dog training games Archives - Page 7 of 12

Being a good dog boss

In all the ways that count, you actually are the boss of your dog. You decide pretty much everything about your dog’s life – when they eat, sleep, go out; where they go, who they see. Doesn’t it just make sense to want to be a good dog boss?

Think about all the jobs you’ve had and the bosses you enjoyed working for. We’d bet big bucks your favorites weren’t the micro-managers who hovered over your shoulder. It was probably the ones who respected your abilities, left you alone to do your job, while being there for support, clarification, and feedback. Those were the good bosses. Follow their lead and be a good dog boss.

Decisions, decisions

It’s really hard to let go and trust your dog to make good decisions. But the alternative is having to be there every moment. Telling your dog what to do all the time. That works for some people. One Obedience person we know simply can’t find the patience. She’s been competing for decades, and for all those years she’s pretty much told her dog how to spend every moment of every day. She’s used to it, and doesn’t really want to change. We think it sounds exhausting.

Once your dog knows the rules of the house, does it mean they never misbehave? No, of course not. But when you yell “knock it off!” at whoever’s hooliganizing at the moment, it has more effect.

Firm foundation

Your dog craves your attention and approval. Once they know that being “good” comes with approval and treats, that’s what happens. They’re good dogs. Because what gets rewarded, gets repeated. Your dog will become a better-thinking companion when they know you encourage them to use their brains.

Having a well-trained dog leads to a more balanced life for everyone. We know several people whose lives with their dogs are completely off-balance. They can’t have people over, they can’t get deliveries, they can’t take their dogs anywhere, and their rooms have a strict system of gates and doors. These people have let their dogs dictate the rules of the house and have let the dog become boss. As a result, no one’s happy.

At the other extreme, we’ve met a few people who treat their dogs like possessions. These dogs are kept in “storage” away from people, and are allowed limited access to family life. They may not have started out there, but the people may have become overwhelmed by the demands of having a dog. No one’s happy here, either.

We’re not sure why these people have dogs at all.

Big, beautiful life

Every moment you spend training your dog, every training game, pays off in the quality of your life together. The cost / benefit ratio is overwhelmingly in your favor. Just a couple minutes at a time, a couple of times a day, can make a huge impact.

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could carry the heavy, hot pan to the table from the oven without worrying about where you step? Answering the doorbell, knowing your dog is safely in their “Place!” is priceless. (Ebook / course #1: Clicker and Place) These little things are quality-of-life moments you can achieve. Taking your dog’s good behavior for granted is the ultimate goal.

The best dog training advice ever

The absolute best dog training advice sounds simple. Only two parts to it. And you don’t need any special tools, no particular gear. To really elevate your dog’s understanding, grow your relationship, and open up your dog’s best life, there are two things you need to do:

1: Wait
2: Shut up

We know that sounds rude. But it’s really hard to get people’s attention. And adhering to the best dog training advice isn’t easy. Just this morning, Hope was practicing some heeling with Torque and came to a stop. He sat, as he should. And then he flopped into a “Down.” He was trying to push Hope into whatever “next” would be. It didn’t work. She just looked at him and asked “What were you doing?” He stared back at her for at least 15 or 20 seconds before he got back up into a “Sit.” Hope said “Thank you!,” rewarded her dog for a good decision, and got back to her training game.

How long is a minute

We know how hard it is to just wait and say nothing. The temptation to repeat a command, or give a new one, is sometimes overwhelming. Resistance is not futile. It pays big dividends if you try it.

Think about having a two-legged teenager in the house. Mom says “Junior, please take out the trash.” Junior either ignores Mom or grunts some kind of acknowledgement. 15 minutes later, Mom repeats herself. And Junior grunts and/or waves again. After another 10 minutes, Mom’s lost her cool, and says decisively, “JUNIOR TIBERIUS TEENAGER – TAKE OUT THE TRASH!” And Junior finally does it.

Your training space does not have to be large.

If you keep repeating the same thing to your dog in the same way, that’s the pattern you’re training your dog to know. Say it once, clearly. Then shut up and give your dog time to think. For as long as it takes, if they’re still with you. If they’re not disengaging, they’re thinking, processing, and coming to a decision. It may seem like the time between word and action is forever – you could have said “Sit!” hundreds of times while you were waiting. That’s the point. You don’t want to have to say it a hundred times.

