Is Your Dog Trained? (Guest Blog)

Today we have a guest blog by a good friend of mine. I asked her to write about something she felt was very important to her and that I would then share it here. Huge thanks to her for taking time out of her schedule to do this. I hope you guys enjoy and I'll be back to write a new blog tomorrow!

Previously, Marcella discussed what it means to be successful in dog training.  There are many people who have achieved some level of success at teaching their dogs to respond to various cues.  However, I think everyone who trains dogs and anyone who owns a dog will say that believing your dog to be ‘trained’ and actually having a trained dog are two very different things.

It is my belief that owning a dog is about forming a bond with that dog.  Dogs have been purposely bred by humans for thousands of years to work WITH us.  Training is one way that we can build a bond with our dogs that makes the relationship we have much more fulfilling.  I cannot tell you how many sad examples of dog/human relationships that I encounter as a dog trainer.  The most shocking thing about many of these relationships is the fact that the owners will often claim that their dog is ‘trained’.  When I ask what they mean by trained the response is almost universal.  “Well, he’ll do anything for a cookie.”  HUH?  Is that what people think training is?  Have we let cookies become the glue that holds us together?

“I read the Odyssey because it was the story of a man who returned home after being absent for more than twenty years and was recognized only by his dog.” -Guillermo Cabrera Infante

It is a sad fact that many people have turned their back on positive reinforcement methods because they are not being taught properly.  Certainly, if I had to bribe my dog with a cookie or treat every time I asked him to perform a behavior it would get tiresome and certainly would not yield the type of results that make Ritter a success on the Frisbee field and Emma a success at Rally Obedience (as you are not allowed to use treats during either competition).  Yet both of these dogs AND my new Rottweiler pup, Cinna, are being trained using positive reinforcement (including treats, toys and praise as well as environmental rewards).  (For more information on how to motivate your dog using these tools see the previous blog here.)

To make positive reinforcement effective, owners need to learn HOW to use their motivator properly.  It’s not about BRIBING the dog, it’s about PAYING the dog.  The sad thing is, this is not a hard concept to teach.  I begin many times with someone who isn’t even enrolled in class.  Maybe they are standing at the check-out counter trying desperately to get their dog to sit for a cookie.  Of course, the dog is doing everything BUT sit including jumping on the next person in line, sniffing my dog’s butt, barking incessantly and trying to tow their poor owner out the door into the parking lot.  Inevitably, the owner turns to me and says, “he knows this, he’s just being stubborn” or “I don’t understand, he does it all the time at home”.  The simple fact is, this owner only THINKS their dog is trained to sit.  They believe this because the dog will sit 100% of the time when she is holding a cookie and standing in her kitchen and nothing else is going on around the dog.  Sitting is easy when there’s nothing better to do.

Calmly, I take the leash, move the dog away from the various distractions at the register and wait until the dog looks at me.  When the dog happens to glance up at my face (perhaps wondering why some stranger has his leash) I whip my hand around from behind my back and pop a treat in that dog’s mouth.  NOW I have his attention.  The first behavior was an accident but now he’s curious.  How do I get another magical treat?  He looks at me again, again the treat appears.  Usually, it only takes five to ten repetitions before I have a dog that is staring at me and ignoring everything else going on around it.  Now for the sit.  Without saying a word, I take one step towards the dog while looking into his eyes.  Usually, this is all it takes.  As soon as his butt hits the floor, the magical treat appears.  NOW the dog is learning and engaged.  

The important thing here is that the dog does not see the treat until AFTER the behavior is performed.  This is the beginning of using positive reinforcement the RIGHT way.  If your dog is conditioned to offer behaviors without the promise of a treat you won’t have to constantly wave treats in front of your dog’s nose to get a behavior.  So, stop THINKING your dog is trained and go train your dog!

 

 

 Left to right: Vengeance, Shimmer, Emma, Ritter and Cinna

A note about the author of this guest blog:

Meghan McMillan is a PetSmart trainer and has been working with dogs for several years. She competes in canine frisbee, has done therapy dog work and is working on getting into the obedience and agility rings. Thank you, Meghan, for taking time to address this topic.