Learning Theory and Training 102 Now that we have a good idea of how dogs learn, see their world, build on basic behaviors and associations and respond to different methods and techniques of training – we need to know how to use this in real life! Below we will cover the most common basic training issues that owners will need help with and how to trouble shoot what isn’t working in your training routine!
PART ONE: Learning Blockades and Trouble Shooting These are The top 10 most common training roadblocks you or owners will encounter, their causes and how to trouble shoot them:
1. Dog not attentive to anyone, unfocused during training, never seems to be listening:
Cause: * No relationship of importance established. Does the handler control access to resources, fun and relief from stress, or is the dog on “autopilot”? Fixes: * Implement a “Nothing in Life is Free” life mantra immediately! And work on bond building exercises between handler and dog (If the dog doesn’t like you very much, he’s not likely to listen!). This can range from massage and other physical connection exercises to hand feeding and basic training that rewards the dog for choosing to look at or engage with handler/owner. The owner/handler should be careful to not have useless interactions or give the dog affection and attention he doesn’t want. The owner should gain importance to the dog by being the one who always removes the dog from a stressful scenario or causes the stress to stop, when possible.
Cause: * Not “trustworthy”: Does the dog trust that this particular person will follow through with a “contract” for example: “If you listen, even when stressed, I will follow through on my end with the reward”, Vs. “I may tease you with a treat, but then reward you with a pat on the head” or worse “I may deceive you….for example by saying ‘Fido Come!’(Fido doesn’t listen)… ‘OK, then let’s go to the Park!’ to get you in the car…and then I take you to the vet for shots intstead....” Fixes: * Owner and trainer always make good on a contract with a dog. Establish yourself and the owner as trustworthy and not tricky.
Cause: * Handler might as well be a doorknob: Is the person’s presence big enough physically, emotionally and mentally for the dog to even care about interacting with him or her? Many times dogs don’t listen because the person just isn’t interesting to them, or they’ve learned the person doesn’t change their tone/demeanor when they are ignored….so why pay attention! Fixes * Get Animated! One of the main reasons dogs ignore their owners and then perk up and participate with the trainer is because the owner’s are stationary and monotone, while the trainers are in motion, talking in excited tones and acting happy about the task at hand. A person’s demeanor must change if the dog is ignoring them…standing there and staring while the dog sniffs the ground and you just asked for look, will teach the dog that people’s requests are background noise….if you ask for something, and the dog isn’t interested, follow through with getting it, even if it takes several minutes and lots of strange smoochie noises and moving quickly to get the dog interested…you may look silly, but at least the dog is succeeding!
Cause: * Set up to fail environment: Sometimes training that needs to be done, and the environment the dog is currently in are mutually exclusive. The dog simply cannot learn to pay attention and focus (especially if introduced as young puppy before any training as taken place) because it is next to impossible for him. This can be a very tough job to work with because nothing will improve much unless the owners are willing to change some things. Usually these types of scenarios are very busy households with assistants, housekeepers, visitors, deliveries, other pets and children all bustling around inside. Houses where doors get left open, toys left out, new people move in and out of the front door letting the dog jump all over them or bark at them, and cats are running around is a very hard environment to elicit any sort of attention of focus from a dog. They simply have so much mental, physical and emotional stimulation going on all day and access to so many new and interesting things (against the owner’s wishes) that teaching them they must ASK to be let outside, even though the door is left open
all the time, or they must SIT for treats – even though they are free to eat whatever food is bring dropped all over floor by toddlers, is very tough. Fixes: * It’s a tough one, and the dog will likely never be that great at listening (if still in same environment), but there are basic things the owners can try to implement or change to make the dog more likely to care about what the owners are saying and wanting, and prevent the dog from learning/practicing bad habits.
For starters: * STICKY NOTES can be life savers! Walk around the house with the owners starting from the front yard and move through every square foot of the house ending in the back yard, and bring a sharpie and sticky notes with you. Put the notes up everywhere the owner has noticed issues that could be prevented or managed with a simple reminder. Examples are notes on all doors and gates with reminders of how they should be left at certain times during the day, reminders on the cabinets and counters to leave NO food sitting out, reminders to put socks, shoes and toys away in non-reachable areas, a note by the pool to not leave equipment out, etc. After several weeks of sticky notes, most people have the notes triggered in their mind by memory every time they reach a certain area of the house where they would normally encounter a note, and can then take them down if they want. The end goal of using sticky notes is to create a household where the dog does not have free reign of the house and yard, and does not get to decide when where and how he will go about his day, with total disregard for what the owners may want or need. Even though it may be a very busy and distracting house, he does not have any more or less access to rewards or self-entertainment than a dog in a quite house, and he will learn that doors only open “literally and figuratively” if he is listening to and focused on a human. The by-product is also a very “proofed” house to prevent him from getting into trouble. * A Great Game Idea for busy households with new puppies/dogs and children to encourage good training practices from the beginning: If there are children in the house, put the notes at a level they can read, and make them flashy (bright colors, smiley faces or glittery stickers so the kids like looking at them). Parents can turn the sticky note reminders into a game. Get creative with parents to create games kids will want to participate in because it’s fun and rewarding for them, and ensures that they have a reason to care about following the reminders on the sticky notes. One idea is having a container full of items the kids want. It is the “Store”, and all of the items are valued at a different “price” (Points). How many “points” they earn each day relates to how many successes/mistakes they made with the puppy or dog in key areas, such as remembering to put away their toys, keep the bathroom door shut, not leaving plates of food on the coffee table, closing the baby gate that leads upstairs after passing though, etc. Points are lost if the kid is observed forgetting or deliberately not doing any of the tasks on the sticky notes. At the end of the day they receive a “point” for each area they were great in, maybe a half point for areas they did OK in, and points
are subtracted for areas they didn’t do well in. At the end of the week, they gather all their “points” (maybe stamps on an index card?) together and cash them in at the “Store”. Depending on their age range and personalities, these may be stickers, new games for their game boys, Wii, X box, candy bars, toys, get out of doing a chore, etc. The kids can pick any item, or accumulate points which may get them a really awesome treat after reaching a certain goal…like a new bike, or trip to Disney Land = 100 points. In addition to motivating children to participate in and succeed at helping train the dog in busy, distracting household, Parents love it because it hit two birds with one stone for them: Eases the nightmare of keeping their dog out of trouble in the house and teaches their children responsibility, self-control, critical thinking and basic math and financial skills…THEY must keep track of the “points” they receive at the end of every day, not lose them, add them up and decide how much they want to spend or save, etc. It’s very cool. Some owners may just give up on prevention and management and tell you it’s not possible because they can’t keep track of it, or their house is just too hectic. These cases may fall into the “lost cause” category, but you still can try other methods, although they will only work minimally without and prevention and management plan in place to discourage or disable a dog from making bad choices in the house. Usually aversives and rewards are all you are left with, in addition to not accidently rewarding unwanted behaviors, such as giving the dog attention (if he finds it rewarding) by yelling at him and running over when he puts his paws on the counter, starts chewing on the corner of the coffee table, or grabs a tissue in his mouth. ***Some dogs misbehave in the house while owners are home simply because they get attention for it, and they find that stimulating. The best thing the owners can do in this situation is get up and walk away, even shutting the door and leaving the dog behind. *** * For cases where implementing a better prevention and management system, and non –aversive training techniques are not an option or not working, using aversives to discourage behaviors may be necessary if the other option is living in the backyard. An example would be for dogs misbehaving inside the involve aversives (for example a garden ghost placed on the counter tops to discourage a very persistent dog from jumping up. Cause: * No NILIF being used: If there is no NILIF protocol for the dogs in the house, this will ensure that the dogs don’t find it necessary to listen to anyone at any particular time. Fixes: * Regardless of what owners may claim they expect from their dog to receive rewards, in reality they usually require much less. You can normally observe a very “Everything in Life is Free” lifestyle simply by observing the interactions of dog and owner during your first consultation. If there is a lot of free petting, attention, praise and giving in to demanding behavior going on, the quickest fix for a non-listening dog is to stop all of that ASAP!
