Field notes · Dog training in Angier & Raleigh, NC
How do I train my dog without treats?
Use the game he genuinely wants as the payment. For a lot of dogs it lasts longer than food, because he is working for something he would have chosen anyway.
In the trainer's words
Can play become the reward?Kelton, Head Trainer, Angier K9 Consultants
Seen with 3 dogs: Kodak, Finn, Reaper
3 recorded moments, each one linked to the exact second it happens in a full training session published unedited. Trainers call this play becomes the reward.
3:49
Pause the game. Ask. Then play again.
19:59
Running attached as the end of obedience — so he can take more pressure without fallout
2:13
He's let us touch him, handle him… I got him to play tug. He got a win in. Woo, he won.
Related questions
Recognize your own dog in this?
Most people who call us have already been told their dog is a lost cause, or that they should manage it and hope. We train dogs in Angier, Raleigh and across the Triangle, and we take the serious aggression and reactivity cases that other programs turn down.
How it works: tell us what your dog is actually doing. We tell you honestly whether we can help, including when the answer is no. If we can, you leave with a plan and a start date.
What you get back is a dog whose world gets bigger instead of smaller.
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