Trust us. We’re pretty certain your dog heard you the first time. Now they’re trying to figure out if you meant it, and what they’ll do about it.

Easier isn’t better

We know it’s easier to just say it again. Just don’t. Don’t deprive your dog of the opportunity to make a good decision. Believe in your dog. We’ve said it before: Wait for your dog!

The only way you can really find out if your dog knows something is to trust them to do it. You don’t know if your dog knows “Down!” unless you can say it once, from across the room, and your dog does it. We practice heeling quite a bit in our dog training classes. Randomly, we’ll call out “Down your dogs!” to our students. It’s really kind of impressive to watch a classful of dogs suddenly drop.

They don’t all start out that way. We’ve said “just wait” more times than we want to think about. And when people wait, their dog puzzles it out and does the right thing. Sometimes you can almost see the hamster-wheels in their brain spinning while they think. Some dogs will look around, see what the other dogs are doing, and copy. But given the chance to choose, dogs almost always choose wisely.

What if they don’t get it right?

By testing your dog’s knowledge of any skill, you gain valuable information for future training games. If they’re acing it, it’s time to move on. You can tuck that behavior into the drawer and air it out once in a while, just to keep it fresh. Now you have time to play a different game.

Nobody likes doing the same task over and over, without end. Not people. And not dogs, either. You can have a particular time and place that you play training games. If you do, your dog will learn the schedule and probably dash off to your special training area when it’s time. You’ll both have more fun if you play different training games, rather than just drilling something you’re “working” on. We want our dogs to be letter-perfect in the very specific exercises for competition obedience. That doesn’t mean we’re always hammering away at them. It means we treat them like all the other, silly, fun training games. Playing those maybe once a week. Maybe not. But always keeping it new, fresh, and fun for us and our dogs.

Did you mess up? Give your dog an “oops cookie”

Give your dog a cookie when you mess up.

If you’ve ever made a mistake and groaned, or muttered “ugh!,” your dog needs an “oops cookie.” It’s not that you’re not allowed to make mistakes. You are. Everybody is. It’s to let your dog know it’s not their fault.

Your dog thinks you are absolutely perfect. Everything you do or say is right in your dog’s eyes. Therefore, it’s inconceivable that you’re ever wrong. Or so your dog thinks.

If you’re human, that’s not true. But your dog doesn’t know that. Let’s keep it that way.

The most tell-tale sign that you’ve made a mistake is when you say “ugh!” or something less g-rated. But when you say something like that out loud, your dog thinks they did something wrong. Because you’re perfect in your dog’s eyes. So it must be their fault, or so they think.

Unless you convince them otherwise, your dog may get confused. They won’t know how to “fix” what happened, because they don’t know what went wrong. Some dogs worry about being right. If your dog’s one of them, they might shut down or disengage.

When you make a mistake in your training games give your dog a treat. As soon as “ugh!” leaves your lips, reach for a treat and stick it in your dog’s mouth. It’s a “goof goodie,” or an “oops cookie.” It’s especially important if you’ve muttered something like “darn!” or something more colorful. Your dog doesn’t understand that you make mistakes, so they might take the blame on themselves.

Nobody’s perfect

Years ago, Hope volunteered as a reading tutor for adults learning to read English. As part of their lessons, Hope and the students took turns reading out loud. It was a complete surprise to the students that everybody (even Hope!) stumbles over words and isn’t perfect. And they were much less shy about their reading aloud when they understood that nobody’s perfect.

Unfortunately, your dog will never understand “it’s not you, it’s me!” So skim over the mistake by giving your dog a treat and moving on. Don’t dwell on whatever you screwed up. Just try not to do it again.

Move along, there

Whether you said the wrong thing, clicked at the wrong time, turned in the wrong direction, it doesn’t matter. Just start over or do it again. It takes a while to stop the inadvertent blurts when you mess up. Don’t dwell, just give your dog a goof goodie and get back to your training game.

The nice thing is that your dog won’t question unexpected jackpots. They may not know why they got the oops cookie, but they also don’t care. If you’re like us, sometimes your dog gets a treat just for breathing. Or looking cute. Dogs are really good at cute. Chalk it up to cute.

Change your habit

It takes a long time and lots of conscious effort to change a habit. If you always say something to mark your mistakes, it’s going to take time to turn that around. You may not even know you do it. It’s another argument for recording your training games – and watching the playback. In the meantime, recognize when you’ve done it and give your good dog an “oops cookie.”

