10 minute read
allergies and the potential impact on behavior
Using Video Wisely
Suzanne Clothier highlights the benefits of video as a study tool to train the eye in order to become a more accurate observer of canine behavior
Advertisement
© Can Stock Photo / sergfear
Watching video in slow motion, sped up, with the sound muted, or played backwards allows the viewer to observe behavior in precise detail, rather than interpret it or label it inaccurately
How lucky are we to have incredible video capabilities right in our pockets? Today’s smart phones provide a wealth of options for trainers who recognize the value of video in their studies of the dog, and to help coach others. Nowadays, it seems that we're never more than a few feet from someone with a smartphone and built in video recording capability. Video capture of all kinds of behavior is relatively effortless edited, uploaded, emailed, and shared in a flash.
The wealth of video available for the serious student of the dog is astonishing, at least to this “old” trainer. At the risk of sounding like an old biddy, I'll say that most of what I know about observing dogs and other animals came from the real time attempts to make sense of what I was seeing. No rewind, no replays, no slow motion or closeups. Just real animals observed in real time. Which led to real mistakes, and real surprises, and real hardwon lessons.
No question, video can be a powerful learning tool. But I'd like to offer some cautions regarding the use of video as your main source of observations.
Unlike the observation in real time of real animals, video: • Lacks a complete context, leading the viewer to misunderstand some behavior they see. This can be due to what is occurring offcamera. I’ve had some crazy things happen offscreen which – if not explained to the viewer – can create some puzzling onscreen behaviors. Such as people falling out of their chairs. Such as a helicopter landing about 100 feet away. Such as an unseen, frustrated bulldog puppy screaming in the next room. This sounds a great deal like an alien being eviscerated, and leads to openmouthed, shocked orientation from everyone on camera, behavior that had no relationship with what had been happening onscreen prescream. • Has a tendency to compress distances, leading the viewer to perceive things as closer or farther away than they actually may be. To work around this, use easily seen markers at known distances. For example, in some of my Relationship Assessment Tool (RAT) videos, you’ll see a duct taped square area on the floor. I know it is measured out at 5 feet in each direction from the chair placed in the center. This allows me
to make a pretty accurate estimation of how far the dog has moved from the person in the chair even when video collapses things. When the viewer can understand the relative distances between the animal and various objects/people/animals that appear in the video, they have a better idea of what's happening. Does not allow for followup "questions” or provocations of repeated and/or additional behavior(s). Was that a fluke, or a characteristic pattern? Did the dog really react to the hand movement or had something else caused that response? Would smaller movements create the same response? In my work using CARAT, my temperament assessment tool, I urge students to be very cautious about assuming a pattern of response unless the video actually shows that.
Video Benefits
The benefits of video as a study tool are very real. Unlike the real time observation of real animals, video: • Is available wherever you are, if on one of your devices. • Can be made available instantly almost anywhere if you have a wifi connection. • Never gets annoyed if you insist on playing it over and over again. Real animals can get fed up quickly if we keep asking for repetitions in the hopes that maybe this time we’ll see what we’re hoping to see. • Allows us to share observations of behaviors that we were not present to see. I love how many quirky behaviors have been captured on video, behaviors we might not have seen unless we have lived with that animal. It is so amazing to see the delightful individualism of dogs the world round! Allows us to see precisely what someone else saw. Sharing an observation is preferable to trusting that someone’s description and use of terminology are aligned with our own use of those words. This is perhaps one of the most important benefits of using video. We may accept as accurate someone’s labeling of what they saw: “He was shy.” That is not an observation; it is an interpretation. Video allows us to be far more precise in our observations, e.g.: “At 00:01:12, the dog moves his head to the right, away from the person’s hands. At 00:01:14, the dog’s tail tucks so tightly the tip is visible from the side, pressed against the dog’s belly. At 00:01:27, the dog moves away in from the person with compressed body language and multiple glances from the side of his eye while keeping the head oriented away from the person.” From those observations, we build our interpretation that the dog is shy. The observed behaviors align with what you might expect to see in a socially shy dog.
Forward, Backwards and Faster Please!
I love using video in many different ways to hone observation skills. Viewed in normal time, we can focus on just one thing at a time, then rewind and select a different aspect or behavior to observe. For my students, I recommend that they pick a favorite commercial or short scene from a movie or TV show, and watch it over and over and over with a focus on just one character or object until they can flawlessly narrate what happens. Then they repeat for every character or object in the scene.
