I started working with Delgado from day 1 when I brought him home at 9 weeks, he focused really well even at that age. He has great toy and food drive and I used those to my advantage. I always had a toy or treats around, I would walk around the house with him at my heels. I played with him and worked on obedience, sometimes I would just do whatever he wanted. If he brought me a toy I would play with him, we would go for long walks and just have fun, if he sat beside me I would be petting him.
I do this stuff with Berlin also, he is velcroed to me and literally follows me EVERYWHERE (even the bathroom :crazy SO, his attention is on me, MOST of the time lol I take him on walks all the time, play with him, pet him, cuddle him.....I mean, I'm a fun person!
By the time he started puppy classes at 13 weeks he could focus on me in the class and ignore the other dogs. He LOVES other dogs so that goes to show you
But this is where it differs, because certain dogs ber could care less about, but others he JUST HAS to play with and will not pay attention.
I built on that bond, I literally am the light of his life and he does everything to make me happy. Focusing on me is rewarded either by a smile, a pat, treats, or toys. Right now I'm on my laptop and as I look over the top I see Delgado sitting in front of me watching my face, every so often he'll give a little whine and I know he wants me to put down the laptop so I can focus on him. He'll even "bribe" me with a toy, dropped conveniently in my lap
He's not pushy, he's not underfoot where I'm tripping on him, he's simply there a few feet away watching to see what I'm doing
Reading about your bond with Delgado is so beautiful! How a bond with a dog should be. I like to think I am the light of Berlins life as well, as I am the most important thing in his life. He is ALWAYS so happy to see me, no matter how long ive been gone, he cannot even contain his excitment. He looks for me when i'm gone, and after a while will sometimes go and grab one of my hoodies or blankets from my bed and bring it in his crate (AW) so I know I have some importance to him! LOL Berlin does the same thing when im on my laptop, he gives me the pouty face, will bring toys to bribe me, and eventually will try and physically remove the computer LOL!
Another thing you can do is remember dogs communicate mostly using their body, not their voice. I started training with hand motions then added in voice commands, a flick of my finger tells Delgado which direction I want him to walk or run, a raised eyebrow makes him sit quickly and focus on my face, a smile causes his tail to wag uncontrollably, a shake of the head tells him he's doing something wrong. It goes either way, he tells me with a glance where he wants to go, a tilt of the head tells me he's listening carefully, his eyes tell me whether he's happy or upset, a toothy grin tells me he's feeling goofy. You don't need words to communicate most of the time
I have trained some commands with gestures as well, he knows sit, down, stay and stand with hand motions. I really like how you know Delgado so well! I hope one day I can read Berlin that well, and he can read my little hand motions and know exactly what I mean.
I hope that helps explain a bit, it's hard to describe in words
Now I'm finished typing and he's lying on his bed beside me dozing, I have to go finish dinner but I know I won't be alone in the kitchen when I walk into there
Enjoy your time with Berlin, everything you do with him builds the bond so don't focus so much on the bad and reward the good. Puppy time lasts only so long and it's gone in a blink of a eye