Hierarchy: These Are a Few of Her Favorite Things.

Best tool in my training box these days? Knowing Elli's preferences when it comes to rewards for training.

Toys

1. Cuz Ball -- she will drop everything and pay extreme attention if she sees it/hears it/knows we're in an area where I usually have it on me. Encourages speed of execution of behaviors, which also means that her precision isn't always exact. She's learning to think and be quick though -- work in progress.

 

2. Skunkuzz -- I completely forgot how much she loved her fox Skinneez when she was a baby puppy, so when I was looking around for whippy tug toys, I settled on a jumbo Skinneez skunk. Elli adores this thing and she accepts it wholeheartedly as a reward. Unlike with her Cuz ball, she can actually Leave It (as in not retrieve it) when asked. I replaced the squeakers (that she tore out during tug) with mini Air Kong balls - much more durable!

3. Jumbo Lobster -- Has a gigantic grunter inside it, she loves tugging with this one -- though until I get it into surgery, it's on bedrest.
4. Wubba-woo -- I found it in my closet a few weeks ago. The top ball was torn out and it's totally frayed, but the everlasting squeaker ball is still intact. Sometimes she loves her Wub's, other times, she'd prefer something else.

She still looks like such a puppy. <3

5. Hedgehog -- It encourages a little too much independent play, so it's not a regular reward anymore. When it is, it doesn't encourage many repetitions of a behavior -- it's simply not as motivating as it once was.

Interactions

1. "Smack da baby" (Susan Garrett) while tugging. Only while tugging.
2. "Should we go to the park?" It used to mean the dog park, but we don't frequent those much anymore, now it's just an opportunity to play ball. :)
3. When I come home (with her or without her), chase me games.
4. Being scratched behind her last rib; on her heart pattern on her neck; morning ear rubs
5. Opportunities to jump on me (Paws up). She starting to wag for this now, which is such a huge deal for any behavior I ask for.

And yeah... Food (that I am not so heavily reliant on anymore)

1. Raw ground meat (lamb, rabbit, buffalo)
2. Whole sardines / Peanut butter-stuffed Kong / Rec bone
3. Canned buffalo, rabbit, fish / Banana / Apple / Broccoli
4. Freeze dried buffalo liver / Daiya Mozza "cheese" / Carrot
5. Salmon jerky / Peanut butter and molasses nuggets
6. Air dried venison or lamb meat / Popcorn

I haven't tried ordering these without the categories simply because I believe there is a time and place for each one to be used.

In terms of a hierarchy for the categories, it'd probably go something like this:

• Interactions aren't higher than toys (#1, #2) for her; 
• Elli will only ever ignore her Cuz ball if there's raw food (#1, #2) involved

Can you put your dog's favorite things into a hierarchy/pyramid system? Please share!