Denise Fenzi's Blog, page 12

An emotional model of behavior change

Humans have opinions about behavior.  We have clear ideas about which behaviors are good and which are bad.  In a nutshell, if we benefit from the behavior of another, then it’s good behavior. And if it inconveniences us in any way?  Then it’s bad behavior.

Our focus is on how the behavior of others affects us. How it makes us feel.

Obviously, our dogs are not immune.    If they do something and it makes us feel good? It’s a good behavior. If they do something and it makes us feel bad? It’s a bad one.

When our dog runs around the house barking hysterically, it affects us  negatively.  We are irritated!  We are frustrated! Therefore the dog’s behavior is bad.

Okay.   Now before we set about setting up a plan to change that behavior, let’s take one more step. How about the dog’s point of view?  How is the dog feeling?

When we keep them in the house, devoid of interesting things to do besides what is happening outside the window, they are bored! Therefore, from the dog’s point of view, our human behavior is bad –  we trap them in a dull space and expect them to self entertain in ways that we find palatable.

And I would imagine that when we finally recognize their need to do something and get them out for a leash walk, creeping down the street at the unimpressive pace of 3 mph, our dogs have opinions about that too.   Our slow-paced affects them negatively and they are frustrated!

BUT when my over aroused leashed-dog jerks me along as a result of their excitement about finally doing something, desperate to GO and SEE, I’m not happy either!

Who’s right? Who’s wrong?

Maybe we just think about behavior all wrong. Maybe we need to stop thinking about getting behavior and start striving for getting our needs met. Everyone’s needs, not just the humans.

If we take this a bit further, we can quickly see that it’s actually in our best interest to ensure that everyone’s needs are met, because good behavior naturally flows from both sides when everyone is happy.   Indeed, soon you will find yourself with a lovely spiral.   Dog not jerking you around on his leash-walk because you have found a way for him to move faster, satisfying his need to move? Awesome!  Now you’ll take him out of the house more often. Dog gets out of the house more and is more fulfilled? Excellent! They are more likely to rest when they are in the house rather than running from window to window wrecking havoc with your peace and quiet.

Speaking of peace and quiet and getting everyone’s needs met….

I need my house to be quiet when I am teaching a webinar.   Dogs running around hysterically do not meet my needs, nor the needs of my on-line webinar clients.

My dogs react to things happening outside the windows, and those happenings makes them bark! That’s because they are dogs and they have a need to react to changes in the environment!  Heck, for hundreds of years we bred dogs to let us know if something was happening. Now we don’t like it. Except when we do – like when the bad guy shows up. Complicated much?

So I need quiet and my dogs need to respond to external stimulation. What is the solution?

I can crate my dogs during webinars. That solves my problem, and by blocking their awareness of external stimuli, that should naturally cause the barking to go down.

So. Who’s happy here? When I crate my dogs?

For sure, me! I’ve had my needs met. But have the dogs had their needs met? If my dogs prefer to be free in the house, and now I crate them, is there anything I can do to make this a more winning situation for the dogs? A win for both of us?  Keep in mind that I rarely crate my dogs at home, so this is not a natural part of their daily repertoire.

There’s a solution.

How about if I train my dogs that their crates are really fantastic places? How about if I give my dogs special treats when they go in their crates, and those treats only show up at those times?

And since this is not actually a hypothetical scenario, I really did have this particular situation, that is exactly what I did.

So now when I teach a webinar, my dogs are crated with their very special treat.  In this way, not only do I get my needs met, but my dogs got their needs met. The total amount of happiness in my house just went up on both sides!

How does this vary from a more traditional model of changing behavior?

An emotional model of maximizing mutual happiness starts with the assumption that emotionally happy beings tend to behave in a way that is palatable to those around them.  Neither the dog nor the handler is the focus here; the overall happiness of the team is the focal point. That means sometimes one member of the team might be a little happier and the other a little less happy. And other times that might be reversed. And if you get super lucky? You can hit on a solution that increases the overall happiness of both halves of the team, such as my description above with my webinar problem and get a fantastic result that makes everyone feel good.

I believe that this way of thinking causes us to be more creative. Rather than us making assumptions about the problem behavior and how we are going to fix it, we start by making assumptions about our mutual desire to live together in happiness – and focus on increasing that element for everyone. Win-win scenarios do exist, but you have to look for them.

If you have a problem that is creating emotional unhappiness in you or your dog or both of you, then maybe give this a try. What are your needs? Why are your dog’s needs? Can you think of a solution that increases the grand total happiness in the house? Remember – for each challenge, make sure you consider both sides – the goal is greater total happiness!

This is exactly the same thing I’m doing with my circling method of loose leash walking.  What is the dog’s need? To move! What is my need? Not to get dragged!   Can I increase the mutual happiness of the walk for everyone by making a few changes? Yes!

But in order for that to work, I need to stop focusing on the dog pulling and start focusing on the underlying reason for the pulling –  I need to take responsibility for the fact that I don’t walk fast enough! But that doesn’t mean I’m going to start running because while that might make my dog happy it’s not going to make me happy.