Get your dog to “Come!” Play the “Chase Recall” game

The absolute best, works-every-time method to get your dog to “Come!” is to run away. And it has to be really running – none of that fakey, backwards-walking, slow-motion-imitating movement. Run like hell and your dog will come running after you.

Why it works

What do you and your dog have in common? You’re both mammals. Both of you have four limbs. You may even share the same eye color. But one of the most fundamental traits of both humans and dogs is that we’re both predators. Humans are the planet’s apex predators.

You may not think of yourself that way. After all, we don’t have the eyesight of eagles, the speed of cheetahs, or the scenting ability of dogs. But we do have big brains that enable us to outwit our prey. And, in the case of our dogs, we can find ways to teach them and take advantage of the instincts we share.

Making use of the traits pre-packaged in dogs is what good training is all about. We don’t want dogs to defy their natural behaviors. We want to use their instincts to influence their choices.

Get them chasing you

Dogs’ vision has evolved to see motion. Their eyesight may not be all that great for “spot the difference” puzzles, but they see movement. If you’ve ever had an old dog with weakened eyesight, like our 14-year-old Tango, you may have found yourself waving your hand, or an object, to get their attention. It works because their brains are wired to see motion.

Use it! Most dogs are too domesticated to be serious hunters, especially when they live comfortable, inside lives. But they still have the urge to chase things that move. How many times has your dog startled a rabbit, squirrel, or even a bird, and run after it? If you have more than one dog, you know that most pups love a vigorous game of “Chase Me!” – often to the peril of household breakables.

But have you ever tried running away from your dog? The dog that makes sure you’re never lonely in the bathroom, who trips you when you turn around in the kitchen, isn’t going to sit idly by if you start running away. If you take off like a bat outta hell, your dog is going to be right there. (As an aside, this also works with toddlers. That stubborn two-year-old who doesn’t want to go home will toddle as fast as their legs will go if you start running. Interestingly, children can be fooled by “fake running.” Dogs, not as much.)

Refine the steps

If you’re so inclined, you can polish up your dog’s recall pretty easily. When your dog is getting close to catching you, turn around and ask him/her to sit. That’s the start of a competition Obedience, or Rally recall. To bring it to the next level, sitting straight in front of you, try tossing a treat between your legs as your dog approaches. Or you can use the “Watch!” game to get your dog to focus on you as they approach.

You don’t have to fancy up your dog’s recall. But all dogs should have a recall you can rely on. It’s one of the behaviors that can save your dog’s life. Just think what might happen if the plumber leaves your gate open…

Don’t worry about breaking the dog

Some people hesitate to try training games because they’re afraid of breaking the dog. It’s not possible. You can confuse your dog. You can even frustrate the heck out of your dog. But whatever you get “wrong” can be fixed. And your dog will always forgive you.

Some dogs worry about getting things “right.” It takes loads of patience and encouragement to convince these dogs that it’s okay to try new stuff, experiment, play around with new behaviors and new stuff. People worry about getting it “right,” too.

We see it in our classes, especially when people bring their children to class. Kids often make terrific dog trainers, because they’re not worried about how they look, whether their dog measures up, or if they’re doing it exactly right.

Here’s the thing – you don’t have to worry about it. If you’re training at home, your dog will love you no matter what you do. And the two of you will figure out what you meant together. If you’re out in public, no one’s looking at you. They’re all looking at your dog and how cute he/she is. And hopefully, how well-mannered and beautifully trained.

Get over yourself

Whether age or experience gave us the gift, we now completely own not caring what other people think. We train our dogs wherever we go. We’re as loud as we need to be. Your dog doesn’t care if you’re doing stuff right, or looking silly. He/she absolutely adores you. And your relationship with your dog only improves the more training games you play.

We’ve noticed in our classes how the person who works more with the dog gets closer to the dog. And the other family members can get a little jealous. Until they realize that your dog can have a different, unique, and tight bond with everyone in the family. Dogs are the epitome of unconditional love. There’s no limit on love. There’s enough for everybody.

Play with your dog

If there’s a particular training game you know would be beneficial for your dog, but you’re not quite sure if you’re playing it right – stop worrying! Do it the best you know how. If you want some clarification – ask us, send a video, post on our social media pages. We’re all over the place; Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, email. We check email and messages.

