April 2024 - 2 Minute Trainer

Being nice isn’t dog training

What do you do when society’s dictates conflict with your goals? If you’re out trying to train your dog and somebody wants to “say Hello!” to your dog? You want to be nice. But being nice isn’t dog training.

A longtime friend who’s also a very experienced dog trainer is a student in our Puppy Obedience class this session. While it’s always great to see friends, most people would wonder why she’s there. After all, she’s been training dogs for many years. And even though she does have a new puppy, she pretty much knows all the ins and outs of household obedience training.

She’s there for the same reasons we take our own dogs to someone else’s puppy classes. One is because we want our puppies to go to new places, experience new things, and learn how to act in public. That’s the socialization part.

The other part is that most people, from family and friends to complete strangers, won’t pay attention when you ask them to help further your training.They won’t follow your instructions on how you want puppy interactions to go. And a good proportion of those people will undermine what you’re doing. If not deliberately, then accidentally.

Hop on Pop

The easiest example most people can identify with is when your puppy (or dog) jumps on people to say hello. Almost every single person will give the puppy the attention he’s asking for. Which is rewarding the dog for misbehaving, guaranteeing that it will happen again. And again.

It’s hard to find people who will stand like statues and stare at the ceiling while an adorable little puppy is jumping on them, pawing them, nudging them, and begging for their attention. It’s almost as hard for the owner of the puppy to let it happen. Your first instinct is to make it stop, even if you have to grab the puppy by the collar and haul it away. Again, that gives the puppy exactly what it’s looking for – attention.

Good or bad doesn’t matter

Dogs want attention. They make absolutely no distinction between positive and negative attention. If you’re focusing on them, they don’t care whether you’re yelling or praising. Dogs seem to be hard-wired to accept all attention from humans as rewarding. And dogs always do the thing that’s most rewarding to them.

The result is that our job as a puppy instructor rarely allows us to interact with the puppies. That’s painful because we love playing with puppies. We love it even more when they’re not our puppies to clean up after and we get to send them home with someone else.

But we don’t get to do that. We get to stand there with our arms folded, staring at the ceiling, until the instant the puppy has “four on the floor.” At first, that “Good Off!” moment only lasts an instant, and then we’re staring at the ceiling again. By the third week of class, most puppies are sitting politely when we come to say “Hello!” And the bargain is sealed. The dog gets what it wants (attention) when we get what we want (polite greetings).

Be rude if you must

So what can you do when people don’t cooperate? Advocate for yourself and for your dog. If you’re walking your puppy (or dog) and a stranger asks if they can say “Hello!” or pet your dog, you set the rules. Most people will get it if you say “Only if he sits by you.” They probably won’t notice or pay attention when the puppy pops out of position with the first touch. Then you have to step in and ask them to stop until the dog behaves again.

The frustration comes when the person doesn’t comply. “Oh, he’s fine, let me say hello.” And you’re considered a meanie if you don’t allow it. Much as you want to be kind to strangers, your dog is more important than that person’s urge to pet the puppy. Your dog, your rules. Just say “I’m sorry, but we have to go.” And do it. Then come to our classes. We’ll ignore the heck out of your puppy.

Mix and Match Your Dog Training

The beauty part of slicing your dog training into small pieces is that you can put them together however you want. If you teach your dog what “hold” means, they’ll know how to hold anything, given an opportunity. You can mix and match your dog training into whatever new tricks or games you like.

One of the AKC Trick Dog behaviors is to open a cabinet or drawer. While simple for some dogs – just tie a cloth to the handle and the dog will pull on it, it’s proven difficult for Hope’s French Bulldog Torque.

But he does know some of the pieces. While he’s not great at tugging, he does know “hold” and “back up.” Put those two things together and, in theory, he should get the “Open It” trick pretty quickly.

Expectation vs. Reality

In fact, it’s taking a while to put it together. The string Hope’s using around the drawer handle isn’t at all familiar to Torque and he’s not sure what to make of it. Puzzling this out, Hope put it in with a bunch of things Torque knows to pick things up, hold, and “put away.”

Figuring out how to communicate with your dog is more than half the battle. Using a familiar “Put Your Stuff Away” game to get him used to picking up and carrying the string was one step. Another section will be getting him to “Hold” and “Back Up!” at the same time. The only time he’s put the two together before was for the dumbbell retrieve.

Listen, don’t assume

The formal dumbbell retrieve works like this:

dog sits at heel
dog stays
handler tosses dumbbell
handler releases dog
dog gets dumbbell
dog comes to handler holding dumbbell
dog sits in front of handler holding dumbbell
dog releases dumbbell into handler’s hand on command
dog returns to heel on command

That’s always the way the dumbbell retrieve happens in competition. Everyone knows that, including the dog. When dogs always know what comes next, they sometimes skip to the end, dropping the dumbbell prematurely, or returning to heel position before they’re told.

To prevent the dog from “assuming,” we mix it up in practice. Sometimes the dog has to hold the dumbbell while returning to heel. Sometimes the dog has to heel while holding the dumbbell. Sometimes we heel with a “back up” thrown in.

That’s where Torque has learned to hold something while backing up. Now we take advantage of what he knows and expand it to hold anything and back up at the same time.

Pieces fit together

If you’ve already taught your dog pieces of any trick you want to teach, you can mix and match however you want. It’s the same “Hold!” chunk for whatever object. Dogs catch on pretty quickly when you put new ideas in a familiar context.

Mix and match your dog training

To create new tricks and behaviors, think about the little pieces your dog already knows. You can grow all the bits by using familiar objects in new places, or with new goals. Or new objects with familiar places and goals. Either one lets you put together a whole new game, just by using a mix and match recipe.