Cause: * No cue that means “pay attention”: If the dog does not know when the owner wants him to focus or pay attention, then it’s only fair that he won’t. Dogs tend to tune out everything that doesn’t have a specific meaning. Fixes: * Simple: Teach the dog “watch me”. Once the dog understands the cue, then he is much more likely to actually look at a person when given the cue, rather than the string of other vocalizations typically made (and ignored) like “hey, im talking to you!, stop it, pay attention!, don’t ignore me!”, etc, which sound like blah blah to the dog. Also, (Assuming reward based training has been used), the dog will have a positive emotional association with the cue, and have a muscle memory response to it, making it more likely he will choose to listen, VS other times when the owner is trying to get his attention and he doesn’t know whether the outcome will be beneficial or not, so he chooses not to. Cause: * No consequence for not paying attention. If I don’t listen, nothing happens…so why listen? Fixes: * If a request is made and the dog chooses not to listen there needs to be a consequence. (key word being chooses…if he doesn’t understand that the owner is trying to get his attention, then it’s not fair to give consequences, he needs to be taught), This can range from mild aversives (voice tone changes, body blocks), to moderate punishers (owner abandons, removes toy or access to play time). * The person requesting the cue can also just be relentless about asking until the dog follows through, and immediately remove the pressure, or provide a reward as soon as he does. For example “Fido Sit!” (Fido chooses not to listen) Approach closer and become louder, ask for sit rapidly “Sit…Sit Sit! Sit!” (Fido Sits), “good boy…go play!” This is not the same as just “repeating a cue” (which is not advised), because you are doing it with purpose, and with a method: add more pressure when dog doesn’t listen, remove pressure when does, essentially you are ensuring the dog follows through with the request, not matter what. This can be a stressful method so should be used with caution, especially with fearful dogs. > Q: What quadrant of operant conditioning would the above described method fall into? < > “body block” is when you use your body to block the dog from doing something it wants to do, such as break a stay, move to pick up an object in its mouth or greet a dog before being released. It is hands off, you don’t touch the dog, you just step in front him and continue stepping in front and blocking his access until he focuses on you and you can ask for a cue and then choose to release him) < > A: Negative Reinforcement! - You are removing something the dog doesn’t like (the pressure of repeatedly saying sit) to reinforce (reward) the dog sitting.<
Cause: * Dog has never practiced focusing and being rewarded for it. Fixes: * On a daily basis, the owners need to just say the dog’s name randomly, and toss him a treat when he turns his head. Slowly they can start to say his name in more and more distracting situations. A dog that gets rewarded for looking at his owner is more likely to repeat looking at his owner! Rewards can be tossing a piece of kibble, treat, ball, surprise trip outside, leash walk, food bowl placed down, given new toy, being called onto furniture to cuddle, etc.
2. Dog obviously intentionally avoiding or ignoring known cues, but normally listens
Cause: * Negative association with handler or cue, dog thinks cue is “trick” Owners or prior trainers may not have realized the dog was having a negative experience. Common cues that cause stress are “down” and “leave it”, because they are often taught using intimidation. After that, the dog may not respond, may run away, or may do the cue very slowly. Owners and you as the trainer, must be able to recognize when a dog is becoming stressed, or has made a negative association with a cue, so you can remedy it. Owners many times completely miss signs of stress during training. Fixes: * Cues should never be used before a negative experience for the dog, and never taught in a way that causes stress or discomfort, if avoidable. * If a dog has already made a negative association with the cue, you can either undo the negative association by heavily rewarding the cue, or it may be wise to change the cue all together, for instance, if a dog had formed a negative association with the cue “down”, change it to “lay”
Cause: * Dog may be tired or in pain Fixes: * Always make sure every dog you work with is healthy and up to date on veterinary exams. Ask the owner during the first session when the last veterinary checkup was, and if anything abnormal was found, so you have an idea of what you are working with. This becomes especially important when working with elderly dogs. A dog may have an underlying illness or physical ailment the owner is unaware of. The most common example is a dog with arthritis responding slowly to “sit” or “down” * If you can’t find and obvious reason why a dog consistently refuses ot do a cue (fearful of something, not motivated by reward, doesn’t understand cue, overly distracted, etc), than consider the possibility he may be in pain. Test out another cue the dog knows, but is very different from the cue you have been asking (for instance if you have been asking for sit, try watch me, speak, shake or touch) and see if the dog responds. This is a good test to figure out if it’s the cue itself that is the problem, or that the dog is just unmotivated and distracted in general. If it is the cue, and you don’t feel the dog has a negative association with the cue, it may be causing pain. Recommend the owner take the dog to the vet soon and get a thorough physical exam. * Sometimes the discomfort may be external and not internal (caused by the environment) If you suspect this, try relocating and switching things up and see if the dog is able to succeed. A common example of this would be thin coated, sensitive dogs not wanting to lie down on a cold surface, or any dog not wanting to lie down on hot pavement.
Cause: * Overstimulated/distracted: Sometimes dogs know that they have just been asked to do something, and normally would happily listen, but they are just so distracted or overstimulated, they can bring themselves to do it. Many times distractibility is seen as obstinacy or learning slowly, when in fact, the dog’s brain is just preoccupied. Some dogs filter out distractions very well, and other dogs do not (just like humans). Many owners miss overstimulation. Overstimulation differs from distraction in that it tends to come with more anxious and distressed behaviors. The dog may be playing, racing around, pacing from one interesting thing to another and appear to be having fun, however the dog is on the edge of losing it! Dogs sometimes like children do not have an “off switch” or know how to remove themselves form a situation and calm down. They may feel really excited and giddy one second and then incredibly overwhelmed and irritable, even aggressive the next. Dogs that are showing displacement behaviors, have wild looking facial expressions or whale eye, may be heavily panting and zipping from one task to another while “playing” or “socializing” may be overstimulated.
