most dogs love working
It allows them to develop correctly.
(bROKEN aRROW PUA HVI Master, Wed 17 Nov 2010, 14:20, 1 reply)

But not all dogs?
Are some of them lazy?
(Big Smurf Brush me daddy-O, Wed 17 Nov 2010, 19:10, closed)

Not sure if it's the work they love
but a dog likes to please, in my experience (sounds a bit creepy if taken out of context, lol.) They like to curry favour with whoever is at the top of the pack - i.e., in the best case, you (one). Though it can't be denied that a bright guide dog (like my fiance's current dog) does like the challenge of the work and relish getting it right. He does an excited lap of honour of the front room if he's come in after working particularly well in a difficult or unusual situation (the dog that is, not the fiance). You can tell he's chuffed with himself. And of course he likes the praise and cuddles he gets. Not to mention the food rewards.

All the guide dogs I've met who had good partnerships with their owners were / are very happy (I know many). Those that weren't (I can only think of one to be honest that I knew some years ago) don't work well - and they get their owners into trouble more than is usual allowing for the normal mistakes the partnership might make. Like walking into lamp posts or parked cars or whatever. Which hurts. So, it's in the best interests of the owner to make them and keep them happy. And you have to treat a dog well to make him / her happy.
The unhappy guide dogs get re matched with someone else who might be better suited to the dog's working style, or the owner gets retrained, or the dog gets retrained. Unhappy guide dog partnerships don't last long.
(womanwhocanonlylivewithdogs, Wed 17 Nov 2010, 21:50, closed)