My dog , yellow lab mix, hyper and not socialized . I tried using treats , really good ones,. ) to keep her attention while other dogs , squirrels, people , the wind blowing a can across the street... but she will take it in her mouth and then drop it when see sees something of interest. She may need to be "out" more because we rescued her from an apartment living situation with minimal exercise ! Any ideas to help me capture her attention... Food doesn't seem to be the trick... I have a training harness with the leash attachment under her neck area as recommended by per store.

Have you considered a dog trainer? Or possibly a behaviorist? That would would probably be your best bet at getting her to behave while out n about.

Also. The more you expose her to things the less exciting everything will be. If she is coming from a situation where she was confined, than the world is mighty big and exciting. Maybe not worry about the whole obedience thing for awhile and just take her out on lots and lots of walks and give her tons of exercise.

But I still recommend that you find a trainer in your area to help you. Reading books and finding information on line is good, but sometimes you just need someone to see your dog in person to tell you what to do.

Obedience classes are a great investment because the trainer will watch you and help you improve, which will help you better handle the dog.

I would recommend small, soft training treats that the dog can eat very quickly. You can also just use praise - ruffle the fur on his head and tell him enthusiasticall "Good doggie!" or whatever loving term you use. The dog will see that you are pleased with him, and he will want to please you.

You might also want to consider doing some of the training in the house so he doesn't have all these distractions and build up to having him work with you when he's outdoors. Keep him on a leash when you're training, even in a fenced yard, so he can't run off. One of his rewards can be play time after a training session.

Puppies are like children - they get more attentive over time. Train little puppies a little bit many times a day, and build up to the time and add lessons as they get older.