Fixes: * This is almost always an environmental issue. Do whatever needs to be done to reduce the level of distraction or overstimulation. This may mean increasing distance, decreasing volume, decreasing movement, increasing motivator, or giving a mental break until calm. * Rarely this may be genetic. Some dogs have tremendous difficulty holding still or settling down. We will discuss “hyperkenesis” in dogs in the advanced level. These dogs will remain just as or almost as distracted and overstimulated even after the environment has been changed. Cause: * Reward for cue isn’t motivating enough, or competing motivator present. Fixes: * Use a better reward…duh! If you have a treat in your hand, and the dog just wants to eat grass, put away the treat and grab a handful of grass! or, remove competing motivator, which may mean changing up environment or location…
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3. Dog not interested in treat reward
Cause: * Treat not high value, or dog doesn’t like it all together Fixes: * Please see #2 above * In addition – Do the “Treat Test” outlined earlier in curriculum
Cause: * Full stomach Fixes: * Inform owners to always make sure dog is kept hungry for training. If the dog is “free-feeding” A) this will NOT work with a NILIF plan, and B) it is counterproductive to training with food rewards. Ask owners to ration out daily amount of food dog needs and then go through it during the day using it for training, scavenger hunts while owners are busy or gone, and on walks for encounters with other dogs or people. A dog should never have a full stomach, they are biologically scavengers and thrive and think best when they are always a bit hungry.
Cause: * Stressed: make sure you can recognize it!, it may be subtle Fixes: * Locate source of stress (if can) and remove. This may be the environment, another pet, a noise, or something you or the owner are doing. A more valuable reward may outweigh the stressor, so try that as well!
Cause: * More motivated by toys and activity than food Fixes: * Do the treat test first session and see what foods the dog is at least semi interested in. * Don’t use treats! Have strict NILIF in place and use toys, your body movement, tone of voice and access to wanted things as rewards.
4. Dog distracted by something else
Cause: * Perceived threat: The dog may see/hear/smell something in his environment that he perceives as suspicious or threatening. This will switch him into “fight or flight mode” and he will not be interested in treats until he can decide whether he needs to fight, flee, or decides the threat is no longer important. You can usually tell when this is happening because of the dog’s “alert” body language (Ears forward, mouth closed, tail halfway out or up, facing direction looking, worried or tense facial expression, sniffing the air, may be quietly chuffing) This is common when the dog notices something in the distance and cannot make out what it is (perhaps another dog, a person, a sound or an object). Sometimes if the stimulus is close enough (and harmless), just letting the dog check it out and then move on can easily get him refocused on you. Fixes: * Either take this opportunity to DS/CC (wer’e not there yet ) or gain distance between dog and distraction.
Cause: * Competing motivator: Is there something nearby that the dog would rather engage in? it isn’t always a better treat or toy…it may be a shady place in grass that dog would really like to lay down in if tired, or an interesting smell. Fixes: * Remove dog from motivator so can focus * Use motivator as reward (for instance, get behavior you want and then reward dog by releasing him to go lie in grass instead of giving treat or toy). * Up the value of your motivation…maybe get a higher value motivator, or just get more interesting and exciting with the training.
Cause: * Set up to fail environment or situation: environment doesn’t lend itself to training. i.e kid’s birthday party Fixes: * Sometimes you just need to forget about training in that moment and rely just on management. If the environment is working against you, manage it as best you can, and come back later when things are more under control and work with dog then, when he can succeed…build him up to being able to focus in original challenging scenario. Takes a while and lots of repetition…be patient! >> For puppies and dogs in a very set up to fail environment for learning, sometimes Board and Trains are a great option. They get to learn new behaviors in a calmer location, proof them there, and then return home to practice them If they can perform with 90% accuracy at the trainer’s house, they can probably do 60-70% at home…which is much better than where they started! <<<
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5. Dog shows signs of fear or stress when given cue
Cause: * Cue is innately scary Fixes: * If the dog doesn’t enjoy it, or it’s frightening, don’t make him do it, or wait until he has a positive association with it. Any task that involves something the dog may interpret as life threatening (walking across something narrow up off the ground, anything making weird noises or with flashing lights (think…posing for a camera), asking to jump off object dog perceives a high, asking to walk across, sit or lie down on strange surface, pull skateboard, ride beside bike, sit by curb beside noisy traffic, etc. Sometimes owners will have expectations for their dog
and you will need to point out to them that the dog finds the task frightening, and it is not ethical just for the enjoyment of the owner, to have the dog do something that scares him or causes him physical discomfort.
Cause: * Negative memory/ association with cue: Sometimes it’s not the cue itself but the situation…a nervous dog ill probably not want to lie down or sit – because they feel trapped and cannot move away from the stimulus…classic scenario is a dog who’s being forced to sit-stay or down-stay while a baby gets in his face, squeals right by his ear and crawls on him…that will create a negative a association with the cue, especially in the presence of the baby, which will cause signs of stress like displacement behaviors and responding to cue very slowly or not at all. Fixes: * Tell owners to STOP doing that and explain why! And start new with cue, never use it in scary scenario and change the context and word for behavior all together. Many owners are surprised and mortified to find out their dog is experiencing fear when asked to do something, they usually assume the dog is being stubborn.
Cause: * Generalizing fear from similar situation: If the dog had a traumatic experience at some point he may have generalized his fear into similar situations. For example, a dog that had a very negative experience with a lightning storm may then hate the flash of a camera. If the dog is repeatedly forced to “sit” for photos, he may then show a lot of signs of stress when asked to “sit”, even when no camera around. (he thinks sitting increases the likelihood of a flash) Fixes: * Notice when the dog is experience high levels of stress and try not to recreate that scenario unless you are actively working on desensitizing him to it.
Cause: * History of punishment for wrong choices: A dog that has been trained using correction based training, who is constantly getting verbally or physically corrected for wrong choices, may show many signs of stress when asked to do anything, because being given a cue increases the likelihood of a negative experience. Fixes: * Switch to positive reinforcement based methods ASAP! Please review dog body language when using aversives in training in “Puppy Chops” presentation (Month 2)
6. Dog repeatedly making wrong choice (cue other than once asking for, or irrelevant behavior all together)
Cause: * Dog confused by cue: The dog may not know what you or the owner are asking for, or may be confusing it with another cue. Fixes: * Make sure cues are being given clearly and consistently, using the same word or hand signal each time * Make sure cues are not too similar (for example, high five may look just like “touch” – dog won’t know whether to use his paw or nose. Modify “Touch” to one finger out.)
Cause * The dog hasn’t learned the cue yet in this context, or at all: Fixes: * Ensure that the dog actually knows what the cue means, and has had a chance to generalize. If not, take it back a few steps in the training process and make it solid. Make sure he understands the cue, not just the context, so you can ask for it in different scenarios.
