Dog Only Responds to Commands with Treats – Need Training Advice

General
1

Hello guys…
I’m looking for some advice on training my dog. He has successfully completed 12 weeks of professional training, and we work on training at home regularly. However, we’ve run into a couple of issues:

  1. Treat Dependency: My dog will only respond to a command if he sees a treat. If we don’t have a treat, he usually ignores us. He even barks at us when we ask him to do something without a treat in hand.
  2. Perfect in Class: He is perfect during training classes, which makes it hard for the trainers to believe us when we say he struggles at home.

I’m trying to find ways to help him respond to commands without always relying on treats. Here are a few specific questions I have:

  1. Reducing Treat Dependency: How can I gradually reduce his dependency on treats while still reinforcing good behavior? Are there specific techniques or strategies that work well for this?
  2. Home Training Tips: What are some effective ways to continue his training at home outside of the class environment? Any tips for making the training more consistent and reliable?
  3. Barking Issue: How can I address his barking when he doesn’t see a treat? It seems like he’s trying to demand a treat, and I want to correct this behavior without causing confusion or frustration.

Any advice or insights from those who have dealt with similar issues or have expertise in dog training would be greatly appreciated. I want to make sure my dog is well-behaved and responsive, both at home and in any environment.

Thank you :yum:

2

A trick that I learned from my trainer, dogs will rarely listen to instructions when they are not tired. So, before you start training your dog always ensure that you have taken it for a long walk

3

Howdy breeders
word of caution,
Dogs often link commands with treats, especially when they’re just starting to learn. But if you rely only on treats, they might become too dependent on them, making training more challengin