug of war with a 3 year old and only because that three year old grew up with this 85 pound monster bellow and knows what not do around a dog.


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## aimee235 (Apr 29, 2007)

I don't think there is anything wrong with it but I don't rough house with my dog. I don't like to play that way.


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## x-Marky-x (Mar 2, 2010)

I actually play quite rough with Thor, it went along with the whole no teeth on human skin thing. We started off gentle and gradually increased it to rough (I know.. That sounds so wrong..) he'd push, and I'd push back, but I am the ONLY one who is allowed to play rough with them, and once I've said "Enough." he knows that he has to stop.


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## Black Rabbit (Nov 14, 2009)

We play rough with Dosia sometimes. If he gets to rough or I just wanna stop I tell him that's enough and he'll calm down. My son is 2 and they play great together. We do teach him to not hit or tease dogs and they must be respected so he never gets to rough. He lets him put his hands in the food bowl also. Some times he will hand feed him one piece at a time outta the bowl and Dosia acts like he's got a butler. lol When we listen to music he will hold Dosia's ears and dance around with him and Dosia just loves the attention


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## dixieland (Aug 14, 2009)

davidfitness83 said:


> Maybe because my dog is huge but I wouldnt want to see him rough playing with another kid even if it's supervised. They can play fetch or other games besides rough house. Strange children can pet my dog but I am sure as heck will not let any kid rough play with my dog. Even the few kids in my family get to pet him and lay next to him but not instigating.
> 
> I let Bernie play tug of war with a 3 year old and only because that three year old grew up with this 85 pound monster bellow and knows what not do around a dog.


My children and my neices and nephews (who are all older) are the only ones that are allowed to play with Pretty Girl this way.None of the other children that come into my house do or are allowed.And Pretty Girl never tries playing with them in this way either.The only time she tries playing at all is when I start it.If I didn't ever start it,she never would play.
And she never tries biting or grabbing any of the children at all while they are playing.
My sister has told me more then once that Pretty Girl had the most perfect temperment out of any dog she's seen for dealing with kids.


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## PitbullOutlaw (Dec 16, 2009)

I say having a child around your dog does play a big part on all this because the child does not have the same authority as the master of the house hold does. I know that I am a lil more though on my boy rather than my girl and only because my boy is a lot more rougher and bigger. When it comes to abidance every dog in my house is up to par. It’s funny sometimes when my girl is telling the dog to do something and they do not do it she like why they listen to you and not me sometimes… As spouse to me I could say in a normal town of voice and they are jumping to do whatever it is. I say rough playing can go both ways depending on the situation because of rough playing…. I do say I feel as if as long as you have control over the game and can say enough is enough and the dog stops at your command I do not believe it’s a problem, in that aspect. That someone else has that same control heck…. no, it does make since that the dog is use to doing something thought by it master to someone else that makes him him/her tick …. (Child, visitor… Etc.) That’s why I said before, it never happened to me from rough playing or at all for the most part but like davisfitness83 said dogs see black and whit there is no gray. My dad use to own chowchow and he told me this one day it been brought up again and that’s why I do not do it as much but I do it here and there.


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## PitbullOutlaw (Dec 16, 2009)

dixieland said:


> My children and my neices and nephews (who are all older) are the only ones that are allowed to play with Pretty Girl this way.None of the other children that come into my house do or are allowed.And Pretty Girl never tries playing with them in this way either.The only time she tries playing at all is when I start it.If I didn't ever start it,she never would play.
> And she never tries biting or grabbing any of the children at all while they are playing.
> My sister has told me more then once that Pretty Girl had the most perfect temperment out of any dog she's seen for dealing with kids.


I would never ever let anyone rough play with my dogs PERIOD. That seems to be too much of a liability, my dogs no me and my way and my commands. My friends sometimes try to rough play with my dog I tell them to play fetch he knows how to do that very well instead of rough play. he is about 80 something pounds what can make a dog tick? Anything when they are in that state of mind.