Cause: * Too big of jump in criteria: The dog may understand the basic form of the cue, but the handler may be jumping ahead and asking for success in a set-up that the dog cannot do yet. (For instance jumping from eye contact inside while sitting
to eye contact outside while healing. Or, doing touch once for a reward, then asking for 5 touches in a row before reward. Fixes: * Have a clear understanding of how and when to increase criteria, what constitutes as an increase in criteria, and how reinforcement schedules are best used. Never increase two criteria at once, unless you are confident the dog will succeed. Use reinforcement schedules wisely, too infrequent rewarding in the learning stages of a behavior will demotivate and confuse the dog. Too rapid rewards will cause the dog to plateau. * Sometimes Criteria may increase out of your control, for example if a leaf blower shows up next door in the middle of your session, the added criteria of distraction has just been added. Pay attention to your environment! Cause: * Defaulting to last rewarded behavior: Sometimes when dogs aren’t sure hwat else to do, or when they don’t feel like figuring it out they will try offering the last successful behavior they did. Sometimes dogs will do this if the next behavior you ask is more difficult than the one they were just getting rewarded for. They will also do this if the cue is similar, or they are not getting enough information about what to do, so they start guessing. Fixes: * You can use a no reward marker to nip the behavior in the bud and give the dog some feedback so he isn’t wasting time and energy stuck on one task, or burning out and getting frustrated. Be patient and only selectively reward behaviors that are closer to what you are looking for. * Give the dog clues and set him up as much as you can to succeed. If the behavior he is defaulting to is touching an abject with his paw, but now you want him to leave it – don’t use the same object! That’s just confusing! Put the “touch” object away and get a new item that looks completely different. Use the environment to help the dog succeed, if you want him to lie down, try working with his bed or a floor mat. * Put another known/easy behavior between to break it up. If the dog is stuck on offering his paw, and you want to teach him something new, ask for several other behaviors he knows instead, like sit, look, and come. Then start molding the new behavior once “shake” is a distant memory. Cause: * Stressed/frustrated/overstimulated: If the dog is showing signs of stress, than he may be burning out, or frustrated. Fixes: * If a simple change can be made to remove the stressor, try again after that. * End on something easy he knows and can be successful at, and try again later.
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7. Mouthing, Dodging, Trying to play, Barking at handler or other “misbehavior” when given cue
Cause: * Dog perceives handler as wanting to play? Fixes: * Adjust body language and tone so it is obvious that you are not playing. Puppies have a hard time noticing who wants to play and who doesn’t, it’s a bit of trial and error.
Cause: * Savvy dog trying to elicit play to avoid having to do cue: Dogs that are very good a diffusing social stress tend to also be good at diffusing situations they just don’t want to have to deal with…like following a request, for starters! These dogs may sometimes play-bow or grab a toy and try to start a game of chase to “switch off” training mode. Fixes: * Don’t let it work! Even if it’s incredibly cute – don’t start playing with the dog. Walk off and ignore the dog, or use reverse psychology if you can. If there is another dog present who will work for the treat, start working with that dog until the original dog becomes interested and wants to participate. If he acts goofy when you ask for a task, shoo him away and focus on the other dog again.
Cause: * Dog confused or stressed, displacing into other behavior: If the dog doesn’t know what you want, he may use play to calm himself or you down and decrease stress.
Fixes: * Make sure the dog understands the cue and you are being consistent and clear with your body language and cues.
Cause: * Signs of dog with low inhibition, frustration control: Dogs that become mouthy and barky during training may have a low frustration tolerance and threshold. These dogs tend to be awful at “leave it” and may start barking, chewing on your hand or whatever is closest to their mouth, scratching, whining and walk away and do something else. Fixes: * Do relaxation exercises and self-control exercises (plenty on this to come when we go into fear and anxiety)
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8. Dog responds great with trainer, then poorly when handed off to owner, or listens to one owner and not the other
Cause: * Excitement factor (owners boring and monotone) Fixes: * Some dogs don’t respond well unless there is pizazz. Or at least some signs of life. Many owners ask for cues in the blandest way possible, and the dog ignores them. When you ask for the same task, the dog gets a sparkle in his eye and does it right away…why? Because you make training fun! Remind owners that training isn’t boot camp, it’s bonding and games. So lighten up and find some energy!
Cause: * History of punishment with owner: If the owner has just recently switched over to positive methods, there may be some residual damage that will need time to heal through trust and respect. The dog will need time to build confidence around his owner
Fixes: * Coach the owner on being positive and peppy, they will have the urge to correct every wrong move the dog makes, rather than accentuate the good (just muscle memory and habit from punishment based training) the more sessions you do, the more you will see the dog responding just as positively to the owner as yourself.
Cause: * Trainer has higher value reward: Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a no brainer for the dog! Fixes: * Give the owners some of what you have! * Teach the dog that when he listens to the person with the lower value reward, he gets the higher value reward ď &#x160;â&#x20AC;Śsurprise! Have the owner call the dog, or ask him to sit, and stick with it until he complies. Then you run over and surprise him with your reward.
Cause: * Owner is doing something differently: This is the most common reason and the first place to start. The owner is probably just not doing it the same way, so is getting a different response. Fixes: * More coaching and walking owner through subtleties of the hand cue, what to do with their body, tone of voice, etc.
9. Dog doing cue only when reward on hand and visible
Cause: * Dog got “hooked” on lure phase of lure and reward training because never learned to wean off. Fixes: * Go back and work on some basic cues, and focus heavily on getting results without the reward in hand (see Learning Theory and Training 101 for brush up on how to wean off lure)
Cause: * Dog has learned if he waits it out, the reward appears. (This is essentially a bribe, and teaching the dog that NOT listening is rewarding because it causes the reward to appear. The sight of the reward is rewarding! For example: owner asks for sit at front door. Dog doesn’t listen and stares at owner expectantly, owner reaches into treat pouch and holds treat in front of dog’s nose and asks for sit again…dog sits! The dog has trained the owner to not only give him the reward of opening the door when he sits, but if he ignores the first request, a treat appears…then he gets treat AND door open…smart dog! ;) Fixes: * Don’t use rewards as bribes! The behavior causes the reward to appear…not the other way around. In the scenario above, the owner should wait the dog out, or drop the leash and walk away and come back a few minutes later and ask for sit again
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10. Dog constantly mugging hand for treat or overly excited by treat and not focusing.
Cause: * Doesn’t know leave it or not to “mug” hands: If the dog has never learned that mugging hands makes the treat happen slower, than he will definitely mug the hands! Fixes: * Teach the dog that trying to grab food from handler makes food and handler go away briefly. For example, If a dog has been asked to sit, and you are reaching down to reward him and he jumps up to grab the treat, simply quickly remove the treat and stand back up. Most dogs will correct themselves back into a sit. Slowly lower your hand to reward, and remove again if he jumps up or tries to snatch it. * Teach the dog the cue leave it. This helps connect selfinhibition neurons in his head, and builds a positive association with wanting something but asking permission first, increasing the likelihood that the dog will do it again in the future on his own without being prompted. Teaching leave it helps calms dogs down during training with food rewards, and promotes thinking when food is involved, rather than just grabbing. * Teach the dog a gentle mouth by only selectively rewarding the times the dog gently takes the treat, if he grabs it, don’t let go! You can strat by using objects the dog doesn’t want to grab anyway – such as a metal spoon, and place the treat on it. The dog will likely gingerly take the treat off the spoon because grabbing metal in his mouth is unpleasant. Then you can wean to a wooden spoon, and then the tip of your extended finger. This helps the dog build muscle memory of taking treats gently and being aware of what’s surrounding the treat…which may be skin!
