Catch

Your dog snatches a treat or a toy straight out of the air — a trick that trains eye, coordination and timing while the dog stays put, unlike the running of fetch.

🐾🐾🐾 · ~10 days · 5 min/session

Learn first: Sit

Step-by-step

1. Pick the right treat

   Start with a soft, light-coloured treat about the size of a hazelnut — it travels slowly and is easy to see. Ask your dog to sit an arm’s length in front of you. Small hard biscuits fly fast and bounce off the nose, which kills the dog’s willingness on day one.

   💡 Flat-faced breeds see poorly right under their own muzzle. For them, drop the treat from higher up and a little further forward.

2. Drop, don’t throw

   Hold the treat about thirty centimetres above your dog’s nose and simply let it drop straight down. Say “Yes!” the moment their mouth closes around it. For the first few days work only with this vertical drop — it gives the dog time to track the object.

3. Don’t make a drama of misses

   If the treat hits the floor, pick it up calmly and without comment, then drop a fresh one from the same height. Don’t laugh and don’t shout — a noisy reaction distracts the dog exactly when they need focus. Hand over the dropped treats at the end of the session, so food stays linked with the game and not with failure.

   💡 Eight to ten drops per session are enough. Catching takes concentration, and tiredness shows straight away in the number of misses.

4. Add an arc and the cue “Catch”

   Once the vertical drop is reliable, step back and toss the treat underhand in a gentle arc towards the nose. Say “Catch” just before your hand moves. Aim at the nose, not over the head — a treat behind the ears cannot be tracked.

5. Move on to toys and distance

   Swap the treat for a light plush toy or a soft ball and repeat the same steps from the start — a new object means new rules as far as the dog is concerned. Gradually build the distance up to three or four metres with a low arc. Keep the throws low so there is no twisting in mid-air.

   💡 High twisting leaps after a flying disc are a common cause of back and hip injuries. Use a soft disc, throw low and past the dog, and ask your vet before you move on to serious throws.

Common mistakes

• Throwing straight into the dog’s face — the treat hits the nose and the dog starts blinking and backing off instead of catching.
• Too much distance in the first days — the dog can’t track the object and gives up.
• Laughter and loud reactions at every miss — it distracts the dog and turns the game into a show for the humans.
• Throwing hard objects — pebbles, wooden sticks or ice cubes break teeth and injure the palate.

Problems & solutions

My dog just stands there and the treat bounces off their muzzle.

Drop from higher up and a little further forward so they have time to see the object in flight. A bigger, light-coloured treat against a dark background helps too — a piece of cheese over a dark rug, for instance.

My dog snaps, but always a second too early.

The dog is guessing instead of watching. Go back to the vertical drop from thirty centimetres and vary the rhythm — sometimes at once, sometimes after two seconds, so the moment can’t be predicted.

My dog catches treats but always drops the ball.

A ball flies faster and is harder to track than a treat. Start by handing it over from half a metre, straight into the mouth, and only then begin tossing it. Choose something soft and light — a hard ball hurts against the teeth and the dog learns to avoid it.

Reward ideas

The caught treat is the reward itself — use soft morsels your dog loves and count them towards the daily ration. When you work with a toy, reward a catch with a short game together rather than just another throw.