Best Training Method?

[Smaztic]

I'm planning on getting a chow chow in a couple of months, and I absolutely love the breed! One of my favorite things to do is go to the park with dogs and jog and and play fetch with them. I also love training dogs and teaching them tricks. I know that I should probably get a border collie or something similar, but I just love chows. They're also a better watchdog and I'm a young 20 something 5 foot girl living by herself in a big city (though I hope my chow will never be in a situation where it will have to protect me.) I've heard that chows aren't the best breed for playing fetch and teaching tricks to. Most of them think its beneath them, so I was wondering if anyone had any helpful hints or tricks at getting their chow motivated to play and train? Are chows in general more praise, play, or treat driven? Thanks!

[Ursa's daddy]

If you want to play fetch, better stick to the border collie. Maybe someone has a chow that fetches, but my two might bring something back, but only because they are in the mood. Also, a casual stroll might be something a chow would like, but jogging would be a bit much. I am a bit sedate, and they are well suited to my lifestyle. I like to use praise, and my wife likes to use treats. These are dogs with lots of personality. My female Ursa will do just about anything if she thinks there is a treat involved. My male, Malachi, will give me this look like "are you talking to me?" They are wonderful loving dogs. Protection comes natural to them. Ursa sleeps next to the bed, and Malachi watches the bedroom door. He would sleep beside the bed, but Ursa already owns that position and will not let him have it. If there is a bump in the night, Malachi takes point, ready to challenge, and Ursa is the backup.
Let me suggest that you actually meet some people with chows. Also, read through the forum to get a better idea about chow behavior. I get the impression that you are looking for a dog which will give you a lot of play interaction. If this is the case, go with the border collie.

[Penelope]

Chows are wonderful, but I second that fetch is not their thing. Sophie would run after the ball for sure, but then when she got it she would go off and play with, bounce on it etc, by herself, instead of bringing it back lol. Also I wouldn't ever ever let my chow loose in a park unless it was a dog park with fences. They do no have great recall, although I've heard that can be worked on with a lot of effort - still I wouldn't trust it, especially in a city park. Chows are very praise and extremely treat driven, but that doesn't mean that will do things if they don't feel like it. However, things like sit, lie down, stay, etc, I found easy to train my chow to do.

Think about having a cat in a big fluffy dog's body, with the guard dog thrown in as a bonus. If that appeals, a chow will probably be a good fit!

[Smaztic]

Thanks for the advice! I volunteer at two animal shelters so I've met a lot of collie and chow mixes but my heart is just drawn to the chow. I guess I'll just have to adjust my lifestyle to theirs. I really hope that as long as I'm patient I'll still be able to teach my future chow some cool tricks though and that he learns to love the park. There's a huge fenced in dog park next to where I live.

[TyChowgirl]

I don't know. Ty fetches with me a lot (only in the apartment for the most part, but he does sometimes at the dog park) He enjoys chasing and bringing it back to chase again. Not all do, but he enjoys it. If you get a more athletic chow, they may jog with you for a little bit. I know I can get Ty to run by my side or walk fast if I so desire to jog, but they don't always want to go far and if there's something they'd like to stop and sniff, watch out! Athletics are not always their thing because of their unique personalities, but every chow is different. I also have him able to do the basic commands and additional tricks that he doesn't mind doing if the reward is worth it to him. They are very smart dogs, and the only reason they're hard to train is their stubborness and independentness. If you live in an apartment and work, the border collie would definitely not be ideal for you despite your want for atheletics and tricks. They get bored far too easily and you constantly need to exercise and challenge them with new tasks,tricks,and even agility if you can. For the apartment when you're not home all the time, the chow is a good breed because while they crave attention from their human they can be left a bit to their own devices and be ok with it much like cats. I noticed that once I started leaving the spare bedroom door open where Ty could jump onto the bed and watch out the window he would be less bored because while I was away from the apartment, he would take up the guarding position going from window to door. Definitely read up more about them and if possible meet with someone who has a well socialized chow companion. Knowledge is power, especially when it comes to dogs.

[chowpups]

My son decided to tak e Nikki on a little walk and Nikki decided it was too long a walk and just sat down and refused to move , my son called and said come pick us up she will not budge.. Now he is not a little kid he is 6'3 and very athletically built, but couldn't budge Nikki".So carry your cell and have someone handy to come retrieve you should you decide to jog..and you have a chow like Nikki...Retrieving a toy ...only when she felt like it...I think I had the normal chow..

[Confuzzled]

My Chow plays fetch because it annoys our Jack Russell when she "steals" his toys. Bulling him is one of her favourite games. Zedd, the Jack Russell loves his chewing and will snuggle up on the couch with his chew toys. Skadi will casually sit nearby feigning disinterest, but the minute Zedd shifts his attention to something else, she snatches his toy and runs around with it, tossing it in the air, battering it with her feet like a soccer ball. Zedd gets incredibly upset. Playing fetch, its the same thing, she will dash to get to the ball before him, because it annoys him. She can keep this up for as long as we are willing to throw the ball.

Skadi is incredibly energetic for a chow though. She gets just as excited about walkies as Zedd... and she walks at a marching pace. She would run if we ran. We go to an off leash dog park out of town. Last time, she spied some ducks on the dam, and I kid you not, jumped in and swam across the length of it trying to catch them (I was kind of horrified and surprised all at once because I read they're supposed to be too heavy for this swimming thing). We normally spend around 2hrs at the park and Skadi trots along at just under a jog the whole time. I sometimes wonder if she knows she's supposed to be a Chow, but then she does that thing where you've said "Sit" for the umpteenth time and her tail is waggling as she eyes the cookie and eyes you and eyes the cookie and says, "Oh mommy, this sitting thing is so... just give the cookie, m'kay?"

[trry]

Yeah, I agree my chow pup will play fetch when he feels like it so we get in ~5min of fetch and then he is off doing something else. He loves being chased tho!....