Get your dog’s head in the game

How do you get your dog’s head in the game? When it’s time to play training games, do you have a regular time and place? Do you put your dog’s collar or harness on? How do you let your dog know it’s time to go have some fun?

You already know that dogs love routines and schedules. You can bet that if you follow the same routine every day, your dog will know when it’s time to play. And if it doesn’t happen, they’ll probably let you know they’re not happy about it.

But what if your life’s schedule doesn’t allow for a regular training “date” with your dog? You can still use a routine to get your dog’s head in the game.

Start with a warm-up game

While two minutes is a great, intense training session, it’s more of a guideline than an absolute. There are games, especially those with some set-up and complex behavior chains, that are better if you play a bit longer. Other training games, once you and your dog know them, are great to play for a minute or less – like a warm-up to the main event.

Use those quickie games to start every session and get your dog’s focus on playing with you. Most of our group classes start with a timed minute of Puppy Pushups. Just that fast, random calling of “Sit!” “Stand!” and “Down!” gets your dog’s attention. The faster you play, the more rewards your dog gets, the better engagement you’ll get. It may be just an opener to the main act, but that doesn’t mean it has no value.

If your dog is accustomed to performing familiar behaviors quickly, they don’t even have to think about it. When you say “Sit!” your dog’s butt will hit the floor fast. Likewise with “Down!” and “Stand!” If you ever do intend to indulge in dog sports like Obedience and Rally, it’s wonderful if neither of you has to worry about those commands. As soon as you say it, your dog won’t even have to think. They’ll automatically do it, just like when you play your Puppy Pushups game.

Keep them fresh

Using the most useful games as part of your speedy warm-up will keep them front of mind for your dog. You’ll be able to use them when you most need them. “Touch!” can be a warm-up. It’s also the one you want to keep fresh when you spot the squirrel before your dog does. Or the guy comes into the veterinarian’s waiting room with a cat in a carrier. Those little training games are useful, even if you never plan on a dog sport career.

One of the many reasons to play daily training games with your dog is to make life easier. Both of you will react better if you have a fall-back to rely on in stressful situations. If it’s an ingrained habit to play “Touch!” you’re more likely to remember it when you need it. After all, habit is the most powerful force in the universe.

The timing of dog training

This week in her Beginner Obedience class, Hope’s face had an unfortunate encounter with the nails of a seven-month old Labrador Retriever. She’ll be fine. So will her face. But it made us think about the timing of dog training. If this dog’s owner had started training when he was three months old, by now he would know how to greet politely. And if he had jumped on Hope (she’s only five feet tall), he wouldn’t have been able to reach her face. Or do as much damage.

When is the right time to start training your puppy or dog? The simple answer is “as soon as you come in the door.” Dogs are learning all the time. It’s up to you to make that learning purposeful. And fun. Something the two of you can do throughout the dog’s life to enrich your time together.

It’s not a chore

If you hated school, don’t let whatever negative baggage you have color your opinion of dog training. Dogs are for fun. Teaching them is fun. The way they learn best is by playing games. So, essentially, school for dogs is just playing games. You may be the dungeon master, but both of you should have fun playing the game.

First, decide what’s most important for your dog to know. If you’re a hermit who never goes out and never has company, you probably don’t care if your dog jumps on people to say hi. For the rest of us, it should be right at the top of the curriculum.

It’s easy, too. All you have to do is have everybody ignore the puppy (or dog) unless all four feet are on the floor. You don’t have to insist on a “Sit!” If you want it, it comes later. All you have to do is nothing. When the dog’s front feet are off the ground, just have people fold their arms and stare into the sky. As soon as those adorable little paws are all in contact with the ground, make a huge fuss over the puppy – pets, scritches, treats. Even a game of tug if there’s a toy nearby. It’s easy to see that the timing of dog training is not a big deal when it’s fun for everyone.

When a dog jumps on someone, they’re saying “Hi! I’m here! Pay attention to me!” If the dog doesn’t get what they want, they’ll try something else. When that something else gets them what they want, they’re more likely to do that again. What gets rewarded, gets repeated. It may take a few repetitions to work. And we know it’s hard to resist those puppy dog eyes. Do it anyway. That way when your dog is as tall as you, you won’t have to worry about them scratching up your guests’ faces. Or having to hang on to their collar for dear life so they don’t jump.

Class time

You already know that habit is the most powerful force in the universe. Gravity may be a close second, but that’s debatable. It’s easier to form a new habit with a dog than to try to break an established one.

The point is; if you have a new-to-you dog, whether a puppy or an adult, start as you mean to continue. It may be adorable for a 15-pound puppy to jump on you, paw at you, or whine for attention. When the dog weighs 60 pounds, it’s not so cute. When Grandma comes over to visit, or your toddler nephew, there’s nothing cute about it.

You should form a new habit, too. Pick a time for your training. Make a date with your dog every day right after you’ve had your coffee. You can use your dog’s breakfast for training treats. You get to smile at the start of the day. And your dog will be satisfied (food) and tired (had to think!) for the morning.

Other end of the timeline

That habit will stand you in good stead for your dog’s entire lifetime. When your dog’s caught up on the house rules (house-breaking, jumping, crate training), you can spend every day playing the training games that are more fun; Ring Stacking, Put Your Toys Away, anything you come up with that makes you both happy.

It never has to go away. Tango, Fran’s Brussels Griffon, will celebrate his 15th birthday this month. He decided to retire from the competition ring in Rally and Agility long ago – he wasn’t having fun. But every single day he still plays training games. He plays his Balance and Core Exercises. And he plays “Put Your Toys Away.” The timing of dog training for Tango is “all the time!”

Playing training games with your dog really isn’t about the training. It’s about the growth of your relationship with your dog, the understanding it builds between you, and giving your dog the biggest life you both can share.