If you want the help, we’re here. But as long as you and your dog understand each other, how you’re training, your way of playing the games, it’s just fine. It’s much more important that you play training games with your dog than the “mechanics” of the games.

Step by step

We try to explain each little step of every game. Demonstrations of the games are in our videos. While the way we do things works, it’s certainly not the only way of doing things. You won’t break your dog if you don’t follow the steps exactly. Your dog may jump ahead several steps. That’s terrific! You don’t have to plod through where it’s not needed. Or your dog may need an even smaller breakdown for some steps. That’s okay, too. Some people love math. Others enjoy history. Some people learn by reading. Others need out-loud presentations. As long as it works, go with it.

The more “tools” you have in your dog-training toolbox, the better off you are. As an example – taking and holding a dumbbell is part of Obedience competition at the Open level. Not all dogs are natural retrievers. Some take to the dumbbell right away. Others just don’t get it. There are lots of ways of teaching a dog to love the dumbbell. Hope’s French Bulldog Torque caught on just with a couple of clicker sessions. Simon, Fran’s Boston Terrier, learned just by watching the other dogs. One dog we know fell in love with the dumbbell when his person tied a string to it and slowly dragged it along for the dog to chase.

Don’t worry that it’s not good enough

The Carpenters had a hit song “Sing” with that lyric – “Don’t worry that it’s not good enough for anyone else to hear. Just sing, sing a song.” Just train. Train your dog!

Make every training game fun for your dog

Make training fun for your dog. If you want your dog to learn, make sure they’re having fun. Dogs are just like people. They learn the most when they’re engaged. And the best way to engage both dogs and people is to make sure they have fun.

The school classes where you learned the most were the ones you enjoyed. Your teacher may have been tough, but made the class interesting, relatable, and fun. And you learned. It’s the same for dogs.

It’s interesting to see what games our dog training students play with their dogs during the week between classes. We can always tell – it’s the ones the dogs are best at.

And even though we tell our students which games are the focus for the week, it doesn’t always happen. The assigned games aren’t always the most fun, so they get shoved aside.

We saw it just this week. Hope introduced a couple of “trick” games to her students, “Catch!” with popcorn (preparing for the 4th of July), and “Leg Weaving.” The dog/handler teams in the class absolutely mastered both games in just one week. Their impulse control games? Still works in progress.

School figures

If you’re a fan of figure skating competitions, there used to be a category called “school figures.” We always found them fascinating, but they’ve been dropped. We suspect it’s because most spectators (and skaters) found them tedious and uninteresting. But the precision required in school figures were fundamentals that, in the long run, improved the skaters’ performances.

There are dog games that serve the same purpose. “Whatcha Gonna Do?” isn’t the most fun game to play. Especially if you’re playing it with a puppy whose needle-sharp teeth are making holes in your hand. But it’s the heart of impulse control. And most bad dog behavior is due to a lack of impulse control.

Impulsive pup

Simon, Fran’s four-year-old Boston Terrier, is possibly the most impulsive dog we’ve ever known. If he wants to do something, his first instinct is to rush right in. It’s only through consistent refreshers of impulse control games that he’s able to think before he does.

Simon adores fresh, cold water. Whenever we change the dogs’ water, several times a day, he’s always right there, ready to get the first slurp. Yesterday was hot and he was particularly anxious. As Hope lowered the bowl, he bashed in there and water spilled all over the place.

Did we yell at him? No. We put the bowl back on the counter, cleaned up the mess, and started again. And, as Hope lowered the bowl this time, she asked Simon “Whatcha Gonna Do?” He sat. The bowl reached the floor. Simon got his release word, and a good long drink.

Do it anyway

Everyone tends to spend more time doing things they think are fun. If you and your dog are having a good time playing “Catch!” you don’t have to stop at 2 Minutes.

The time limit is there to remind people the games they don’t like so much will be over soon. Your dog will pick up on your attitude, so at least pretend you like it. Smile and say “Yay! We get to play ‘Whatcha Gonna Do?’ now!” Even if you’re thinking “It’s only two minutes. We can do it for two minutes.”

The best part about sticking that smile on your face is that your dog will see it and be happy too. And if your dog is wiggling and having fun, you’ll feel it, too.

Spin! Dog Training Game

The “Spin!” Dog Training Game is not only fun, but has some practical uses, too. There are a bunch of variations for the spin behavior; in place, around objects, up on hind feet (that’s “Dance!”).

