Have you mastered take, hold, and give? You are ready to move onto having your dog pick items up and bring them to you! Lets start with something simple, like a water bottle. You will want to begin with something easy, so try emptying the water bottle. When your dog gets the hang of an empty bottle, you can move on to a full bottle, and then a cold bottle!
First take the bottle and get your dog interested in it. Play keep away! Give your dog the command "take." Be patient, they will need to learn each new item separately. Reward generously for any contact with the bottle. Once they have taken it, try placing it on the floor next to you and gesturing towards it. When your dog goes to pick it up say, "Get it!" and reward them!
Some dogs will get a hang of this naturally, others will take a while. If your dog is really not interested in the object, try rubbing a treat on it. If they don't like the texture/noise, start with a koozie on the bottle. Or you can even try starting with just the koozie. You can even throw it and say "get it," as a moving object will be more interesting. You have to break it down into the smallest step your dog can handle!
Once your dog will pick the object up from the floor, tell your dog to stay, and gradually increase the distance of the object from you. Once your dog will retrieve it from a distance, you can start giving the object a name. Say the name of the object first, followed by "Get It." Do not expect your dog to catch onto the name quickly. Once they are very solid with the first object (at least a week of training), you can introduce another object.
It can also be helpful to teach your dog the command "find it." Start with a toy, show your dog the toy and tell them to stay, then put it in an easy to see location. Tell them "find it," and when they find the toy reward them! You can gradually make the hiding spots more difficult, even bringing your dog into a different room so they can't see where you're hiding it. This is a great game to get their minds working and their energy out!
So now that your dog knows, "get it," and "find it," have fun! Your dog can bring you a drink while you're on the couch, or find a missing remote. If you want to take things a step further, you can even teach them to get a drink out of the fridge!