This is kind of a carryover from a thread elsewhere that didn't really yield anything solid for me:

Are there any "prescriptions" for keeping the eagerness, the drive, the happiness in training, at its top level? (I understand that top level for one dog is different from top level for another.)

Basic Obedience might be the area of training where it's easiest to squash drive a bit.

I love seeing great ob, and I wonder what steps others take for ensuring that great ob didn't have a cost in enthusiasm.

It seems so nebulous. How to describe it? Is it careful consideration of the young dog's age? Is it my own enthusiasm and care not to let myself get "rote" or frustrated?

I already believe that marker training is a big element for me. (I have long believed that positive-reward-based training was my style, even though I never thought "no corrections," and then marker training for me was a huge step up from that.)

But what else?

Well, I am not sure if this is what you are looking for, but my dogs LOVE to do OB with me so I will let you know what I do...

When I am training the most boring of exercises, I talk in a high voice with a lot of animation in my face. Big, goofy smiles when the dog is working well, and lots of verbal praise. I keep my body soft, and "bouncy" when training- to let the dog know that this is FUN STUFF!!!!

When I am walking with them in the woods, or we are just out hanging with the horses, I might ask them to do a few steps of a formal heel, or a sit in front. LOTS of praise and immediate release to do what they were doing before I called them over.

I don't train OB in long increments of time- it bores the hell out of me if I do, and if I am bored, I know the dogs are too. So I set a realistic goal that I can reach in 5 or ten minutes- it may just be adding a couple of steps to a formal heel or adding a few seconds to a down... whatever it is, it's easy to achieve and we end on success and a party.

If my dog just isn't catching on to what I am trying to get accross, I will do an exercise the dog does well, give her lots of praise for it, and quit for the day. If I get frustrated, the dogs know it before I do, and start to check out.

I will train with the prong collar on, but I very rarely give corrections when training OB. I want a dog that looks like it LOVES working with me when we do OB, and I just don't think heavy handed corrections will give me that- this is getting into the whole Compulsion vs motivation argument... but in my opinion, motivational training in OB gives the dog the "flash" that I really like to see. Compulsion dogs do correct exercises, but they don't appear to enjoy doing it- ears back, tail tucked, head down... we've all seen it... I will hang up my leash before I let my dogs look like that when working with me....

Just my 2 cents

Sadie has more food drive than prey drive, so keeping her "up" during OB is pretty easy...reward, reward, etc, etc. If I have to use a negative reinforcer, it's followed by lot's of enthusiastic praise upon compliance. There is also plenty of ear and chest scratching, along with some baby talk, during any breaks.
Every week I train with people that have prey-driven dogs, and their dogs are over-the-top for tug, so they do an exercise with the tug held under an arm or in front of the chest. The dogs stay enthusiastic when they can see the toy, or know it's coming. After each exercise is completed, there is a game of tug.
This ia a great question, because it caused me to reflect on how I trained previous dogs. She is my first working breed (with the exception of retrievers that I never hunted or trialed), and my method in the past was opposite. When training my pet dogs, all of whom were food motivated, I took their drive down because I wanted solid obedience without being hounded for the food. I wanted them to concentrate on compliance and appear calm until the exercise was complete, then they were rewarded and praised.
Boy, Sadie has sure opened new doors for me!

I agree with Kelly. I try and keep it light and bouncy with short bursts of exercises. I also interchange with toys and food depending where we are at in the day (breakfast/dinner). Enzo is motivated for the reward and will do whatever he needs to to get it, so I try and work OB when he's in drive mode and when he's not as enthused, I then break out the good treats to keep him motivated.

 Quote: Duane Hull

Sadie has more food drive than prey drive, so keeping her "up" during OB is pretty easy...reward, reward, etc, etc. If I have to use a negative reinforcer, it's followed by lot's of enthusiastic praise upon compliance. There is also plenty of ear and chest scratching, along with some baby talk, during any breaks.
Every week I train with people that have prey-driven dogs, and their dogs are over-the-top for tug, so they do an exercise with the tug held under an arm or in front of the chest. The dogs stay enthusiastic when they can see the toy, or know it's coming. After each exercise is completed, there is a game of tug.
This ia a great question, because it caused me to reflect on how I trained previous dogs. She is my first working breed (with the exception of retrievers that I never hunted or trialed), and my method in the past was opposite. When training my pet dogs, all of whom were food motivated, I took their drive down because I wanted solid obedience without being hounded for the food. I wanted them to concentrate on compliance and appear calm until the exercise was complete, then they were rewarded and praised.
Boy, Sadie has sure opened new doors for me!

These responses are exactly the kind of discussion I had hoped to have.

Taking the dog's personality into account, too, as these responses do .... and recognizing the absence of a one-size-fits-all recipe .....


P.S. Isn't over-the-top food drive a great thing for the trainer?

When working with my dogs, especially with pups & young dogs...I keep it short,fun & always end on somehting that they know & enjoy. I use marker work & start most new commands with food, as toys (balls, tugs) send my dog over the top. Once they get the idea of the new command & can do it with several reps then I will work with the higher reward item of toys & tugs.

Praise,praise & more praise & upbeat training sessions are the key for me. If I'm bored so are they.

I also like to incorporate OB, healing, sits, downs, with retreives & just running around having fun. I usually ask for a down along the way that gives them a chance to catch their breath & then we will continue.

I work my dogs together & seperately...they act as a distraction to each other & learn to heel & work around another dog walking around running around or just watching each other.

Moving too fast & pushing too hard is the fastest way to kill the drive in your dog especially a pup. Work at the dogs own pace. There is no such thing as cookie cutter training. Each dog is diffferent & deserve to be trained with that in mind. Keep it fun. Don't work the dogs to exhaustion...leave them wanting more & most importantly ENJOY YOUR DOG!

This is a pic of 4 of my 5 doing a "random" sit- they were running around by the shed and I said "dogs, sit" and they turned toward me and sat. Shyner, the 5th, was behind me sitting as well. https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/28347_114261521948159_100000929359537_82360_5596380_n.jpg

This is what I mean when I say I want my dogs to look happy when I give them a command or when I work with them. Ears up, attentive, and ready for action.

ps, When I released them, I was mobbed and the camera lens got slobbered...

 Quote: Kelly

When I released them, I was mobbed and the camera lens got slobbered...

'Zackly! You can see in their faces that interaction with you means "oh, boy, good times!"

That's what I strive to see in the recall. I want the dog to pop his head up and be thrilled that he hears me calling him .... same face I see on those sitting guys.

My young rottweiler 14 months old has very good food drive ,generally hot dogs get the right amount of motivation but if I want that motivation ellivated as high as possible I will use a fatty mince or sardines this rarely gets the motivation up.
Example
Was training down to sit using hot dog, hand lure, voice got average results but I was not that happy, sit was like a lean forward sit ,front legs not nice and straight and sit quite slow for my liking. I started to think how I was going to correct this ,enter sardines ,this down to sit is blistering fast and whats more puts all the german sheppards to shame in the club {stir,stir}but quite true.