“Spin!” is one of the behaviors that’s easiest to teach by luring your dog. It’s pretty simple. Show your dog you have a treat by holding it close to your dog’s nose. Then move your hand back towards your dog’s shoulder. They should naturally turn their heads to follow your hand. Reward as your dog starts turning toward their own shoulder. Each time, take the treat a little farther back along your dog’s side as he/she catches on.

Common pitfalls

Watching our dog training students playing “Spin!” with their dogs, we noticed most people allow their dogs’ motion to create distance between them and their dogs. The dog doesn’t understand what you’re up to, so they move away to get a better look. The result is that you can no longer reach all the way around your dog, and everyone winds up confused.

This exercise is very close work. Your dog should be right with you, and, when your dog spins, should end up in exactly the same place they started. It’s an in-place movement.

You may also run up against your dog having a preference turning to one side and not the other. Most dogs, like most people, are either right- or left-handed. Unlike people, most dogs are lefties. It doesn’t really matter, except that you’ll probably need to practice the “Spin!” more on the dog’s non-dominant side. Don’t let your dog become a one-way spinner! It’s tempting to let the “easy” side prevail, but your dog will build lop-sided muscles.

Benefits of “Spin!”

Aside from being an adorable party trick, the “Spin!” can be useful, too. The first variation, teaching your dog to spin around an object, works when you’re out walking and your dog goes around the wrong side of a tree. Just asking him/her to “Spin!” back to you takes care of the problem, without any leash tangles.

To teach your dog to “Spin!” around something, try using a chair. Stand by the chair with your dog at your side. Again, show your dog you have a treat and guide him/her around the object, rewarding when they reach your other side. Take note of the motion you make with your hand, like a giant stirring move. This is an ideal hand signal to use for “Spin!” – it indicates what, as well as which direction.

Practice the “Spin!” Dog Training Game in both directions, in place as well as around an object. Always use the hand closest to the dog to reward. For the “Spin!” around an object, when your dog starts to get the idea, step away from the chair so the dog can make a complete circle.

Turn it into a “Dance!”

It doesn’t take long for most dogs to learn “Spin!” and to love it. When your dog is spinning like a top when you wave your hand in a circular motion (stirring), it’s time to take it up high, for a “Dance!” Having your dog twirl around on their hind feet is cute as heck. It’s also a good indicator of their leg and core strength.

To teach “Dance!” just hold the treat up higher than for the Spin! Dog Training Game. Keep it at a level where your dog has to reach up to get it – high enough so their front paws have to leave the ground. If your dog can’t sustain it at first, that’s okay. But be sure to reward while your dog is reaching, ideally with front paws above the ground. Remember, dogs learn from the timing and placement of rewards. If you want your dog up, keep the reward up.

Get them in shape

If your dog isn’t able to “Dance!” quite yet, check out the exercises for core strength and balance. And always try to train both sides. Start with your dog’s non-dominant side, so the training and exercises are “easier” when your dog’s a little tired.

Even the exercises we advocate only take a couple minutes at a time. And they should always be fun games your dogs play with you – not chores to be accomplished. Those of us who hate working out (both of us!) keep it fun for our dogs. If you make it fun, your dog will believe it is.

Manage your dog’s fear of fireworks

You can train your dog to ignore fireworks. But it’s a process that takes time. If you’re here to get help for July 4, 2023, call your veterinarian instead. Start the training, but less than a month isn’t enough time to make the behavior secure. And call now, not on July 3. Some medications need to build up in the dog’s system. In other words, there are no fast and easy fixes for fear of fireworks.

What to do now

For this year, just talk to your vet about your dog’s intense fear of fireworks and pick up whatever prescriptions, supplements, or herbals they recommend. Then start making your plans for the nights the fireworks are worst in your area. The last couple of years have been particularly noisy – starting at around Memorial Day and continuing through July 5. We’re very lucky that none of the current crew cares about the noise. We had a dog with tremendous fireworks and thunder anxiety, so we empathize completely with those who do. It’s not easy when someone you love is terrified. There’s no way to explain to them that the fireworks (or thunder) can’t and won’t hurt them.

