ELISABETH JENNINGS

My dog is motivated by distractions far more than any treat, no matter how "high-value". We generally practice indoors in the house with no problems, but when we are outside, anything seems more interesting than the treat - birds in the sky, the neighbour's dog barking, an interesting smell on the ground. This has happened with anything from her kibble to pieces of chicken, but she treats every food reward the same - reacting to it unless there is something more interesting out there. On some occasions she has taken the treat in her mouth and it has fallen out, because she is so much more invested in a leaf rustling than the food. I have had more success in holding her attention by holding a piece of ice she wanted to play with than with any treat. I am struggling with knowing how to bridge this gap. I am walking her every day in our woods where there are no other dogs (apart from our 1 other one), and no people, but still all the smells and rustles are the most exciting thing in the world to her. She is 1 year old. I am thinking I need to work on Look Into My Eyes more in the home, so she is holding my gaze for longer. At the moment she is only holding 1-2 seconds, and only when there is 0 distractions. Any other advice?