What motivates your dog? Every dog is different — so every dog will be motivated in different ways. It’s important to know what motivates your dog, as this can help you when you’re trying to train them. For example, if they love treats and food, you can use treats when training them. However, if your dog is more motivated by something like a toy, then this can change your training methods.
Dogs are commonly motivated by regular dog food or basic treats, “better” treats with higher value, toys, and praise — though these motivations can often be used together and changed up for a better training experience. Keep reading more to find out what motivates your dog!
3 Ways to Find Out What Motivates Your Dog
Try Using Regular Dog Food and Basic Treats
Many pups are often motivated by food. Therefore, when you’re training them, you can use kibble or basic dog treats to motivate them to learn. This can be a great option when you’re training your pup at home where they have no distractions.
Try Using “Better” Dog Treats
Sometimes, however, you may need to bring out the better dog treats — think dried meat, peanut butter, string cheese, or whatever your dog really loves to eat on special occasions.
Using treats that have a higher value to your dog can be beneficial when you’re trying to train them in areas that have more distraction. For example, if they’re around other dogs and their attention is often off of you, use these better dog treats that have a higher value to them.
Try Using Toys
What do you do if your dog isn’t motivated by treats as much as other dogs are? Don’t worry — they might just be motivated by playtime! If this is the case, your dog might hold toys and playtime to a higher value than treats.
When training your dog, you should give them a toy — rather than a treat — when they do something right. It might help to do little training sessions during playtime, too!
Always Use Praise
No matter what, no matter what motivates your dog the most, you should always use praise. All dogs respond to praise and seek it when they do something good — and you should always give it to them!
Q: How do I always keep my dog motivated?
A: Dogs are often motivated by toys, treats, and food. But you can always keep them motivated by providing all three of these options and changing them up often when training to keep everything fresh and new for them!
Train Your Dog Today
Learn what motivates your dog the most through your training sessions. Learn what they hold in high, medium, and low value — and then use this to your advantage when training. It always helps to mix these training methods and these values up!
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