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## abeautifulpitbull (May 25, 2010)

I Rough house with my Pitbull all the time and yet he's NEVER tried to bite me. Just like you said my boy will go Crazy with my Brother ya know he'll be super rough with my Brother but yet he's gentle with me and my mom. I don't think there is anything wrong with Rough housing. If your Pit is trained right and knows the limits then there shouldn't be any problem with it. As long as you have Control of the rough housing then that's all that matters.


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## NinaThePitbull (Feb 10, 2010)

davidfitness83 said:


> I don't rough house at all, it teaches the dog its ok to wrestle and be pysical with a human. I can do some serious tug of war but I never let him think it's ok to put a paw on me or jump on me.
> 
> Dogs don't know grey or maybes, they know black or white. They either know its ok to do something or it's not. Being how dominant the breed can be it is a terrible idea to do that with the dog. They probably will stop when given the command by a higher ranked pack member but I am sure it will take longer for a lower ranked member to make them stop. In general, visitors are lower ranked and sometimes kids are at the bottom as well. That is why you see so many people asking how they can teach their dog to stop jumping on people or nipping. All this jumping and invading of personal space is a display of domination. You never see a dog jump all over and rough house with a higher member of the pack without approval. This is why my dog knows it is never ok to do that with any human, because I know not everyone is going to have the personality to tell a 80 pound ball of muscle to stop jumping on them when he is happy, hyper, excited or in the mood to rough play.


I havent seen any credible evidence that rough housing is not good, but I have the same frame of mind with davidfitness.
My dogs are always out and around people, and I wouldnt want them to start roughhousing with people when they get excited. I am srict about where their mouths and paws can go, and neither a paw or a mouth is allowed anywhere near me, or a human. I will ALLOW some licks here and there when they sense I am allowing it , but i "SSHHH" the them when they try to lick ( which Nina is slowly learning)

when they start getting frisky i will play tug with them, and pat them firmly from time to time. I dont rough house though, yet dont strongly oppose it either. Great question.


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## ThaLadyPit (Oct 12, 2008)

I would like to add my two cents, also. I have always rough housed with my dogs, as I think it builds not only a strong bond between us as far as obedience and temperament, but it also increases their confidence of what I ask of them. My last dog, Onyx was a very vocal and rough-playing dog. She would literally have boxing matches with me, and she knew when I said "enough" or "settle" that it was done and over with. Never did she try to play with anyone else, be it family member or stranger. She would not even run after my children or anyone else's children to get a ball or toy or stick! Maybe it was good training, maybe it was just that I had a great dog. Either way, she made me proud always! I've never had an issue with any of my dogs and other ppl playing too rough with them. I've always taught my dogs to respect not only my authority or that of anyone in the household, but to also respect the authority of ppl that were visiting. I did this from day one with every dog. I would have various ppl over and have them give the dog commands as well, enforcing the fact that the dog is not alpha and will never be alpha!


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## NinaThePitbull (Feb 10, 2010)

ThaLadyPit said:


> I would like to add my two cents, also. I have always rough housed with my dogs, as I think it builds not only a strong bond between us as far as obedience and temperament, but it also increases their confidence of what I ask of them. My last dog, Onyx was a very vocal and rough-playing dog. She would literally have boxing matches with me, and she knew when I said "enough" or "settle" that it was done and over with. Never did she try to play with anyone else, be it family member or stranger. She would not even run after my children or anyone else's children to get a ball or toy or stick! Maybe it was good training, maybe it was just that I had a great dog. Either way, she made me proud always! I've never had an issue with any of my dogs and other ppl playing too rough with them. I've always taught my dogs to respect not only my authority or that of anyone in the household, but to also respect the authority of ppl that were visiting. I did this from day one with every dog. I would have various ppl over and have them give the dog commands as well, enforcing the fact that the dog is not alpha and will never be alpha!


great post, enlightening. maybe i could play some rough housing, i like the part abut it creating stronger bonds... makes sense.


