Training In Drive?

[Shakti]

I am learning a great deal about various methods of dog training and lately I have been seeing a lot of awesome videos featuring dogs trained in drive. I am curious though - I realize most working breeds of dogs would have drive but what about CKCS or Maltese etc? Would they maybe have drive for food or attention as opposed to prey or work drive? Do all dogs respond to training in drive?

Can a dog be trained in drive simply for affection? Surely that would be less effective than a dog who works in prey drive, for example?

[kayla1]

I don't know about training in drive for affection but I used training in drive for my little pap x terrier and it was the best thing I ever did, for her and for me! She absolutely loved it from day one. She had a decent prey drive to begin with though so it was a matter of channelling that to toys. It took quite a while but was well worth the effort, even just for building the relationship between us.

[Dogsfevr]

Cavs are sporting spaniels breed for hunting ,they have drive like any breeds does .

Each dog is an individual anyway so there is no guarantee a blanket method of training will work even within a breed.

I don't now of any dog that wouldn't work for food or attention ,attention is part of training anyway is just a case of the method you use & have savvy you are in reading your dog ,even working dogs want to be loved

[RuralPug]

No matter what the size, all dogs are carnivores and do have a prey drive, some stronger than others but it is always present even if too low to use for triggering behavioural responses.

Some breeds tend to be easier to train than others as they are more inclined to work as part of a team. Other breeds can be more difficult to train because they prefer to "work" alone, but great results can still be had from individual dogs in those breeds if you can find the motivations/triggers for them.

Remember that some toy breeds were developed for vermin control and those will have strong prey drive more often than not.

Others are just miniature versions of larger breeds, and usually have the same general distribution of drives as their larger cousins.

The breeds developed solely as companion breeds usually have either a strong desire to please (if 'soft') or a strong desire to entertain/be focus of attention (if 'clownish') and both those desires can be manipulated in the same way as prey drive (which is still present in these breeds but it is not always strong).

So to answer the original question, yes. It is quite possible that a dog will work simply to receive praise if their strongest drive is to please their team leader.

In my experience, though, they usually have much more fun, and learn faster if you use prey drive rewards (tugs toys, food etc.) And all of the toy breeds can be taught this way.

[Shakti]

Thank you all for your replies - that is really good news as I am keen to train my new dog (whatever she may be) in Drive but will go to a professional trainer. Just wanted to be assured it was possible - so thank you!

[Nekhbet]

Mums pomeranian has plenty of prey drive, he goes mental for his little raspberry shaped ball :laugh:

If your dog has prey drive, you can train in prey no matter the breed. But it's what the dog finds the most rewarding that will dictate how you reward the dog. You can still get motivation, movement and excitement using food, the problem is many people don't use it in the right way to get a similar level of reward in a dog that loves it so much :) All rewards should only ever be the intermediary between you and the dog anyway, it should not be the whole reward for the dog.

[smisch]

lowchen which are a companion guard dog are highly trainable my little girl Ella is a nutt for a tug and toy and food and will work... its not the same style of work as say a border collie but when your only 5 kg she's got alot to offer and if I put in more effort I'd have an amazing trialing dog..