Motivation

[Olie]

Btw, i have some mixed feelings about him not beeing motivated: im sad a bit because he is SOOO inteligent, that it takes literaly two repetitions to teach him the cues. And than i KNOW he knows what i want, but just doesnt want to do it, so he looks dumb.
On the other hand, im happy that he cant really be bribed by food by strangers, and i sometimes think he is too smart and dignified to work for food or other meaningless stuff (you wouldnt stand-sit-stand-sit-lay-sit for hot dogs either, would you )

Edit: (some more train of thoughts).
It amazes me how he learned the important every-day commands with out even me showing him what i want. I.E. "dont go there/this way" "go to your bed" "move/you are in my way" - when he lays in the middle of the small kitchen haha, "yuck" - dont eat that, "here" - wich means dont be there, come somewhere close to me, wich was "come" before we went to school and than i had to change it because "come" is a special excersize. He switched from unsderstanding "come" to "here" like he speaks my language. Ok, i might have used some body language (clapping, leg tapping), but it works very good.

[Drizlaru]

Don't be disheartend. Literally. He can read it on you, and will affect your training. Keep things upbeat, keep things positive, get more animated. Turn your rewards into an event. Keep training short and full of energy. 3x10 minute sessions that are full of energy, upbeat, your motivated, and it will flow into him. You will get more accomplished in 3x10 minute sessions with a break in between, then with 1 continuous hour. Don't forget to end each session on a good note, keep him wanting more!

[vneerland]

Tryed edam cheese and it woks! (im not sure about salt levels, though)

That's your proof that Olie is a Dutch shepherd! Works for Dutch Cheese. (now try Gouda next)

Okay. All kidding aside. There is no one size fits all in dogs. It does indeed happen that a dog is not motivated (enough) by the intended reward. Don't give up. Communicate your desire, and lavish praise in whatever form is appealing to Olie. So if you have to use just verbal rewards, then try that. Just experiment between food, toys, praise, interaction. And maybe realize that he may need a bit more time to totally bond with you? How long have you had him? There is no telling what he has been exposed to prior to coming to you. He may still be trying to figure his new life out as well. Some rescue dogs are not quick to give all of themselves to their new owners. Hang in there and keep trying, in good spirits, because yes, they 'hear' your heart, not your voice.

[Olie]

Update:
After trying out different kinds of food and treats, I finally found a solution:
I went from 100% prey model raw to 50-30% raw and 50-70% Acana kibble. I feed him kibble in the morning and raw in the evening (some days are kibble in the evening also). I also made his meals a bit smaller because he was getting a bit too fat.
He responds very good to all kinds of treats now: salamy, retail dog treats, and also whiskas cat treats

I started working on some tricks that will serve as physical therapy: rear end awareness, walking backwards, rear leg targeting and later on handstand.

You can find a little movie I made on his first nose target training.

[Marjolein]

looks good, I like clicker training, I use it a lot too, they learn SO fast once they get the click-treat and click-ball idea