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## ThaLadyPit (Oct 12, 2008)

Thanks Oscar! Looking back now, I see where I could've typed it out better, but long as I got the point across, I guess that's all that matters, lol! I'm in chat if you'd like to c'mon over! I'm lonely!


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## Loki (Feb 23, 2010)

yeah i play really hard with my dogs and they play bite at me and bark but they never once actually put their mouths on me I can put my arm in their mouths and they immediately stop and back off its funny


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## GatorMan (Feb 5, 2010)

My old man Benoit, who is posted here fat was 75 in shape 59/60 pounds. We wrestled like UFC fighters....and at a drop he could stop, kids loved him, puppies were his favorite playmates. This dog woould never and has never jumped on anyone, I have had gamebred stuff, seen box champs and they never were rough with children and never jumped un invited....well maybe a few now that I think of it but out of 40 dogs...thats nothing. Its how and what you do for training from day one at your home, and what you expect. And then knowing what is working for your pup and what is not and adjust.


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## SARGEnNIKITA (Jan 3, 2010)

I rough house with my dogs on a regular basis.... Sarge gets pretty rough with me only and nikita will with both me and the hubby... They know we are always in control and we can call enough at any time... My Kids can play and push just as hard but the dogs know that they the babies... The kids can do Anything to them without retaliation although they know to respect the dogs too... I think it's not only the breed but each individual dog and their extent of training.


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## NinaThePitbull (Feb 10, 2010)

ThaLadyPit said:


> Thanks Oscar! Looking back now, I see where I could've typed it out better, but long as I got the point across, I guess that's all that matters, lol! I'm in chat if you'd like to c'mon over! I'm lonely!


...sorry , must have logged out after the post.


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## dixieland (Aug 14, 2009)

PitbullOutlaw said:


> I would never ever let anyone rough play with my dogs PERIOD. That seems to be too much of a liability, my dogs no me and my way and my commands. My friends sometimes try to rough play with my dog I tell them to play fetch he knows how to do that very well instead of rough play. he is about 80 something pounds what can make a dog tick? Anything when they are in that state of mind.


I am there whenever they are doing it.Never does she play with anybody while I'm not around.And these are older children I'm talking about who have been around this breed their whole life.
What makes her tick in that state of mind?The kids playing.In that state of mind she's all about playing with the kids.She is not aggressive at all to anything!I trust her with my kids life.If I didn't trust her,then I wouldn't have her.What is the point in owning a dog that you don't trust completely in any situation?

And maybe we're talking about completely different things when we say rough house or wrestle.What do you mean?Here's what I mean: my 5 year old will be running and playing and he'll run towards her full speed and tackle her.They will roll around and then she'll get up acting like a spaze running around in circles with her butt tucked under her.Then she'll come in for a few licks and he'll grab onto her neck trying to hold on and ride.Of course he falls off and she runs around again.He tackles her again and so on.
She never once jumps up on him or tries to bite him.


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## PitbullOutlaw (Dec 16, 2009)

dixieland said:


> I am there whenever they are doing it.Never does she play with anybody while I'm not around.And these are older children I'm talking about who have been around this breed their whole life.
> What makes her tick in that state of mind?The kids playing.In that state of mind she's all about playing with the kids.She is not aggressive at all to anything!I trust her with my kids life.If I didn't trust her,then I wouldn't have her.What is the point in owning a dog that you don't trust completely in any situation?
> 
> And maybe we're talking about completely different things when we say rough house or wrestle.What do you mean?Here's what I mean: my 5 year old will be running and playing and he'll run towards her full speed and tackle her.They will roll around and then she'll get up acting like a spaze running around in circles with her butt tucked under her.Then she'll come in for a few licks and he'll grab onto her neck trying to hold on and ride.Of course he falls off and she runs around again.He tackles her again and so on.
> She never once jumps up on him or tries to bite him.


Oh no that's fine that what both of mines do with my kids.. What I mean is really pushing their buttons and fiscally getting their drive going.


