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It could be normal for a dog to prefer activity to petting, absolutely! But I would still expect to see engagement and forward confidence. Even if a dog ducks away from petting because they prefer to chase the ball and play, I would expect them to look excited and anticipatory of the competing motivator. My goal would be to eliminate the droopy countenance from any activity. If that meant not petting during play and using the ball and a jovial tone, I would start there.
