Greta seems to really display a preference for the chuckit ultra tug that we have (like a ball on a stiff tether) over the soft fabric, leather and fire-hose tugs that we have. At some point do you just play with what they like if the goal is reward tugs? or should we continue to make an effort to switch them up? I understand that the game is the reward... but I can tell her intensity differs depending on what item we are using. I think the answer is to continue to rotate, but wanted some other opinions.

I have been reserving her favorite for walks where I need to distract her from other dogs. We lost a little progress over the summer since we switched to very early mornings and there were fewer dogs and people at the park. Now that we are getting back to some afternoons she is even more distracted by other people's dogs and I am having to move off the path and work pretty hard to keep her attention.

Thanks for the thoughts!

Yes!
Many dogs prefer a game of tug over a game of fetch.
If that's what works for Greta then stick to it.

Using ANY reward to distract a dog on walks is nothing more then a bribe and the dog will eventually put it together and show interest in the distractions because it knows that will get rewarded.

You have to build up to high level distractions with simple obedience and THEN reward for that obedience AND not be using a reward to bribe the dog into compliance.

My now 11 1/2 yr old still gets a game of tug on a random basis for obedience.

He also looks at treats as high level as obedience. You might try that also.

Look at a reward as if your working a slot machine.
As long as you get the occasional reward you keep trying and hoping for the big payoff.

If you keep trying and don't get reward then you move on to another machine.

Use those early morning walks for training and stay far enough away from the other walking dog that she isn't distracted by them.

Over time work the obedience closer to the distractions. If she gets distracted go back to where you were because you've moved to quickly.

This could take days, weeks, even months depending on how consistent you are with the training.

ABSOLUTELY go back to this distance training randomly on your training schedule.

To many thing once a dog is "trained' then nothing more needs to be done.

Practice, practice, practice.

I would continue to switch them up. I want a dog that will tug with anything I present to them. The reward is the interaction with me, the toy is secondary.

If my dogs show less enthusiasm for certain toys, I will raise the energy I put into tugging with them until all toys are equal in the dog’s eyes.

Good point Kelly.

I've had very few low energy dog in my life so I may not look at it in the same light.

Thanks guys- much appreciated.

Bob, all good points and thanks for the reminder. I re-read what I posted and realized that it does sound like I'm using the ball/tug itself as the distraction. What I meant to describe was that I move off the trail, give her an "are you ready" cue, then when she focuses on me I mark and reward with the tug. Depending on how early I see the distracting dog coming towards us, I may also ask her to sit or down before the mark/reward. If I catch her early, it's easier to keep her focused and ask her to perform more tasks. I was really pleased Wednesday past when she saw the other dog and turned to me; granted that could be a one-off, but it seemed like she was beginning to get it. It never hurts to have a reminder on what the sequence should be, though!

I will keep working with the other tugs; maybe that will help reinforce that the game is the reward.

Have a wonderful weekend-

Sounds like your doing it correctly!