Cause * Treat too high value, dog overstimulated: If the treat is so motivating that the dog can barely hold it together, he's likely to be so wound up and excited over the treat that it’s actually counterproductive to learning.
Fixes: * Downgrade the value of the treat to something the dog is motivated by but not crazy over.
Cause: * History of getting rewarded for mugging hands, stealing food out of hands, or for being overexcited about treats. Sometimes humans encourage behaviors they find cute in “off time” but frustrating when they are actually trying to teach the dog something. Owners may find it funny to “rile” the dog up over a treat, but then not want the dog whining and barking at them during training, although the dog sees no difference. Some dogs also have a history of getting rewarded for impatient or demanding behavior. Dogs who shove their heads into your hand and get pet are only behaving fairly and logically if they shove their face into the treat bag or paw and slobber on hands to try to get the reward without having to do work. (or at least the work you want )
Fixes: * Stop rewarding and encouraging mugging! * Encourage self-control and thinking, not demanding. * Inform clients not to reward frustration, even if cute in the moment…it will come back to haunt them when they want to use motivating food rewards in training!
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Learning Theory and Training 102, PART TWO: Using basic training and tools of the trade in real life to remedy The top 10 training issues owners have: These are issues that are considered training issues only, not behavioral issues. What is the difference? *A training issue is something that a dog is doing that the owner doesn’t like, but is completely within normal parameters for K9 behavior, and simply needs training in order to mold or eliminate the behavior. Behavioral issues deal with behaviors the dog is doing that are a result of an emotional state, and are normally considered to be abnormal, or outside of normal parameters of appropriate behavior in that situation. Examples: Training Issue: Pulling on leash to greet another dog, or jumping up to greet a person are totally normal behaviors that the dog is doing because he simply hasn’t been trained to offer a behavior humans find more acceptable (walking on a loose leash, and sitting). Pulling and jumping up
make sense in these situations. These would fall within the category of training issues. You don’t necessarily need to change the dog’s emotional state – you just need to train him to offer a certain behavior. Behavioral Issue: A dog that lunges and barks at other dogs on walks out of frustration or fear, or growl at visitors to the home out of fear would be considered behavioral issues. The dog is responding out of normal parameters (the dog and people are of no threat and not harming the dog) and based on an emotional state (fear/frustration). These would fall into the category of behavioral issues, because the dog would need to learn a new emotion associated with seeing other dogs on leash or people at the door. He can’t just be “trained” to stop pulling, or sit at the door, his emotional state must be changed. Behavioral issues almost always involve some anxiety or fear as their root cause. Until we reach those sections of the curriculum, we will address training only issues here. Remember the acronym “MITE-C” from first month? This is just one example of a “formula” you can use to help you come up with a very comprehensive plan for owners to use when addressing any and all training or behavioral issues that makes sure no rock is left unturned! You can go without a process, or use another one, but it is highly recommended to do something to ensure you don’t miss any areas of a training plan, and you are able to come up with something that is clear and practical not only for you to implement with the dog, but more importantly, something the owners can easily keep track of in your absence. We will go through each of these common K9 training issues using the acronym “MITE-C” as a demonstration.
1. Jumping on People:
* Management: - Debrief guests: Inform visitors to the home ahead of time to not give the dog any attention unless he is calm. Inform guests ahead of time to turn away and
ignore the dog if he jumps. If it is someone on a walk, inform them from a distance that the dog is not allowed to jump, and to not pet/give attention if he does upon meeting. - Prevent it from being able to happen: Have on leash or behind barrier until calm to prevent dog from successfully jumping. The dog is easier to control than humans. If the dog is on leash or behind a gate, he cannot run over and jump. If you ask humans to not reinforce jumping behavior, they may or may not listen.
* Identify Reinforcers: - Getting to greet while excited: If the dog is allowed to greet people when he is barely holding it together (even if he’s not jumping) than it is still reinforcing the same part of his brain to be overly stimulated when greeting humans. Owners should make sure that the dog is not only not jumping – but also relatively calm, sitting and focused on the owner before being releases to greet people. - Person acknowledging in any way (including saying no or pushing down with hands): Any time the dog is pet, spoken to, pet, played with or handled in any way while or just after jumping, it is reinforcing the jumping behavior. Even people yelling “no!” or “get down!” and pushing the dog off can b highly reinforcing, especially for dogs that enjoy rough contact, like bully breeds, boxers, etc. - Getting to jump on people during play: Many owners are not OK with their dog jumping on them or their guests when they enter the house, however during play, will often reward or even encourage jumping behavior because it’s “play time.” Unless the owner is putting jumping on cue, so the dog clearly understands that it is ONLY done when prompted – The dog will not be able to know the difference between when it’s Ok to jump and when it’s not, meaning he might as well try all of the time.
* Teach Alternate Behavior: - Sit: Sitting is incompatible with jumping up. If the owners can teach and heavily reinforce “sit” in situations where the dog would normally be inclined to jump, it will become his “go to” behavior. - Bring something in mouth: Many dogs enjoy grabbing toys and “presenting” them to their owners or guests when they greet them. This is another option to replace the
jumping behavior. The owners can encourage the dog to go find a toy and bring it over and give it to the person, who can than throw it again. - Down: Requiring a “Down” before getting to greet is an additional option to “Sit”. - Go to Place: To teach dogs extra self control and calm behavior, the dog can be taught to go to place to earn the reward of getting to greet guests or the owners. Because of the excitement level, this will likely need to be a several step process. i.e: teach dog to sit to greet, then lay down, then go away to place and lay down.
* Emotional Response: - Make greetings less exciting and emotionally overwhelming: Owners should not make a big deal about returning home, and should not acknowledge their dog until he is calm. Owners should inform guests to do the same. This will tune down some of the overly joyous emotional associations with greeting people, and set the dog up to succeed at a calmer behavior, such as sitting. - NILIF Will ensure the dog is already set up to offer non-attention seeking and calm behavior for things he wants, so it will be a smooth transition when applying to ant-jumping.
* Consequences: - All Humans ignore dog when dog jumps: (mild = turn away and fold arms, severe = walk off, shut door behind, or leave dog tethered to something) This can be done with or without using a no reward marker first. For some dogs (rarely), people abandoning or turning their back doesn’t work. These may be dogs with extreme intolerance for frustration or “the unknown” (i.e: the dog doesn’t understand what is going on when the human ignores them, so they become MORE riled up and jump more and may begin barking or mouthing, rather than choosing another behavior such as moving away or sitting) For these dogs, positive punishment and negative reinforcement may need to be explored, especially if the owners are on a time-line and need the behavior curbed ASAP or the dog will get re-homed or “banished” to the backyard. Of course if these methods are employed, they should be as humane and low stress as possible to get the desired response, and then training should switch to Positive Reinforcement and Negative Punishment ASAP.
