November 2019 - 2 Minute Trainer

Sorry, Mom – I’ve Got Other Plans Today

Your dog’s allowed to say “No.”

“Don’t wanna. Not gonna.”

Not all the time. Not always for the same thing. But it’s okay if your dog gives you the “Not feelin’ it today!” signal.

Positive Reinforcement is equivalent to enlightened self-interest

The basis for positive reinforcement training is letting the dog learn that his/her own “enlightened self-interest” rewards being with you and doing what you ask. Fido chooses to do what you ask because he knows, through experience, that something he wants to happen will follow. It can be a toy, a treat, tummy rubs – whatever your dog loves that’s rewarding for him.

A trainer we know recently posted about her own positive reinforcement experience at a restaurant. A place she and her husband frequented fairly regularly, over the span of months, was on their “go to” list. Last time they went, the food wasn’t as good, the servers not as attentive, the entire experience was not up to par. And on the basis of that one experience, they’ve decided to find alternatives.

That’s how fast things change for us, and for our dogs. Despite months of “positive,” a single negative was all it took for them to rethink their behavior.

Let it go

So if, for whatever reason, your dog doesn’t want to play a certain game today – let it go. Switch gears and do something else. Either a different game for the same behavior, or change it up entirely. And the next time you try the rejected game, up your reward. Either choose a more valuable reward (a tennis ball instead of a tug, cheese instead of Cheerios), or increase the rate of reinforcement.

The reason doesn’t matter

You may never know why the dog didn’t want to play that game that one time. Fran’s Tango stopped wanting to play “put your toys away” the other day. He just stopped in the middle and lied down. We puzzled over it for a minute, then realized that it was a cold, humid day and he might be in pain from arthritis. On that day, Fran played a different game with him. And the next time she tried “put your toys away” she put the toy box closer to the toys and Tango enjoyed the game immensely.

Training is training – over all species

A classic book training book is “A Dog and A Dolphin” by Karen Pryor. Training is training. Over all species. If dolphins don’t want to work with their trainers, they simply swim away. There’s not a lot a land-based human can do to force a marine mammal to obey. They get their fish regardless. Dolphins play with people because they enjoy it. And our dogs should love playing training games with us, too!

The first time, let it go…

If your dog isn’t responding as you’d expect for a single training session, let it go. If the issue persists, try looking at the game differently. What is your dog seeing? What kind of response are you giving? Did you give mixed signals, or a negative reaction to something?

Some dogs are so sensitive you have to be careful. Say you’re playing a game and clicked when you didn’t mean to, or dropped a treat. Did you say “ugh!” because you were frustrated with yourself? Your dog doesn’t know you weren’t talking to her. That could be all it takes for a very soft dog. That game might be poison now, and may take lots of reinforcement to remove the stigma.

Not a big deal

But don’t make a big deal out of it – either the refusal to play or finding a reason. There are some times when, just like us, your dog’s just not that into it. It’s okay. Tomorrow’s another day.

Anything Lassie Can Do – Your Dog Can Do Better!

Any dog can do anything!

Lassie was incredible, but your dog can do anything she did.

Any dog can learn anything. Unless the task needs thumbs. Then, maybe not.

Other than that – if you can think of it and define the steps it takes to get there, you can teach it to your dog.

However – there are lots and lots of people, dog trainers included, who limit themselves and their dogs with the labels they slap on.

“Good enough is okay – he’s a French Bulldog.”

“Shepherds can’t be trained all positive.”

“He’s a Pointer – retrieves aren’t his thing.”

WRONG! All of them.

Don’t put labels on your dog!

Our dogs’ breeds may influence how we teach them, but not whether they can be taught, or the standards we expect.

For example: Housebreaking is an absolute and everyone teaches their dogs to “potty” when and where they should. All healthy dogs are taught to keep their homes clean and eliminate appropriately. It may take a while, especially with dogs adopted from less-than-ideal circumstances. But it’s a priority, so owners take the steps necessary to achieve this vital training.

We set the criteria, teach our dogs what it is. And expect them to achieve it.

Different criteria for different breeds? Only if you set them that way.

We have a friend with a French Bulldog competing in Obedience. Our friend also has a Border Collie, a breed known for its achievements in all kinds of dog sports. Our friend has different criteria for her Border Collie than for her Frenchie.

Is the BC smarter than the Frenchie? It depends on how you rate intelligence. Border Collies love to work and will “heel” all day, given the opportunity. Frenchies would rather lounge on the couch than “heel” and her dog has taught her to expect minimal effort. From our perspective – the Frenchie has trained our friend and may be the smartest of the three.

The only different criteria may be the reward!

If you have a “Working” breed of dog – like a Border Collie or a German Shepherd, the “work” of training may be ample reward for your dog. They’re bred to work with people and to love that work. They may not “need” any other rewards – but the attitude you get may amp up even more if rewards are offered.

