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Maybe after a while she will view the whistle not as a recall command but as me alerting her that i have found a patch of grass that needs some attention.
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Exactly! Just the same as if you used food as a recall reward - it doesn't matter a jot whether the dog views a sound (remember, that's all words/whistles are to dogs: different sounds which come to mean different things) as a "command" or an alert that something GREAT is on offer - as long as you get the result, it's all good
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Thing is, these treats are not that different to the kibble and she seems to have super-human reasoning skills does our Daisy. Ill train her inside, in the garden or in a school basketball court and she'll backflip for a single kibble biscuit. But take her to a field and its like she is thinking "Well, i could give up this patch of grass to go do what owner wants and recieve kibble / treat OR i could ignore them totally, do what i want, and get fed when i get home and get treats when im trained at home.
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Often happens. It is good, though, that it is clear what she loves doing. What you want her to think now though is "If I recall, I not only get to carry on sniffing, but I am sniffing out and eating treats!!"
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Im thinking good things will come of this "help her find treats in the grass thing though". Never thought of that and Daisy will literally give up ANYTHING for a chance to be left alone with a patch of grass.......strange.
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Not really strange - sniffing is one of those things which dogs find internally rewarding - ie it makes them feel good. Just like chasing - they get hooked on the endorphins.
Think of a Border Collie herding sheep - the sheepdog trainer doesn't spend his time endlessly rushing over to give the dog treats - the dog finds the herding SO rewarding that he obeys the "lie down" (or whatever) command because he knows that the reward is to carry on herding
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Well i dont know. Its hard to tell, mainly i feel cos i am a dog noob. I dont know if she tugs cos she enjoys it or tugs cos shes annoyed you took the toy away. She wont waltz up to you with her rope and wait for you to start pulling. Its just if shes happily un-knotting it on the floor and you try and come along an pikey it for a spot of fetch, THEN the tug begins. Or if you throw it in some hard to reach place that involved moving objects then climbing on them to reach it, she'll get the rope, begin to come to you, then stop and do a little victory dance (which is the single most cutest thing i have EVER seen btw) and then come lay next to you. But try and take it off her to throw again and shes like "No, no way am i going through that again just to get this back, you are NOT having it."
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I'd defo recommend you try to get her hooked on tug - but sometimes they do have to learn to enjoy it. Next time you try to get it off her, ENCOURAGE her to tug - act excited yourself and say "GEDDIT!!" - when you want her to stop, STOP MOVING THE TOY so that it becomes "dead" - most dogs will lose interest then. As she releases it, say "drop" or "give" (I use "S'enough") and give a treat. If she doesn't release straight away, show her the treat as you give her the "release" cue. Practise and practise. Don't allow her to grab the toy until you've given the cue "GEDDIT!". In time, you won't need a treat - the opportunity to grab it again becomes the reward for letting go when you ask, you see?
To get my dog wound up and ready to play, I shut her in the dog room behind the baby gate and play with the toy myself (only when I'm alone in the house lol), making lots of happy happy noises and only when she's beside herself with excitement do I let her out to join in. You can TEACH dogs to want to play with you
If she takes it off and doesn't interact with you, then quietly go up to her, take the toy and pocket it. She only gets to play with it when YOU are joining in. She'll cotton on
The advantage of getting her more focussed on you is that you can then prevent her from going off and sniffing for hours on her own. For instance, it is pointless trying to teach a dog to stop chasing rabbits if, every time you go out, you allow the dog to practise the behaviour. You have to stop them doing it on their own so that when YOU give the opportunity, it is even more rewarding