Please review videos 32 , 33 , 34
VIDEO 59
2. Pulling and bad manners on leash (Non-Reactive)
* Management: - Use a tool to prevent dog from being able to pull in meantime while training dog to not pull. This can be a Gentle Leader, Easy Walk Harness, or other humane â&#x20AC;&#x153;no-pullâ&#x20AC;? walking tools.
* Identify Reinforcers: - The most reinforcing thing for a dog pulling on leash is getting to take a step in the direction he is pulling. Make sure this is never happening. - For dogs that are distracted, walking with no regards for what direction the owner would like to take, the most reinforcing thing is being able to sniff, pee, roll around and engage with his environment any way he wants without looking to the owner for
guidance or permission. Dogs that criss cross in front and behind legs, checking out interesting smells at will, have no need or motivation to care about what behaviors the handler would prefer - They are getting everything for free!
* Teach Alternate Behavior: - The alternative to pulling would be performing tasks that are incompatible with a tense leash. Teach the dog, using any combination of science based, humane methods outlined in LT&T 101 to walk on a loose leash as the behavior that EARNS getting to move forward, rather than pulling. Sitting and focusing on owner to earn being released to sniff an interesting patch of grass, greet a dog or person, doing “touch”, down or any other “tricks” the dog knows can be incorporated into any walk. If the dog is focusing on “touch”, he cannot be simultaneously pulling. * Emotional Response: - Change the positive emotional state the dog associated with pulling into a neutral or negative one by never allowing him to move toward what he wants while there is any tension on the leash, and create a positive emotional state with being beside you leg by having great things happen there.
* Consequences: - If the dog pulls on leash, or forges ahead to sniff something, simply do not let him. Stop immediately in place and require dog to return to your side before moving forward, or abruptly change directions, moving away from direction dog wanted to go in, only moving toward his desired direction when he is walking on a loose leash by the handler’s side. In a more drastic version of this, the handler can hold several feet of slack in the leash in a loop in hand and wait until he dog becomes unfocused and forges ahead or hits the end of the allotted leash length. Let out the several feet of slack in the leash while simultaneously turning and walking the opposite direction. The dog will hit the end of the leash while moving away from handler, which will be startling. Make sure this happens as far away from handler as possible, as it is not to be associated with the handler, but with forging on AWAY from the handler. When dog has refocused on handler and is walking on l loose leash by side, reward with either treat, toy, or moving toward desired direction again.
Review Video #43 Video #60
3. Overexcitement at sight of food or leash or toys
* Management: - Don’t let the dog practice the behavior! Have a plan beforehand to set his environment up to encourage calmness. Don’t let him have access to things while excited, put away toys and don’t allow him to get the food before being calm, etc.
* Identify Reinforcers: - Any step (literal or figurative) toward the reward while the dog is still excited is reinforcing the behavior.
- Playing or engaging in an over-stimulating manner can induce and reinforce overexcitement at the mere sight of the item. The sight of the food, leash or toy becomes a visual cue for the brain to get excited. If family members are playing in very rough and overly joyous ways with toys with no limits or rules, the dog will learn to become overly hyper and excited when toys are around. Many owners will actually stimulate and encourage excited behavior by saying things like “are you ready for dinner…tell me….ask for your dinner!” and will reward the dog for barking, whining, panting or spinning in circles, and then later on chastise the dog once the behavior ahs become too much or unmanageable. This often happens before walks… “Wanna walk!...you do!! Are you sure?!! Show me you wanna go for a walk!” and then the door opens while the dog is excited. This behavior evolves into an unmanageable dog at the sight of the leash. It is not fair to elicit excitement and then chastise it later on.
* Teach Alternate Behavior: - There are any number of behaviors a dog can do instead of overly-excited behaviors. Depending on what the owner wants, and what the dog naturally offers when you wait him out – you may get a sit, a walk away and lie down, or something else. - Although you can cue a behavior, such as sit, it is probably best to initially just wait the dog out until he CHOOSES on his own to calm down. (See consequences below) The reason is, a dog can sit, but still be over excited – you haven’t addressed the emotional state, the dog is just following a command. In the long run, you haven’t really addressed the issue. If you wait until the dog is consistently offering calmer behavior at the sight of the food, leash or toy, then if you cue a behavior, such as sit, you will get a calm sit. It’s better in this case to address the emotional state first, and the body later – the dog is likely to sit on his own accord if he is making an effort to be calm.
* Emotional Response: - Create a calmer emotional state at the sight of over-stimulating triggers. Desensitizing the dog to the trigger, and only reinforce him for calm behavior. (Calming down gets him closer to the thing he wants most) This will help his brain automatically switch into a calm state of mind at the visual cue of the item or scenario that used to trigger excitement (because calm behavior is the only state of mind that has gained him access to it recently). If the owner is doing the training, and the leash is never getting attached before the dog is sitting CALMLY, then this will accomplish a great deal. In addition to that, The owner just wearing the leash around their neck, walking around randomly picking it and putting it back down to desensitize the dog and break the strong emotional association that leash = walk.
* Consequences: - The most effective response to excitement over an item or situation the dog finds over-stimulating is simply to remove the stimulus or push it further away (in speed, intensity or distance). This is negative punishment – because you are removing something the dog wants in order to decrease a behavior. There are many variations on this. But in general: any overexcited behavior halts the process toward what the dog wants. Example: Dog overexcited during feeding time: It would be ideal during the training process to feed the dog each piece of kibble separately, or at the least, by the handful in order to maximize repetitions – the learning and muscle memory are in the repetitions, so if the owner does it by the bowl full, the average dog will only get two repetitions a day, whereas if it’s by the piece of kibble they could potentially get hundreds. Although it’s more time consuming short term, it will solve the problem faster and more thoroughly in the long run. Find the threshold where the dog’s behavior changes from normal to excited (walking toward the cabinet that contains the kibble? Beginning to fill the bowl? Walking into the kitchen in general? Beginning to place the bowl on ground?) Once you find this threshold, begin the process a hair before that point. In this example, let’s use the most common scenario: overexcitement after the owner begins opening the dog food bag and scooping kibble out of it. A goal must be set that is reasonable for the dog to succeed at (such as standing still and not jumping up and down and barking, or spinning in circles. The behavior can be shaped into going and sitting on a bed later – but for now we are going for emotional state, not fancy behaviors, so NOT spazzing is the goal) As long as the dog is not barking, jumping or spinning, the owner continues reaching into the bag and scooping food into the bowl. If at any point the excitement level goes up, the owner immediately stops, puts the scoop down and stands still. As soon as the dog resumes calm behavior, scooper picked up and process resumed. This routine continues all the way through each handful of kibble the owner gives to the dog. The following meal, the dog is expected to be even calmer and for longer. Whenever the dog becomes excited, the food is removed as a consequence. Once the dog has the routine down, the owner should be able to walk to the dog’s bag, open it, scoop food into the bowl and slowly place it on the floor with the dog calmly observing the entire time.