“Companion” breeds, like French Bulldogs, Pugs, Chihuahuas, and many others, may need to be convinced that training is more fun that napping – but it’s easy to do. If you ask your couch potato dog to come play a game with you, let him/her know there are treats involved, they’ll certainly check out what you’re offering! And if you let them know; with your tone, your rewards, and your praise, what good dogs they are, how clever they are, and how much you love them, they’ll do it more. Love it more. And meet every expectation you have for them.

Bottom Line: You and Your Dog Can Do Anything Better Than Lassie!

You and your dog can do it. Set the standard. Teach the steps. Reward the progress. Have some fun with your dog.

Don’t Kill the Clicker!

The Clicker is a wonderful training tool

Your clicker is a wonderful training tool. Don’t kill the clicker by overusing it.

You’ll be amazed how quickly your dog will learn to respond to the clicker. He may even smile and/or wag when he hears it.

So it’s tempting, when your dog is off exploring and you need him to come quickly, to reach for the clicker.

Put it down …

Think twice! Then put the clicker down.

If you use the clicker to call your dog it becomes your “come” or “recall” command and stops being useful for anything else.

It becomes “come get a cookie” rather than “good job! You figured it out!”

The Click is NOT a Command

The clicker will help you build a perfect “come” command. But hearing that sound is a reward for a job well done, rather than the command itself.

If the clicker turns into your recall command – how do you let your dog know, from across the room, that he’s doing a good job staying in his “place?” Clicking tells your dog she’s a good girl no matter how far away she is, or what she’s doing.

Trying to expand the meaning just won’t work.

Dogs’ brains are binary – on or off, left or right, black or white. They don’t have shades of gray. An object has a single purpose – like the clicker. Either it says “good dog!” or it’s “come here!” Trying to make it perform two functions will confuse your dog and muddy your training.

Attitude is everything

“Fake it ‘til you make it!” Your attitude is everything.

You’re not imagining it – it’s science

Science has proven it works – faking a smile will actually lighten your mood. (Citation: Association for Psychological Science). Even if you’re not in the mood to play games with your dog – do it anyway. You’ll feel better and have fun.

But not when you’re in a really bad mood

But be careful – if you’re in a really foul mood, your dog will pick up on it. Your dog knows you and knows all the tones of your voice, the nuances in your movements, and the emotions behind your attitude. Don’t suck the joy out of training for your dog – fake a happy tone, a smile, and a positive attitude.

Your voice is the most important factor in judging mood. Fake it if you have to – “baby talk” works just fine. Chances are if you start acting ridiculous, you’ll both get the humor of the situation and your mood will lift. Your dog will never tell anyone that you acted silly. Our best friends are reliable that way.

Have fun with old favorites for a change

If your patience is particularly short one day, it’s okay to go back to old favorites and just have fun with some favorite behaviors. It’s not a good idea to try to teach your dog something new when your mood isn’t optimistic. There’s no point in fostering frustration for both you and your dog.

Or let your dog take the lead. Grab some item they’ve never seen before and let them figure out “stuff” to do with it. Be sure it’s something unbreakable that won’t be ruined with tooth marks.

Fun with a foam roller

The other day Hope was feeling a bit out of sorts. Nothing really wrong, just not inspired. For their morning session, she let Torque take the lead. She got a big foam roller (Fran’s physical therapy nemesis from an old injury) and just put it in the middle of our little training area. And told Torque to “freestyle” and just have a good time.

Torque’s never been a particularly creative dog in training, but he went for it. He rolled it with his front feet, pushed it with his nose. And, in no time, Hope was having fun with her dog. Her mood lightened, she felt happier, she was smiling.

Your dog knows

And when she started smiling, Torque knew it and got up on it with those front feet. When it rolled to the other side of the space, he tried putting his back feet up on it. (Fran helped out and held it steady so he could). In just a couple of minutes, everybody was having fun.

Your dog is all kinds of therapy. She can be a reflection of your mood. A nursemaid when needed. An amazing companion. A playmate. Try not let your bad day become one for your best friend.

Cute stuff?

Does your dog do cute stuff on his or her own?

Your dog is adorable. He or she does really, really cute stuff that you didn’t teach him, but it’s so amazingly darling that you’d really like him to do it more.

It’s really easy to turn your dog’s cute mannerisms into cued behaviors.

Name it and reward it!

This is a natural behavior - Ceilidh "danced."

We do it all the time! Torque “hugs.” Booker “dances.” And before Booker, our girl Ceilidh “danced” too (left). Tango wipes his beard. Actually, that one isn’t as cute as it is necessary. If you have a dog with a beard, you know that if you don’t teach them to wipe on a towel after they drink, the water is all over the house.

Hopefully, we’ve already trained you to have treats in every room of the house. If you don’t have your clicker handy, you can use “Yes!” for a marker word.

First decide what your want to call your dog’s habit that you want to turn into a trick. When you see your dog doing that “thing,” just click and say “good hug!” or “good dance!” or “good bow!” All dogs do cute stuff like play bows, or rolling over, or rubbing their backs on the floor.

Name it, reward it, and your dog will repeat it!