Do you have a dog that just turns his nose away from treats? This can be difficult if you want to get your dog to listen to you by using reward-based dog training methods. Fortunately, there are ways to overcome this! We have done this often in our dog training. Salt Lake City has many clients of our’s that had dogs who were not motivated by treats. Then by applying some simple tools they were able to get their dog to eat treats. The good news is that if your dog eats and is alive then he is definitely food motivated. If he was not then he of course wouldn’t be alive and eating. This of course is suppose to make you laugh, and it is also true from a scientific stand point.
Recently, we just completed a training session with a happy Salt Lake City dog training client, named Krystal Clark, that had a pit bull who would not eat any treats. As a result, the owner was struggling at getting her dog to listen. He was refusing every type of treat that his owner bought. After applying some secrets that I will post below, her pit bull became highly motivated to eat treats. This made the owner very happy because she really wanted to get her to dog to listen to her and to respond to basic obedience commands. After we got her dog to be motivated by treats, the training part became easy. Now she has a dog that easily listens to her.
Below are some tips to get your dog to be treat motivated for dog training. Salt Lake City has many off leash areas to walk your dog so getting your to listen to you is important from a safety standpoint.
1.) Put your dog on a feeding scheduling. Put the food down for a maximum of 15 minutes for your dog to eat.
2.) Make sure you know the amount of food that your dog needs to eat at mealtimes. Do not over feed your dog.
3.) Give your dog about 10% less food at mealtimes.
4.) Do not give your dog access to treats etc. throughout the day unless it is for Salt Lake City dog training.
5.) Experiment with many food items to see what motivates your dog. Some dogs are more picky than others. Human meat such as cooked chicken, hamburgers and turkey hotdogs can work great for dog training. Salt Lake City has many stores where you can buy organic and natural meat for your dog
6.) Heat the treat in the microwave. If the treat is human food, heating the treat up will make the treat more fragrant. Then the treat will be more motivating for Salt Lake City dog training.
If you have applied the above tools with no success or would like further help, seek a professional. There are many choices for dog trainers. Salt Lake City has many reward-based trainers that can help you.
We want to hear from you in a comment below.
If your dog is struggling with treat motivation what did you learn from this post? How will you apply these tools to create happier dog training?
Namaste!
Johanna Teresi, Professional Trainer and Owner of Four Legged Scholars LLC, Dog Training, Salt Lake City, Utah
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