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4. Attention seeking, demanding and begging behaviors
* Management: -Set the dog up to have something reinforcing to do other than seek attention. Plan ahead. If the dog is going to go a span of time confined, ignored or needing to occupy himself, especially during times such as owners watching tv, eating a meal, entertaining guests, working at computer, etc, give the dog something to do! Options include food puzzle games, scavenger hunts, or using a manners minder. Debrief guests ahead of time of behaviors to not reward with any attention, as well as come to an agreement with all members of household.
* Identify Reinforcers: - Obviously, ANY sort of acknowledgment (even negative) reinforces attentionseeking behaviors. This issue is a classic one where owners tend to do exactly the opposite of what they should to eliminate the behavior: give it attention. Many owners think yelling “shhhh!” or walking over and “punishing” the dog for whining or barking, will stop the behavior, but in fact, it feeds it. What the dog interprets is that the attention seeking is working, because it is getting the owner closer, louder, or to yell at them, comfort them, or any other manner of acknowledgement, whereas when the dog is quiet none of this happens. A reinforcer that will actually make attention seeking behaviors worse inconsistency. If sometimes whining gets a dog pet other times yelled at and other times ignored…he will do it twice as loud and long because he never knows which result he may finally get if he just keeps pushing. Inconsistent results will actually more intensely reinforce attention seeking and begging behaviors than if the dog were to consistently get rewarded every time.
* Teach Alternate Behavior: - Besides giving the dog a fun task to occupy his time (see management above), teaching him a specific task to perform in order to earn attention is a great idea. Now the dog will. Have a non-obnoxious way of seeking attention that the owner will enjoy, so it’s win-win for all. Teaching the dog to go do a down stay on a mat is a great idea. It’s something that is easily taught; unless the dog is unusually anxious or hyperactive, and all the owner simply has to do is begin building upon the amount of time the dog could do the day before. To completely eradicate attention seeking and begging behaviors, it’s best to combine management and training. Here’s an example:
* Emotional Response: - If the dog no longer receives attention for attention seeking behavior, he will no longer have a positive association with the many behaviors he uses to get acknowledged!
* Consequences: - Removal of attention is the fastest and best way to squash attention seeking behaviors. If the behavior causes the opposite of the desired result, the dog will likely stop doing it! The only question is whether or not the owner/handler can stick to their guns long enough and out-wait the dog, who will likely get worse before they get better (after all….it’s been working so far!) Dogs are logical beings, and they do not invest energy into something unless it is rewarding for them emotionally, mentally or physically. They do not have ego or spitefulness, they simply do what gets results. If whining, begging, barking, pawing, nudging, scratching and jumping are getting the opposite results than what the dog desires he will cease to do it.
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5. Door rushing
* Management: - Never have the door open when the dog is off leash or not restrained behind a barrier! This seems like common sense, but amazingly owners that have dogs that door dash will be intent on having the door open and then do damage control once the dog runs out, or will think that a bad experience in the road will cause the dog to â&#x20AC;&#x153;think about itâ&#x20AC;? and not want to dash out again in the futureâ&#x20AC;Śnope! - Have clear communication, whether verbal or with written signs to remind family members, roommates, guests, gardeners, etc, to always make sure door/gate is closed. - Install a barrier that stops or at least slows dog down from door dashing (such as baby gates or upside down carpet runners, or alternatively, the dog can be tethered.
* Identify Reinforcers: - Every time the dog gets to dash out the door and chase a car or squirrel, or just run wild in the yard, he is getting a very potent reinforcement for dashing out the door! If the dog is dashing through doors while on leash, whether to get out the door or back in the door, the owner following behind him and allowing him to continue in the direction he is heading is a major reinforcement.
* Teach Alternate Behavior: - If dog is dashing out/in doors while on leash, like before a walk, the owner needs to work on a basic sit-stay-release, and leash manners to curb this.
- It’s very difficult to teach a dog that dashes out doors when no one is looking an alternate behavior, because he knows there is no one around, and he can dash out the door anyways without needing to offer any other behavior. In essence: If the dog really wants to go out the door he will. Because of this, it makes training this behavior out of dogs very difficult, and makes the prevention and management aspect the key player. Otherwise, the trainer/owner is left with slim options of aversives to use, such as scat mats (electrify when stepped on) at the threshold to the door, or using spray collars as dog is running toward door – but again, these can have “fall out” consequences.
* Emotional Response: - Aversives can be used for major door dashers to create a negative association with dashing out the door. This may have detrimental effects on how the dog feels about walking through any doorway, or even walking out the door when given permission, so the trainer/owner should really weight the pros vs the cons, but if the dog’s life is at stake, it may be necessary, in addition to positive methods.
* Consequences: - In addition to using aversives, with some dogs, simply slamming the door and abandoning them outside may work. This will not work for dogs that are actually dashing through the door chasing something or to run around the neighborhood, but it will work for dogs that are dashing out the door to try and prevent their owners form leaving them at home, or to get people to chase them. They care more about the humans than being outside – so shutting them outside will likely make them come back to the door and try to get back in. Use caution and discretion if you try this method. It may be a good idea to put the dog on a very long lead attached to a heavy object just inside the door and “set him up” to dash out the door, then close the door. If he decides to keep dashing, he will hit the end of the leash. After you gauge his response, you can repeat until he realizes that dashing in or out the door simply gets the door closed with you on the other side.
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6. Not Listening or coming when called when distracted or having fun.
* Management: - The dog should NEVER be given the freedom to run around or enjoy off leash play time at a park until he is listening, this just lets him practice ignoring the request. - Although sustaining a “NILIF” plan with every dog is important for solving any issue, “not listening” is probably the one where it is most required. Part of management for dogs who don’t listen when distracted would be making sure owners are setting their dog up to succeed by practicing “NILIF” every day, even when their dog is already “on good behavior”, or “not distracted”.
* Identify Reinforcers: - If a management plan is not in place, then every single time the dog gets to have access to a fun or distracting experience, or continue having access after his owner’s have given him a request, he is being heavily reinforced for not listening. In fact, many owners actually do the opposite of reinforcing pay attention, or recall while dogs are off leash, distracted, or having fun, because they repeatedly create negative associations with the cues (see “Emotional State” below). - Owners are unwittingly reinforcing “deaf when distracted” behaviors in their dogs if they allow non-listening behavior
* Teach Alternate Behavior: - Teach strong recall - Teach strong “look” - Teach positive interrupter
* Emotional Response: - Use a good management plan to prevent the dog from having any positive emotional associations with ignoring his owners. Don’t further reinforcer nonlistening behavior by chasing after the dog or giving a lot of attention. - Create a negative emotional association by pairing non-listening with abandonment by owner or cessation of access to fun. >>Q: What type of operant conditioning would this be? <<
* Consequences: - If appropriate and possible: abandon! >> A: Negative Punishment: Your are REMOVING something the dog wants in order to DECREASE a behavior<< - Make sure all access to fun stops. If dog is ignoring you to play with another dog
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7. Naughty behavior around house * while owners present * (counter surfing, going into “forbidden” rooms, jumping on furniture, stealing and chewing items, hyper in house)
* Management: - Very similar to “ #1. Not attentive during training or in general” under “Learning and training blockades” - Set dog up to succeed by ALWAYS having a task to do. Have kongs already prepared and ready to use whenever dog cannot be supervised. Use confinement area. - Set up scavenger hunts around house during down times in house to keep dog stimulated. - Wear dog out with agility, group classes, swimming, dog walker, etc. so doesn’t have physical energy to cause mayhem.