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## performanceknls (Apr 4, 2009)

I rough house with all my dogs but they are never allowed to use teeth. They are not allowed to play like that unless they have a toy in their mouth. The problem with getting a dogs drive up is some can get a little out of control and snap and not mean to bite but they could snag you. I cannot tell you how many times I have been bitten by Siren or Tempest when I was building drive and they were going for their toy. I got in the way and got bit or they were just learning how to target the toy. For your average person this would have made them very mad but I am the one asking for them to bite and I just happened to get in the way. I bring this up because I do a lot of temperament tests on dogs who have bite people (all breeds) and you would not believe the stupid things people dog then blame the dog. I am not talking about an attack I am talking about a snap or bite during play or when they build drive then wonder why they just got bite.

I think some are too quick to PTS dogs who had had a quick snap or bite depending on the situation. An attack or temperament issues is one thing but a snap is not always the dogs fault.

So yes rough housing is fun but if you build that dogs drive really high and get nipped maybe you should have been playing with a toy


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## PitbullOutlaw (Dec 16, 2009)

performanceknls said:


> I rough house with all my dogs but they are never allowed to use teeth. They are not allowed to play like that unless they have a toy in their mouth. The problem with getting a dogs drive up is some can get a little out of control and snap and not mean to bite but they could snag you. I cannot tell you how many times I have been bitten by Siren or Tempest when I was building drive and they were going for their toy. I got in the way and got bit or they were just learning how to target the toy. For your average person this would have made them very mad but I am the one asking for them to bite and I just happened to get in the way. I bring this up because I do a lot of temperament tests on dogs who have bite people (all breeds) and you would not believe the stupid things people dog then blame the dog. I am not talking about an attack I am talking about a snap or bite during play or when they build drive then wonder why they just got bite.
> 
> I think some are too quick to PTS dogs who had had a quick snap or bite depending on the situation. An attack or temperament issues is one thing but a snap is not always the dogs fault.
> 
> So yes rough housing is fun but if you build that dogs drive really high and get nipped maybe you should have been playing with a toy


:goodpost:
That's a perfect example why I would not let anyone else rough play with my dog. Someone else might take it the wrong way and that's just the dog being worked up to do. We as the owners make sure to keep everything in line not someone else with less experience. But simple play interaction whit out no rough play is fine because the dog should not be putting paws nor teeth on anyone.


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## Aximus Prime (Dec 15, 2009)

The only time I play rough with axel is when we play tug-o-war with his rope toys, he knows he is allowed to do that but if he tries to bite on my arm or pant leg, the game is over. He's to the point now where he will not try to bit anything out of my hands unless I give him the "OK". I can dangle a piece of meat in front if him and he won't go for it until I say "OK". I'm trying to get him to the point where I can set a treat on his nose and have him hold it there till I give him the OK. My sister trained her boxer to do this.


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## cyconhis70 (May 26, 2010)

I'm more than likely repeating someone but I think it all depends on how you raise your APBT. If they've been taught respect for people, as well as children, as a puppy it should be fine around people. I roughhouse with my adult female and she knows how far to go, but attempting this with my ten week old puppy usually ends up in a nip to the face, Lol he's still learning.


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## tt557 (Apr 16, 2010)

I rough house a little with Omi. Our rough housing is kinda low key though...I lay on the floor & when she comes up to me - I mouth her legs then she plops down and I mouth her belly, neck...she mouths back and will paw me. 
One day I was not careful and I opened my eyes just as a giant paw came down and blinded me for the day. 
I dont let her get too excited only because if she hurt me being gentle - imagine if she were hyped up. Forget their mouths it's their feet that will kill ya!

When she's hyped - I just play with the tennis ball or the Kong tug. She ate the giant cat toy I made her. (flirt pole???)

I've never heard her play growl though - not sure if she was taught that or its just her.


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## hmlykins (May 15, 2009)

I will play rough with Jada, it scares my husband the way she acts but she never has bit me or has even attempted to. When I say "Calm" She will roll over on her back and quit...lol


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