Our puppies have the instinct to fetch and retrieve. All we do is encourage them to want to bring it back to us...in brief, playful sessions.
Here I'm using the hallway to encourage puppy to bring it straight back to me rather than past me or off to a favorite corner of the room or yard where she'd prefer to mouth the retrieve toy. (I won't scold her for this but I want to outsmart her from establishing this habit.)
Wouldn't you rather be throwing gloves for dogs than digging out an SUV? Fetch is more than just a way to exercise dogs or a means to an end in the field of hunting. It gives us humans something to do. The family members that are not so keen on real chores can at least play fetch and thus, be useful. When you are feeling blue or bored and there's nothing good on Netflix, throwing for you best buddy and having him bring it right back to you can be a glimmer sunshine in an otherwise grey day. It's about connecting.