* Identify Reinforcers: - These “naughty” behaviors can be self-reinforcing (chewing, hyperactivity) or may result in a reinforcer (counter surfing and finding a half a sandwich leftover) - Many times owners accidently reinforce unwanted behaviors by giving the dog attention in the act, even if it’s yelling and chasing – that’s better than nothing!
* Teach Alternate Behavior:
- Teach Positive Interrupter
* Emotional Response: - Eliminate Reinforcers! - Create negative association with certain behaviors by having unpleasant consequences, can use no reward marker as warning, followed by time outs. End goal is no reward marker alone stopping behavior so dog can avoid time out.
* Consequences: - can use no reward marker as warning, followed by time outs. End goal is no reward marker alone stopping behavior so dog can avoid time out. - Last ditch can use aversives (motion detector spray at entrance to rooms owners want dog NEVER to go in, on counters, upside carpet runners on furniture (spikes point up), etc.
8. Digging in yard, chewing plants/roots
* Management: - Owners should do whatever they can to block off plants using small fencing material. They can also create a border of plants the dog finds discouraging, like cacti or bitter tasting plants such as Aloe â&#x20AC;&#x201C; although on the rare occasion the dog chooses to actually ingest the Aloe in large enough quantities, it can be toxic â&#x20AC;&#x201C; - Prevent by having dog on leash or long line to prevent reaching the plants.
- Set up to succeed by giving a task to do when outside that’s planned out and ready to go. - Relocate some plants if possible - Cover surface in material not fun to dig, such as rocks or woods chips (if possible and aesthetically pleasing to owner) - Identify reason for digging (maybe be small burrowing animals or dog is trying to escape if digging holes along fenceline.
* Identify Reinforcers: - Digging is self-reinforcing! It’s a biological action, just like barking and running, that dogs are programmed to do, and is fun in and of itself because throughout evolution, it was evry useful, mother nature made it fun so dogs will repeat it! - Digging can become attention seeking if gets predictable response form owners - If digging uncovers something, like animal or something edible, that is reinforcer - If digging allows dog to escape, escaping is reinforcing digging.
* Teach Alternate Behavior: - Self reinforcing behaviors are very hard to eliminate, but like most nuisance behaviors, if you give the dog an appropriate outlet to do the behavior, and make it the OWNERS idea and put it one cue, it has a reverse psychology effect – suddenly it’s not so fun. So basically; Teach the dog to dig on cue! - Give dog a sand box to dig in, hide treats under sand so the sandbox is a higher reinforcer than other parts of the yard
* Emotional Response: - Reinforce fence so dog can’t be reinforced for digging by escaping. - Don’t give attention if it seems dog enjoys that. - Use consequences or aversives to create negative association.
* Consequences: - Mark behavior with word and abandon - Remove dog from area and put in time out (run risk of starting game of chase…make sure if doing this that owners or you can actually GET the dog and put him in time out, have on long lead or dragging leash in in small area where can catch. Make sure “catching” doesn’t cause dog to become scared or defensive and elicit aggression or fear of handling. Using leash is best option.
- Mild deterrents: burying any object with spikes or pegs facing upward that are uncomfortable on paws when digging. - Aversives: Garden Ghost if digging in certain area, won’t work if dog likes to dig wherever. #65
9. Wont bring toys back, drops them far away or doesn’t chase them at all when owner wants to play “fetch”
* Management: - Don’t give dog access to beloved toys unless working on fetch. If dog gets free access to play with them all the time…he doesn’t need a human to join in! - Have dog on long line if his normal response is to chase the toy and then keep running with it or start to chew it, so you can gently “reel him in” for his reward for dropping it near you.
* Identify Reinforcers: - Dog getting chased for toy is a HUGE reinforcer for not bring it back to the owner…and he thinks it’s what you want! - Getting to run off with toy reinforces not bring it back - Owner going and getting toy after throwing it and giving to dog reinforces not picking it up and bringing it back after chasing – he doesn’t need to, he gets the same result for having you do all the work!
* Teach Alternate Behavior: - Break the behavior down and teach the different parts separately. - Teach the dog “drop” - Teach the dog to target the toy - Teach the dog to mouth the toy - Teach the dog to mouth the toy, then drop on cue - Start adding distance. - Use alternating toys, and getting next toy thrown as result of bringing back the first one (even if it’s a few feet, you can build on it) - Remember primary reinforcers vs. secondary reinforcers? You may need to start out with fetching the toy as the secondary reinforcer that predicts getting a treat, and let it naturally turn into a primary reinforcer as the dog learn to love the task in and of itself.
* Emotional Response: - Just keep working on above until dog starts to enjoy it…some dogs are just not into fetch and never will be, but give it a good try first!
* Consequences: - Really the only consequences you’re going to have for a dog that doesn’t play fetch is ignoring him or ending the fun if he runs off with the toy, and hope he makes the choice to bring it back….you can’t punish a dog into fetching without being inhumane!
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10. Elimination issues (not potty trained, holds it on walks, wont go on cue or in desired location)
* Management: - Everything you would do for a new puppy. (please review puppy chops and other puppy training material)
* Identify Reinforcers: - Eliminating is a self-reinforcing behavior. It actually functions as a “negative reinforcement”…the dog is experiencing discomfort of a full bladder or bowels, and when he eliminates, he feels better, so he is more likely to do it again in that same area in the future…unfortunately if this is in the house or other inappropriate areas the owners have big problem!
* Teach Alternate Behavior: - Put elimination on cue, combined with a very strict prevention and management plan , this is very effective because once the dog associates the cue “potty” (or whatever word is chosen) it will actually trigger the dog to need to go, when he might have normally held it. - rewarding the dog selectively for only eliminating in areas the owner wants will teach the dog to hold it and wait until he has access to those areas so he can receive the reward.
* Emotional Response: N/A
* Consequences: DO NOT PUNISH – interrupt and redirect
>> With house training issues in adult dogs, be very careful to get a thorough history on the dog, the behavior, when it began, the pattern (is the dog eliminating small amounts frequently? Lifting his leg and peeing on objects, curtains, items on floor?, etc) Inappropriate elimination can be caused by anything from a urinary tract infection, to interdog-issues in household, to stress and anxiety, territoriality, aversion to going through dog door or something in yard, etc. Make sure to gather as much information as possible before deciding WHY the dog is eliminating inside, and HOW to go about fixing it. Beginning with a thorough veterinary exam and kidney/bladder infection screening should happen if the elimination began suddenly, the dog is elderly, has a history if UTI’s, or is eliminating small amounts frequently. The issue could be the environment if a major life change coincided with beginning of “accidents” (for example, moving owners had baby, or added new pet to house)…never assume ANYTHING without getting a thorough history!! <<
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