Viewed at 2x speed, patterns often present themselves quickly. This is the speed I use first when reviewing video for someone. I find that 2x or even 4x speed viewing provides what I call “Cream to the Top” obser
Blending heart & science for the thinking trainer
© Can Stock Photo / dariolopresti Using video helps those who work professionally with dogs to continually develop their observation skills
vations: the really salient patterns of response will pop out. These can then be explored in greater detail at slower speeds.
Watching video in slow motion can help us see details that might escape us at faster speeds. Plus, it’s just fun to see how things work in ways typically unseen. I like to use slow motion to train the observer’s eye until all the details are clear. This trains the brain, so that those details can also be observed in real time. The human eye and brain are amazingly capable of learning.
I also watch video in reverse. Because our brains cannot anticipate what will happen when something is in reverse, we can put our brains into a state of alertness and attention without the assumptions we may have when video plays normally. I find reverse video especially useful when assessing movement as inconsistencies become evident. Subtle lameness can jump right out at you when watching video backwards. But I also use this approach for behavior as well to help pinpoint changes in stance or demeanor.
Finally, video has the advantage of providing some dissociation from the actual event. This is particularly helpful if the video contains events that a viewer may find distressing. By eliminating the sounds and/or showing the event in slow motion, the viewer’s visceral response to triggering sounds and motions can be reduced or even eliminated.
For years, I showed a video of a loud, dramatic altercation between two dogs. With the sound on so that snarls and growls could be heard, people found it intensely distressing. With the sound on, many viewers simply shut down as soon as they heard the first snarls. In slow motion, with no sound, the precise care taken by each dog to not make damaging contact became crystal clear. This allowed the viewers to really see what was happening, instead of responding emotionally and blocking their learning.
Take advantage of the amazing possibilities of video to continually develop your eye and observation skills. What we cannot see, we cannot properly assess. Nor can we make informed decisions for each dog if we are missing what’s there to be seen. Always more to see, more to learn! n
Resources
Valle, C. (2018). How to Use Video Analysis to Improve Sports
Performance
Wilson, B.D. (2008). Development in video technology for coaching.
Sports Technology Journal 1 1 34-40
Suzanne Clothier has been working with animals professionally since 1977. Currently based in St. Johnsville, New York, she is well respected internationally for her holistic Relationship Centered Training™ approach to dogs and the people that love them. Her background includes training, instruction, behavior modification, kennel management, temperament assessment, physical assessment and conditioning, early puppy development, class curriculum development, obedience, agility, Search and Rescue, conformation, breeding and more. Since 1991, she has taught workshops and seminars on a broad range of topics throughout the United States and internationally for a wide variety of groups from training clubs to international conferences in 11 countries. An award-winning author of multiple books and DVDs, her book, Bones Would Rain from the Sky: Deepening Our Relationships With Dogs (2002) has received widespread praise from every corner of the dog world, including twice being included in the Wall Street Journal's list of Top 5 Dog Books. She has served on the American Humane Association’s Task Force for Humane Training, the AKC Agility Advisory board, and is currently a consultant for Frankie & Andy’s Place, a senior dog sanctuary in Georgia. She has also developed multiple assessment tools CARAT™, RAT™ (Relationship Assessment Tool), as well as puppy and adult dog tests. These tools have been used by guide and service dog organizations, therapy dog groups, AAIA organizations, shelters and rescue groups, and trainers. In her work as a consultant to guide dog schools, her Enriched Puppy Protocol™ served as the structure for the updating of their puppy raising programs. Since 2007, more than 10,000 puppies have been raised in programs built around The Enriched Puppy Protocol™. Meanwhile, with fellow trainer Cindy Knowlton, she developed CCC: Connection, Cooperation & Control™, a puzzle-based program that builds joyful relationships between handlers and dogs.
ATTENTION WRITERS! Get Published in BARKS from the Guild or on the BARKS Blog!
Got something to share? We are always on the lookout for interesting features, member profiles, case studies and training tips to feature in BARKS from the Guild and on the BARKS Blog. If you’d like to join the growing band of member contributors, please get in touch!
BARKS from the Guild BARKS blog Email: barkseditor @petprofessionalguild.com
