How do I train my puppy to do theses things?
How do I teach my GSD to swim, play fetch, heel, and get him to quite walking in between my feet and walking in the way?
Swimming: not ALL dogs like to swim, and he might be scared of the water at first. But try taking your dog to a lake (that allows dogs) nearby and you can introduce him to water gradually by letting him watch you get in the water, throwing his toys in, having him walk with you into a shallow area, etc. He’ll get used to it at his own pace. DON’T scare him by throwing him in the water. Dogs know how to swim naturally, so you don’t need to teach him how, just let him be around water in positive ways and he’ll swim if he wants.
Play fetch: Throw his toy, and he’ll probably run after it and grab it. Call him back to you, praise him, say “drop it” and take the toy from his mouth, throw it again, repeat.
Heel: Let him get used to his collar, first. Then attach a leash and let him run around with it loose (just attached, with no one holding the other end) in the house. He’ll probably be distracted or even frightened by the leash at first, but eventually he’ll ignore it. (this is assuming your dog isn’t leash trained at all). Then, take the leash and walk him around the house. Every time he starts to walk ahead of you or pull, stop moving, and call him to you. Have him sit, then continue walking. He’ll eventually realize he doesn’t get to go anywhere unless he walks nicely beside you. Once he’s doing well with it inside the house, take it outside and continue the training (there’s more distractions out there and it might take some work).
He’ll quit walking between your feet in time. All puppies do that. Be gentle and nudge him out of the way, and as he gets bigger he’ll stop doing it naturally.
Remember that training takes LOTS of repetition. Don’t be discouraged if you try to teach him one of these things and he doesn’t pick up on it in the first day. Repeat, repeat, repeat! Also, don’t tire him out by focusing on one thing for too long- puppies have short attention spans and he’ll get bored and frustrated.
Introducing Lab pups to the water Teach your pup to Swim