What you can do is make plans to occupy your dog (and yourself) with fun and noisy things. With the windows covered, and loud distractions happening inside your home, the impact is lessened. Oddly, most dogs are perfectly fine watching loud fireworks on TV. If you want to watch the holiday coverage, it’s not necessarily a no-no, even if your dog is frightened.

Don’t let them hide alone

Some dogs are so terrified of fireworks that they seek out small, enclosed places. We’ve heard many stories of dogs hiding in bathtubs during fireworks displays or thunderstorms. Dogs tend to like small, enclosed spaces. Especially when they’re feeling insecure.

One of the benefits of becoming your dog’s training partner is establishing yourself as a safe space for your dog. While it may be too late to alleviate your dog’s fear of fireworks and change your their reaction for this year, you can make a difference by staying with them. And make sure they’re securely attached to you whenever you take them outside that day. The 4th of July is the number one day of dogs getting lost. Shelters report that July 5 is always their busiest day. If a firework blast goes off suddenly, even the best-trained dog may take off running. Don’t take a chance. Hook them up for the holiday.

If there are scheduled fireworks displays where you are, time your outings for before and after the shows. Most start after sundown, so time your longest walk for the daylight hours. You can’t do anything about individuals shooting off fireworks, but you can avoid the planned show times.

Make it loud inside

Do you like adventure movies? Pick a line-up of your favorite, noisy movies and play them, loudly, all day (or videos of football games!). Close the blinds. Make some popcorn. And teach your dog to catch the popcorn. You probably shouldn’t play any training games that matter – your dog will probably be distracted. But some aromatic and delicious popcorn (no butter or salt!) may be worth paying attention.

Close the blinds or drapes. Make the inside bright, turn on every light around. It’s easier for both dogs and people to be frightened in the dark. If you have an inside room or basement, try to make that your hang-out space during the loudest hours.

Plan ahead for next year

You can start training your dog to ignore the booming of fireworks. Find a recording of a fireworks show and play it, softly, while you’re playing training games with your dog. As your dog learns to ignore it and have fun with you, you can gradually turn up the volume for each 2-Minute session. This is another example of “Real World Dog Training.” If your dog loves the popcorn-catching game, save it for fireworks. Your dog will come to associate something they love with fireworks, instead of being terrified.

Your dog may never be able to calmly go with you to the local park for the Fourth of July fireworks show. That’s okay – it’s not the goal. Success is your dog acting like it’s just another day playing with you, instead of shivering under the bed.

Don’t say No! Use a non-reward marker in dog training

One of the tools we use to train dogs is a non-reward marker. It’s a way of telling our dogs they’ve messed up, without saying “No!” or shutting them down. While not all positive reinforcement trainers are on board with using one, we find our dogs do better when they get feedback.

Positive is not permissive. Training a dog with positive reinforcement doesn’t mean the dog gets to do whatever it wants, whenever it wants. It means that while teaching dogs how to behave, you don’t punish them for not doing it. Positive reinforcement has been proven, in study after study, to be more effective long term, and result in more confident, smarter, happier dogs.

If you’re not giving “corrections” or telling your dog “No!,” how do you let them know if they’re wrong? One way is to use a non-reward marker. It lets the dog know they’re not exactly right, and to keep trying to figure things out.

Non-reward marker vs. ignoring

In some training scenarios the ideal response is to ignore the behavior. In others, it’s to let the dog know what they’re doing wrong. How do you know which tool to pull out of your training toolbox?

In cases like barking, or jumping on people, the dog is generally looking for attention. Denying that attention by ignoring the behavior lets the dog know it’s not working. In these situations, the training part comes in as soon as the dog exhibits the behavior you want. Immediately when the dog is quiet, even if it’s for a nanosecond, praise and reward. As soon as the dog has all four feet on the ground, praise and reward. The dog gets what it wants (attention) when we get what we want (quiet, feet on the ground).

Other situations call for other training methods. If you and your dog are playing a training game, like “Put Your Toys Away” or “Ring Stacking,” your dog is going to make “mistakes,” or not get it right. In the early stages of teaching any game, it’s a good idea to keep up an encouraging dialogue, letting your dog know it’s okay to keep trying.

Once the dog knows the game well, you can let them know they messed up with a non-reward marker.

What is a non-reward marker?

You can use any non-threatening phrase as a non-reward marker. Whatever comes naturally to you will work. Just make sure it’s something that doesn’t sound threatening, so no Klingon phrases. Something like “uh-oh!” or “oopsy!” is just about perfect. No one ever sounded angry saying “oopsy!”

