5 Daily Games That Build Focus & Bonding with Your Pup

Strengthen your relationship and teach key life skills, one game at a time!

Bringing a puppy into your life is exciting, chaotic, and full of learning for both of you! But training doesn’t always have to happen in formal sessions. In fact, some of the most powerful learning happens through play.

Here at Sheffield Dog Training, we’re big believers in using games to teach real-life skills like recall, engagement, and self-control. Not only does it make learning fun, but it also helps you build trust, communication, and connection with your dog especially during those wobbly puppy or teenage phases.

Here are five simple daily games that will strengthen your bond and help your dog learn to choose you, even in distracting environments:

1. Name Game (a.k.a. Puppy Ping Pong)

This one’s perfect for recall foundations and helping your puppy associate their name with good things.

🔹 Say your dog’s name in a cheerful voice

🔹 Immediately toss a treat away from you

🔹 As your dog finishes the treat and turns back, say their name again and toss another treat in the opposite direction

🎯 What it teaches: Positive association with their name, orientation to you, and fast recall.

2. Hand Targeting

Teach your pup to touch your hand with their nose on cue, a great way to get focus on walks or redirect their attention calmly.

🔹 Present your open palm at nose level

🔹 When your dog touches it, mark with “yes!” and reward

🔹 Build up to adding the cue “touch”

🎯 What it teaches: Focus, engagement, redirection, and impulse control.

3. Middle Game (aka ‘peekaboo’)

Ask your pup to come between your legs and face forward, a lovely “safe space” that also helps dogs reorient and reset.

🔹 Lure your dog through your legs with a treat

🔹 Mark when they’re in the middle position

🔹 Release and repeat

🎯 What it teaches: Confidence, close proximity, and body awareness especially helpful in busy areas.

4. Tug & Drop

Use play to teach your dog how to let go of something without stress or frustration.

🔹 Tug for a few seconds using a toy (we love Tug-E-Nuff toys!)

🔹 Offer a treat and cue "drop"

🔹 When they drop the toy, reward and offer the toy again

🎯 What it teaches: Self-control, confidence, and fun release cues without conflict.

🧸 Want to upgrade your tug toys? Claim your Sheffield Dog Training Tug-E-Nuff discount here!

5. Treat Scatter Search

Simple but brilliant, this encourages your dog to use their nose while also providing mental enrichment.

🔹 Scatter a few treats on the ground

🔹 Let your dog sniff and find them

🔹 Use this as a calm end to training or before clipping on the lead after a recall

🎯 What it teaches: Nose work skills, calmness, and stress relief plus it makes lead clipping less predictable!

Why Games Work So Well

✅ They’re fun and low-pressure

✅ They build trust and connection

✅ They help your dog generalise behaviours into real-world settings

✅ They turn you into the most rewarding part of your dog’s environment

Want to Learn More?

These games are a key part of what we teach in our Puppy and Junior Life Skills classes here at Sheffield Dog Training. If you want a confident, focused, and happy dog by your side , come join us!

Let the games begin!