Dog refuses to listen without treats

Vylanna

So my question is, should I use treats so she will be more obediant? And if anyone knows dog behavior, why does she refuse to leave the front yard? Our Saint Bernard doesn't have this problem and I really want to know how to make my Rottie more like her

 If you have these dogs as "outside" dogs -- that means they aren't bonded well to you in any event (they don't live inside with you, they don't sleep near you, so they don't get used to obeying you ALL the time.  Particularly if you aren't working with them day after day in training them for some specific purpose - like hunting, tracking, etc.)

She likely hates being segregated in the more restricted area and just doesn't want to go back there.  some dogs are more submissive, some are less -- but they key to getting them to obey you is train them constantly (not just a couple of minutes a day here and there) and make it habit consistently to respond to the commands you give her.  Otherwise you simply are at the mercy of whether or not this particular treat is valuable enough to her to do a behavior she really doesn't want to do anyway.  In essence you aren't training -- it's a flat out bribe because it's not consistent -- you're just trying to lure her with a treat and she's saying "no";).

Dogs are going to be different personality-wise from each other.  If you train them consistently day after day and work with them, you can train them to do most any behavior you ask - but if the only think you "ask" is one thing when you want the dog to go back where it doesn't want to be?  your chances aren't good.    They are each unique beings -- you can achive obedience with pretty much any dog if you work with it, and get to know what motivates this dog.  Even with two dogs of the same breed there are differences -- some dogs are more "soft" (eager to please, less fiercely independant) than others.  Just like humans have different personalities.

You seem to think treat training is some sort of bad thing.  I suggest you read some dog behavior books written by people who understand how dogs learn and how we can use that knowledge to our advantage when training. 

Don't Shoot the Dog by Karen Pryor may just be the best book ever for someone such as yourself to read.  I could explain the concept but you're more likely to believe someone considered tops in the field that some random internet person.

Other authors who can enlighten you are Patricia McConnell and Jean Donaldson.  Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson is also one I recommend highly.

Vylanna

an outside dog

 Why is she an outdoor dog?

 The really short answer to your question is that she would rather stay in the front yard than get whatever it is you are offering. It's like if you were playing your favorite game, and I offered you a dollar to wash my car. You're probably not going to do it. If I offered you $100, you'd probably do it.

The reason dogs who have bonded with people, and who are trained with treats will do it even when there are no treats there is generally because they have a history of getting good things when they listen to people. Done properly, the dog never knows when he's going to get a treat, get something else he likes, or get nothing at all. Check out some of the books that have been recommended if you are interested in training your dog. I would also recommend How Dogs Learn, by Mary Burch and Jon Bailey. It's a really easy to understand book about how dog's behavior (or any behavior for that matter) works, and how you can train your dog. Drs. Burch and Bailey are really good writers in terms of making some very complicated things easy to understand, even for beginners.

griffinej5

It's like if you were playing your favorite game, and I offered you a dollar to wash my car. You're probably not going to do it. If I offered you $100, you'd probably do it.

Great analogy! It had been years since I'd done real obedience training prior to getting Shane. Never before did I appreciate the role that treats play in training. Some dogs aren't food motivated, so you have to find what works for them but if you have a dog that is food motivated, it makes training sooooo much easier. I am never without treats nearby. I wear a treat bag when we walk so we can work on commands, even just paying attention to me. I take treats when I go in the yard so I can work on come or other commands. I switch the treats up so he doesn't get bored. It's a wonderous thing when you can get a dog to do exactly what you want, when you want it, just by offering a tiny morsel of something yummy.

The suggestions so far seem spot on with what I'd suggest.  I also second the recommendation for Karen Pryor and Patricia McConnell books (haven't read the others but will add them to my list!).

 I would treat this like crate training.  Make it fun to go back in the backyard and don't always put her in there and then leave her there for a long time.  Make it really exciting or rewarding to go with you to the backyard...throw toys there, toss some food, make a lot of noise and run over there and see if she'll come out to join the fun.  If she does, praise her and treat her like crazy.  Each time, praise and treat but occasionally make it a jackpot (lots of treats and praise).  Basically turn it into a game she wants to win.  Over time, you'll be able to attach a command to it and only give treats sometimes.  The behavior should get stronger if you only treat sometimes.  It's similar to humans gambling...if they know they might win, they're driven to keep trying to win.  Make sure the behavior is solid before that though so you don't discourage her.  Try doing this in increasing intervals...get her into the backyard, then let her right back into the front yard.  Get her into the backyard, leave her there for a minute, 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc.  We did this to crate train our pup.  We rarely use the crate now that he's 8 months old but I keep the command fresh just in case I need him to go there to let a delivery person in or to make it easier if I need to board him.  He HATED the crate when we first adopted him and now I can say "Loki, go sleeps" in the kitchen and you better hope you're not standing between him and that crate because he is determined to make it there in record time (all for a half a dog biscuit).

 Also, as outdoor dogs, it's extra important to spend a lot of time with them and make that time training time.  They're not with you in the house with you so they're living by their rules most of the time.  You need to strengthen the bond between you and them, especially if they're a more stubborn dog.