# Not food motivated



## Asta's Mom (Aug 20, 2014)

My Asta was also not food motivated - the treats didn't matter to him. All of our training was accomplished using praise. Lots of excited voice, pets and play.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Does she like to play? Building up the value of a game of tug may be the answer. Or praise and tickles - Poppy is extremely food motivated, but also loves a quick game of bounce and twirl!


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Both of my spoos like food rewards, but are equally happy to get praise and play. You may need to work on building drive for whatever reward you choose. Make the delivery of it more exciting. For example at the end of our rally runs yesterday I put Lily's leash on and then leaned down to her and gave her a nice rub across her chest while I excitedly "whispered" to her about going to get her pay for doing a good job. The word "pay" has meaning for her as indicating she will get a special food treat or have a chance to tug.


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## glorybeecosta (Nov 11, 2014)

My girls love treats and praise about equally. So I start with treat 5 or 6 times (chicken) then go to just praise


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## nifty (Aug 2, 2013)

This can be a challenge! I always sort of envied people whose dogs enjoyed treat rewards. Seemed like training would be a lot easier when it is simple to reward.

Dulcie is like your girl - really not interested in food rewards. Occasionally, if she is really hungry, she might accept something tasty as a reward (and in that case, she is really not picky) but the vast majority of the time, I could offer her filet mignon and she would turn away.

Is your girl interested in play? As others have pointed out, for some dogs that is the most rewarding thing of all. Nearly all of Dulcie's training has been accomplished using her ball/a game of fetch as the reward.

Good luck! I totally understand how challenging this can be!


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## Poodle-y (Jan 5, 2017)

oh Dulcie is a beauty!... I'm not sure how to use play as a reward. Do you click the behavior and then throw the ball? She will retrieve 3-5 times and then just want to chew the tossed item. I'm wondering if there are just too many distractions sometimes... you know... like air.  She can focus pretty well with me in our living room, but outside is a different story... or with kids jumping around. All of our formal training classes have been inside our home and the trainer always has a ready supply of turkey. Sometimes she wants it, sometimes not. It DOES make it hard to get her attention and feel like i'm making headway...


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

I suggest going to a group class rather than sticking with in home training. If you have someone train her for you in her home then she will know to do things for that person in your home. I do in home training on a small scale and mostly I work on fixing problems in that kind of setting, but make sure that the owners do homework in between my visits and as soon as we can we take things on the road. I much prefer the teaching of beginners that I do at my obedience club, giving the dogs a chance to see new places, people and dogs; and giving the owners a chance to see how to work with different kinds of issues. Dogs are not good generalizers and going out to a class will make a world of difference. You will likely find that the other people will have ideas that will help you motivate your pup.


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## blueroan (Dec 28, 2015)

Honey is like that too. She is not food motivated, but loves praise and squeeky toys  

She now does eat treats, but only certain ones. But it still took the better part of 8-9mths for her to be consistent with treats. 

It just means our training is more on the fly instead of straight sessions because I wait until she is in the right frame of mind and not bonkers for her toys because then she can't concentrate on anything else lol.


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## pudellvr (Dec 1, 2016)

You might enjoy reading When Pigs Fly by Jane Killion. She covers how to deal w unmotivated dogs.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

Interesting that she resource guards but is not food motivated!


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## aasteapots (Oct 6, 2013)

Have you tried something odd regarding food? Vidia will turn her nose up to many things such as goldfish crackers and any type of cheese but she would chew her paw off for a piece of raw carrot. Coal is also fussy because she is fed raw she doesn't often find treats appealing but a honey nut cheerio is her drug of choice  WHO KNEW? LOL I would keep trying different things. You never know what she may find amazingly delicious.


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## Poodle-y (Jan 5, 2017)

These are great suggestions. I tried a session with her yesterday with a special toy at the end of a leash and asked her to target, sit, down stay, spin, and come and let her chase the toy as a reward. It was pretty effective and fun! We won't have her for much longer, but I like Lilly's suggestion to do some group classes next time and I will get Killions book as another member suggested. I rotate treats all the time, but maybe throwing some odd items in there will uncover her weakness! 
I think the resource guarding combo with her indifference to food is weird too. Maybe it is a different trigger that we haven't pinpointed? Or maybe I'm using these terms incorrectly? I am pretty new to all of this! She's had 4 bites and 3 were when my kids tried to retrieve "stolen food" (granola bars, toast, cookie) and this last time she had a chew that was ignored in her crate all day and my daughter ran up to pet her and she snapped. .??


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

In addition to Jane Killion's book I would suggest Ian Dunbar's free to download "What to do before you get your puppy" and its companion "What to do after you get your puppy."

BEFORE You Get Your Puppy | Dog Star Daily


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