Whats motivational.

what do use to motivate your dogs? What are the results and why you choose that reward?These may sound very basic questions,but I regularly see handlers drip feeding treats or a dog hanging off a toy without a great deal of thought for whats actually taking place.I use food/toys and praise myself but think our greatest asset is observation.I would be interested in your thoughts.
Dave

Sausages is Betsy big reinforced. I use it to reinforce the watch command and to ask her to do stuff so she focuses on me preventing her from becoming too aroused to respond in class. And the class interrupted lol. Toys also work but I don't use them much around lots of other dogs just because I don't want distract anyone, but we use them on walks and home. Cuddles for calm commands as I don't want to overstimulate her. Wheeling nicely in a walk means off lead run. Being quiet in crate gets living room sofa time

Hi thanks for the reply ,sounds like you use different motivators in different situations and have a reason why.

No problem. That said food is Betsy main motivator

Food for training bits of tricks/moves, ball sometimes for agility bits,. Food for latest two rescues for recall although one is now keen for ball as well.
For one dog I used tuggy for huge reward or jackpot. The three I am training a lot at the moment are all really foody so I mix special bits with kibble. They are all keen and easy!

rune

Depends on the dog and the situation. For tricks or obedience type stuff I use treats. For Flynn's gundog training I use a tennis ball as his reward, sometimes I use a tug toy with Jed but he's more motivated by food.
Other times I simply use praise as a reward and then releasing the dogs to run around and do as they wish again. This is more for when we are on a walk and I need them to be controlled at points.

The dog decides what is motivating it at any given time. What I use depends on what works for the dog and what is most effective for that situation.

Depends on the dog and the situation
With Ben he is food food food - but I have had to train him to follow a ball to teach him to work away from me at agility - I could teach it with a target but I find chucking a ball gives me better body laungage too - so it trains me
He also loves the ball chucker so if I want crazy speed we work for the ball chucker - carefull thinking work a treat

Mia a bit of everything, she loves working for food, will work a little for a ball but isnt mad for it - mainly treat the ball like a target and when she gets the ball she then gets her food reward, and a tuggy is good for a jackpot reward when she has done great work and needs to let some of her hyper out without a zoomie

I have noticed with my and other dogs - dogs who are food motivated tend to come in close to the handler more and need taught to go out to do things - ball motivated dogs work away and need to be taught to work close

All the replies are reasoned and have choices,they are also producing results.The preferences have been observed.

Different situations, different motivations.

A treat might be the highest reinforcer for basic training, but come way down the list when out and about where games, freedom or sniffing would be far more motivating.

In my opinion, dogs, like us, are motivated by what turns them on at the given moment.

Example, I love chocolate, but if I'm feeling stuffed, ill or sick chocolate would be the last thing on earth to motivate me into doing something