Activities For Golden Mountain Dogs
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Prepare for unexpected vet bills
Introduction
Golden Mountain Dogs are hybrids that result from mixing Golden Retrievers with Bernese Mountain Dogs. Despite their loyal and honest personalities, however, the Golden Mountain Dog has a rather deceptive name; the "Golden" in their name is largely vestigial, indicating their status as Golden Retriever offspring rather than the actual color of their coats. Golden Retrievers and Bernese Mountain Dogs both make for great family pets in their own rights so, genetically speaking, Golden Mountain Dogs essentially have everything they need to rank among the best companion animals in the world. By training them and introducing them to a few of the activities listed below, folks who are inclined to can help Golden Mountain Dogs reach their full potential.
Dog Park Outing
Popular
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Sunny Day
Free
Easy
30 - 60 min
Items needed
Dog Leash
Doggy Waste Bags
Activity description
There are a lot of benefits to going to a dog park with your pet, and they don't all solely benefit your pet. Sure, your dog will absolutely enjoy getting the chance to socialize with other pets as well as have some time to frolic and play freely, but you can also learn quite a bit from the various other dog enthusiasts who will be hanging out at the park. Best of all, most dog parks are completely free and have a host of amenities that you and your dog can make use of while the two of you are visiting.
Step
1
Meet and greet
Dogs parks mostly exist to serve as a social hub for like-minded individuals. From simply being there with a dog, everyone present has a lot in common and will likely be able to share similar stories that others will nonetheless be thrilled to hear. Your dog will likely not have any problems fraternizing with their canine comrades, so take a page from your pet and put your best foot forward.
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2
Park life
Dogs parks also equally exist for the purpose of giving canines a place to stretch their legs and have fun. Most dog parks come with a play area where pets can converge and meet one another, but others have unique pieces of equipment like slides, seesaws, and super-sized dog tunnels.
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Retrieval Training
Popular
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Sunny Day
Cheap
Normal
30 min
Items needed
Fetch Items
Training Clicker
Activity description
Retrieval training has the potential to help your Golden Mountain Dog get on their Golden Retriever parent's level, and possibly exceed it, via a series of trials and exercises. As you've probably been able to guess from the name alone, the goal of retrieval training is to teach a dog how to retrieve certain items on command. Those items don't have to be anything special - a tennis ball or even a stick will do the job. That being said, you can buy a "retrieval training dummy" from your local pet shop for less than 10 bucks. It would also be best to try this activity on a sunny day, where neither snow nor rain can conceal the items at play.
Step
1
Using a training clicker
The training clicker is an effective, incredibly cheap tool (with most costing less than $5) that pet enthusiasts have begun using to reinforce positive behaviors that they'd like their pets to keep up. The idea is that you show your dog how to complete a task, ask them to repeat it, and then click every time your dog is moving in the right direction. training clickers can be very useful tools for teaching a dog how to retrieve on command if used properly.
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Quality time
A good way to make sure that a dog will be motivated to retrieve an item is to let them spend some time playing with it. Bonus points if you're able to use an item that your dog already has personal ties to, like their favorite chew toy or favorite tennis ball.
Step
3
Step by step
That's how you'll have to teach your dog how to retrieve an item command; first, show your dog the item they've bonded with, then move it away and place it away from your pet. Point at the item and ask your pet to "get it" or "get the {insert item name here}" with the clicker in hand. Click once your dog looks at the item, and then click again when your dog starts moving in the direction of the item. Follow your dog and continue clicking in spaced intervals as they continue moving to the item and then click once they pick it up. Ask your dog to give you the item and reward them with praise and clicks when they do.
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Hiking Trip
Popular
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Any Day
Moderate
Normal
45 - 180 min
Items needed
Leash
Doggy waste bags
Water
Backpack
First aid kit
Food and snacks
Activity description
If you're caring for a Golden Mountain Dog, why not go on a good old fashioned hiking trip with them? Golden Mountain Dogs have a lot of great physical and mental qualities that make them eager hiking companions. Their strong builds will allow them to carry a decent amount of weight on their own while their calm personalities will keep them from getting anxious on the trail. You can hike with your dog in just about any kind of weather, though it'll be much easier to hike on a sunny day than a cold or rainy day. As for the cost of the average trip, you'll want to save about $80 to $160 to get all the equipment you'll need for a trip.
Step
1
Plan properly
When described briefly, hiking simply amounts to walking from one place to another. Not too difficult a concept to grasp on its own right? But the planning you will have to do beforehand isn't as cut and dried as the actual act of hiking. You'll need to account for the type of weather and terrain that you might encounter during the hike and then you'll need to use the budget you set aside earlier to get the equipment you and your dog will need for a successful trip. Did you pack extra clothing in case the weather takes an unexpected turn? How about a first aid kit for you and your dog?
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2
Types of hikes
There are actually a few different types of distinct ways one can go hiking that are based on things like the location they choose to hike in as well as the duration of the trip. If one goes hiking in a city, that'd be considered "urban hiking." If one hikes in a rural area or across a preset trail, that'd be more in line with the traditional concept of hiking. And if one hikes for days or weeks at a time, then they'd essentially be backpacking at that point. Which type of hiking you choose will be influenced by your Golden Mountain Dog's experience and fitness level. Train before taking on a big trek and always put your pet's health before anything else.
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More Fun Ideas...
Swimming
Both Golden Retrievers and Bernese Mountain Dogs are both pretty good swimmers as is, so it isn't too big of a stretch to imagine a Golden Mountain Dog learning how to swim quite well with enough practice and guidance. The earlier in their development that you can begin training a dog, the better, so try to show your Golden Mountain Dog the basics while they're still a puppy.
Strength Training
Golden Mountain Dogs can benefit greatly from strength training, as they'll be able to pull and push around more weight with greater ease in proportion to the strength of their legs. There are a lot of pieces of equipment out there that one can use to strength train their dog and one can use naturally rugged terrain to help out as well.
Conclusion
Thank you so much for reading to the end of this guide. By doing so, we hope that you've gained a better understanding and appreciation for the Golden Mountain Dog and are now more aware of what these gentle giants are capable of. Golden Mountain Dogs are good at getting along with humans and other animals of all ages, and are very physically and mentally adaptable. They don't much like having to live in tiny spaces though, about as much as a Golden Retriever or Bernese Mountain Dog would, but can learn to make do with certain types of apartments or condos as long as daily activity is part of the mix.