Some dogs will know they’re not right because they don’t hear the clicker. Others will need more feedback. Especially dogs who lack confidence may need to hear from you that they’re okay, but just not exactly on target. As long as your dog keeps trying during a session, they’re getting the reinforcement they need.

Having to use a non-reward marker repeatedly may mean the step you’re asking from your dog is too big. Try and think of a way to break down the behavior into smaller pieces. With some games your dog may leap to the end, jumping over many little steps you may have thought were necessary. Other behaviors will be clear as mud to your dog. Observing your dog’s eagerness to play, engagement during the game, and excitement for the “click!” will guide your training. Give your dog the time he needs to understand the game.

Sometimes just wait

Booker needs a non-reward marker for feedback when his actions aren't quite right.

Booker, Fran’s 10-year-old Boston Terrier, is a dog who gets a little exuberant and loses focus during training games. He needs the feedback of a non-reward marker to keep him engaged and playing the games we want to play. At some point during particularly movement-oriented games, Booker will get over-excited and forget what he’s supposed to be doing. Even if the game is only 2 Minutes long. The non-reward marker lets him know that he’s still playing the game with us, we’re still paying attention, and “good” behavior will be rewarded.

Torque, Hope’s 8-year-old French Bulldog, listens for the “click!” If he doesn’t hear it, he goes back to see what didn’t happen that was supposed to. Only occasionally does he need to hear a non-reward marker. For him, it’s more of a conversation: “Oh my goodness! What happened?” or “That didn’t work, did it?”

Use it if you need it

You know your dog best. If you think your dog needs the feedback that a non-reward marker will give, use it. See what phrase works best for you and your dog. Be sure it’s not one your dog finds off-putting or that will shut them down. You want your dog to keep trying. And be ready to reward when they get it right.

Tell your dog everything

One of the most wonderful things about dogs is you can tell your dog anything. Whatever you say, they’ll think it’s fascinating, wonderful, and amazing. Dogs love it when you talk to them.

The more you do, the more words they’ll understand. Who doesn’t have a story about the words you have to spell out loud so your dog doesn’t get too excited? Is that magic word “Walk” in your house? In ours its “Wannagwout?”

Dogs are capable of learning the meaning of hundreds of words. It’s up to you to teach them.

Tell your dog everything

There’s no reason to be shy about talking to your dog. If you’re a quiet person who doesn’t say much when you’re alone with your dogs, give it a try. If you don’t really have anything to say, just describe what you’re doing or your plans for the day in a conversational tone. When you’re out on a walk, or running errands with your dog, keep up the dialogue. Even if somebody sees or hears you, they’ll assume you’re on the phone, not a crazy person talking to your dog.

Talking about phones, many dogs react rudely when their people actually do talk on the phone. One of the reasons is because they’re not used to it. You can mimic a phone conversation to train your dog how to act when you pick up the phone. Decide what behavior you’d like, and make it into a training game. Test your phone’s ring tone, tell your dog “Place!”, and reward. If you give your dog something to do when your phone rings, they’ll be less likely to bother you.

Give them the words

Anything you need or want your dog to do can be easier if you make it a training game. In the last couple of weeks, we taught our dogs a new behavior, just by naming it.

It started when a baby bunny decided our fenced yard was a great place to nibble on grass. Since we don’t want our dogs catching the bunny, we started putting on their collars and leashes before going out – even in our own yard.

The dogs would rather be naked in the yard as well as the house, so there was some reluctance and backing up when we showed them their collars. Instead of chasing them around to put on their collars, we turned it into a training game.

It was easy to do, and the dogs all learned in a couple of days. The game was to hold out the collar, say “Collar!” and reward all the little steps: looking at the collar, sniffing the collar, laying their throat on the collar, clasping the collar, opening the collar. Since they’re all familiar with collars to start with, there was no resistance or fear. But there were lots of treats.

Let them know what’s going on

Now when we say collar, our dogs stand and stretch their necks so we can put on their collars. To keep the value of the behavior, we still reward it. Maybe not every time, but often. And especially when they were busy elsewhere and come running over when we say “Collar!”

Just telling your dog what’s going on can make the difference. If there’s something your dog is reluctant to do, think about how you can turn it around. Use your words and your treats to change anything into a game your dog will want to play.