How well do you really understand what your dog's motivators are?

In our blog post “What are your dog’s motivators or rewards?” we discuss what your dog's motivators are and how well you know them. As discussed in that post, we often think of things like food, toys, petting and praise as the main rewards for our dogs.

In our Juvenile Delinquent Dogs book, Appendix B, we have a long list of possible Motivators and Rewards.

One thing you will notice in the Appendix B list of possible motivators is that some of those items are things we think of as potential rewards for our dogs. Some of those things are the things we think of as the distractions for our dogs that we do NOT want them engaging with or eating or doing.

But guess what? Many of the things that are big distractions for our dogs are ALSO their biggest motivators!

Does your dog get easily distracted by other dogs that they see? If your dog wants to greet and/or play with that other dog, then that dog is a distraction but also a big motivator. The opportunity to greet or play is the biggest reward you could offer in that situation!

Does your dog like to chase squirrels, bunnies and other critters? Then that animal is the distraction but also the motivator!

Does your dog love people? Do they want to greet the neighbors when you are out on your walk? Then the chance to greet is the distraction but also the motivator!

Does your dog love to sniff on your walks? Do they want to smell everything? Or at least certain things? Then the scents are the distraction but also a potential motivator!

Are you catching on?

Sometimes the distraction you are trying to get your dog's attention away from is also the biggest potential motivator in your current situation. If my dog loves chasing bunnies, then no matter what food I have with me in the moment is never going to be a bigger motivator than the chance to chase the bunny.

Now, don't misunderstand me. I am NOT saying that you would let your dog chase bunnies through the neighborhood! But I am saying, understand what is the most motivating thing in your environment right now.

In some situations, you CAN use the distraction as the motivation. In some situations, you definitely CANNOT. But start to assess each situation and find some opportunities to use the distraction as the reward.

When Romeo was a puppy, adolescent and young adult, I used to take him on field trips as often as I could. We would go to local parks, hike on trails, visit dog-friendly stores, visit friends, etc. I made my best efforts to get him well acclimated to lots of different places and situations. During part of this stretch, I struggled with keeping enough focus on me. I wanted him to explore and have fun, but also understand he still had to listen to me and be able to tune in when needed.

When we would visit a new park, he would be SO interested in sniffing everything that he struggled with focusing on me and keeping a loose leash. As food motivated as he was, in that particular setting, the smells took much higher priority over the food. So I had to figure out that the real motivator in that setting at that point in his life, was the smells. Being able to sniff everything was so much more valuable to him than anything I could pull out of my pocket.

So we used sniffing as his reward. You stop pulling, come back and check in with me, and we go to the smell together! We got A LOT of work on our leash manners by utilizing sniffing as the reward for a loose leash.

Romeo was also very motivated to chase bunnies on our property. We had some wood piles around the property that the bunnies liked to hide out in. Romeo was quite good at flushing bunnies out of the wood piles. There was no treat in the world that was high enough value to be worth leaving that wood pile if he knew there was a bunny in it. The only thing of high enough value. . . giving him permission to go BACK to the wood pile. If he would call away from the wood pile and check in with me, sometimes I would give him permission to go back to what he was doing. There was nothing higher value than that in those situations.

Now I want you to think even a bit broader. . .

If I have a dog who does not do well coming in from the back yard, why is that? In many cases, coming inside the house and leaving access to the back yard means loss of FREEDOM.

If I have a dog who loves running in an off-leash area, and they do not come when called or avoid getting leashed back up, the main motivator is FREEDOM. Whether it's a big back yard, an off-leash dog park, a camping or hiking spot where they are allowed off leash, or some other place where they get MORE freedom than they normally get, the biggest motivator is the freedom to run and explore and do what they want without so much confinement.

If I have a dog who darts out the front door and runs around the neighborhood, that dog's motivator is FREEDOM.

We don't think of it, but freedom is a huge motivator. Not just for dogs. The freedom to make your own choices, to do what you want when you want. Freedom – within safe limits, of course, is one of the best motivators you can offer.

If I have a dog who is fearful or shy with people, and I am trying to get them to greet people, the biggest motivator to that dog is SAFETY or RELIEF OF PRESSURE. If I have a dog who does not WANT to approach people, then the ability to move AWAY from the people is the biggest motivator I can offer.

If I have a dog who is fearful of strangers AND highly food motivated, I can sometimes get the dog to reluctantly approach the stranger to take a treat. But that treat is not a great reward. Tossing the treat AWAY from the person is a much bigger reward. The dog gets the treat they wanted, but they also get RELIEF OF PRESSURE by moving away. If they can get the treat and the safety of distance, that's the best of both worlds.

If there is anything better than FREEDOM, it's SAFETY. Feeling safe is a huge motivator for all of us. We can enjoy all the other pleasure of life only once we feel safe.

So, really think about what your dog values. Are you making use of those things when you can? If not, you are missing out on a huge opportunity!

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