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Rewards are powerful training tools—until something more motivating steals their attention.

You have two choices: (1) redirect with pressure or (2) try to offer something even more motivating than the distraction.

Here’s how to get their focus back.

Weekly Bite

70% of you said food is your dog’s favorite reward.

Aki would agree—he loves beef liver treats.

But even Aki, as much as he loves them, has ignored an easy command and missed out on his favorite reward… because something else was more exciting.

So how do you compete with distractions?

By offering something even more motivating.

Before diving in, make sure you have these foundations in place:

• 🛑 If they’re easily distracted - Guide on building engagement

• 🛑 If they’re reactive - Guide on making them neutral

How To Motivate Your Malinois

1️⃣ Increase Reward Value

Method: Deprive access and/or upgrade the quality.

• Skip meals or use more palatable treats

• Reserve toys just for training or bring out their favorites

2️⃣ Trigger Prey Drive

Method: Use unpredictable movement to encourage their instinct to chase.

• Move away from them as you present the reward

• Animate the reward by wiggling, bouncing, or dragging it

3️⃣ Build Anticipation

Method: Reward every rep but vary the duration to prevent them from checking out.

• Switch between short and long tug games

• Deliver 1-5 treats individually by reloading your treat hand

4️⃣ Build Drive with Frustration

Method: Tease them by not rewarding every rep.

• Hold them back on a harness to restrain them

• Use subtle hand or body movements to fake them out

5️⃣ Create Routines

Method: Sequence low arousal activities before high arousal activities to increase the value of low arousal activities through conditioning.

• Do obedience before bite work

6️⃣ Cap Motivation

Method: Switch from high arousal activities to low arousal activities to teach impulse control, sustain motivation, and build anticipation for the next reward.

• Play tug, then ask them to down before resuming the game

• If they’re excited when guests arrive, send them to their place bed before greeting them.

And that’s it!

Well, there’s one more thing…

It’s not always ideal to have them maxed out, revving at 9,000 rpm’s.

You wouldn’t want to be redlining in traffic, right?

It’s time to pick the right reward for the level of motivation you want to influence.

Which Rewards Should You Use?

The value of the reward must match the level of arousal you want to create, making it easier to shape that specific behavior.

🪫 Use low value rewards to condition low arousal behaviors

• To increase the duration of a down and stabilize the position

🔋 Use high value rewards to condition high arousal behaviors

• To increase the speed of a recall

• To increase focus in the presence of environmental distractions

• To redirect a self-reinforcing behavior (Withholding rewards are ineffective in blocking self-reinforcing behaviors)

TL;DR

Motivation is a double-edged sword.

• The more you build motivation, the more aroused they become. Too much, and they might tune you out completely—fixated on the reward instead of the task.

• The more you suppress motivation, the more conflict you create. Eventually, they may disengage from performing the task altogether.

But rewards alone don’t create reliability.

Motivation gets their attention. Pressure keeps them accountable.

So how do you apply pressure without suppressing motivation?

Next week, I’ll break it down—so you can get clear, reliable obedience without losing drive.

Weekly Treats

Sam’s Picks

• POV: You're caught taking a picture of your Belgian Malinois (LINK)

• Free Video Lesson: Why you should be predictable (LINK)

• Free Video Lesson: Using restraint to build motivation (LINK)

• Free Video Lesson: What is capping? (LINK)

• POV: You’re a German Shepherd in Japan (LINK)

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