See? We both matter.  We can both win.  What’s not to love?

Now I’m turning my attention to reactivity and general over arousal.  I’m sure you’ll hear a lot more from me in the next few months on this topic.  Questions to ask…what emotions is the dog expressing when behaving in a reactive or over aroused manner?  How does that make me feel?  What can I do to change the dog’s emotional reactions?  And…do those changes work for me?  Are they palatable? How about for my dog – do they work for my dog and are they palatable?  Because if not – then it’s not a workable solution.

Good behavior naturally results from dog-handler teams when everyone’s needs are met. Of course, training to address specific behaviors will often play a role in this, but that is not the focus of today’s blog.  Today I’m thinking about the bigger picture.

Give it a try – if you find something interesting that is working for you, feel free to make comment about what you did!

And on another note, I wrote a book some time ago that addresses behavior in this fashion.  If you’re interested, look for Beyond the Basics; Unlock Your Dog’s Behavior.

More on socialization?

You’d think I would’ve said all I want to say on this topic

And the truth is, I have.  Here is my primary post on how I approach socialization.   I have looked it over and I am still comfortable with what I wrote there.

And yet I am informed that I have come out against socialization.

I’m okay with people not reading carefully but if you don’t read with care then should you comment or go way beyond anything I ever said, and then attribute it to me?  It doesn’t seem like a good idea to create divisions were none exist.

Let’s recap my thoughts on socialization. What I have always said both publicly and privately. How I raise my own dogs.

I am in favor of socialization. I always have been.

My definition of socialization is exposure that may or may not involve interaction. It just depends.  It depends on the dog and the “thing” and the handler and the dog’s likely future.   I believe the use of toys or food is completely optional in socialization and I do not use them myself anymore unless I have a training interest. But if I have a training interest, then it’s not socialization; it’s training, or some specific intervention that I am performing to change behavior.  This HAS  changed as a result of some observations I have made about my past choices.

I bring food and toys when I take my dog on outings.   I find that useful just in case I might want to do some training. You might do something else.

You’re ” disappointed”  in my choices.   Can we accept that two perfectly rational people might come to different conclusions about similar events? This is nothing to be disappointed  about.    It simply disagreement.

But you say it’s different if I say it because I influence people!

I believe that I influence people because over time, I have demonstrated a sensible approach to dogs that works for people, and they appreciate my point of view. If you’re an influencer, excellent.  Give your point of view. But make sure you don’t misrepresent mine. I’ll take equal care with you.  Really – I will.

Consider what I say and I’ll consider what you say!   I change my mind all the time based on other people’s comments.  But not always. Presumably that’s because we’ve had different life experiences. We’ve seen and experienced different things that shape our choices.

I think socialization is important. Dogs need to see things! I think too much socialization is just as bad as too little.  Puppies have short attention spans, so ideally socialization is simply woven into the dog’s life. What is that dog’s future going to look like? Socialization should reflect that. In small doses that the dog can manage.

I don’t go to puppy classes. I have never gone to puppy classes. That is because my dogs are going to have a future which has nothing to do with interacting with other people’s novel dogs – it is not because I do dog sports. If I did go to puppy classes I would do my own stuff on the edges.    I much prefer that my dog focus on me in the presence of novel dogs and people in public –  That makes sense for me, my dogs, and my lifestyle.  I have different expectations in my home so I socialize them differently there.

In my home, I ask strangers to ignore my puppy when they enter.   When everything is calm, then they are welcome to interact if they want to. And if the dog wants to. And if not? That’s fine too.

I love the idea of being able to walk down the street, greet the occasional person, allow our dogs to greet quickly or not at all, and get on with my life. I’m not a fan of meeting and greeting every person or dog that I encounter. That’s my opinion.

Now how about you? What is your future with your dog?  Do you plan on letting your adult dog socialize with other dogs at the dog park? Then you should probably practice that as a puppy. How you accomplish that is up to you, but if that sounds like it’s your future? Great! My dog socialize within their family and with dogs they know, so I have no need.  This does not make them reactive, anymore than they are reactive of the horses that we see on the street – they’re totally fine.   They don’t interact with them either – they see and accept them via exposure.  Socialization.

So far, so good.   Create a plan that works for your needs.   I won’t argue with you about it.

Developing Foundation Skills

Not sure what foundation skills to teach your new puppy or dog that is destined for dog sports? Here is a recent Facebook live on the topic. I explain what I teach and why I teach it.  It applies to all dog sports, so take a look if you need some inspiration about where to start with your dog sports prospect!

You will notice that this video closely mirrors the TEAM  program that I developed a couple of years ago.   If you’d like to work through this program as part of a class, you can register here. Class begins April 1.

Or if you feel comfortable, teach it on your own!

You may also enjoy this short quiz to test your knowledge of foundation behaviors. Because it’s a learning quiz, I give you detailed answers at the end:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/72C5X8G

The Quick Fix

I recently saw a meme that talked about separation anxiety.   The owner dressed up a “lookalike” human dummy and left it with her dog.   It kept the dog company. The dog’s behavior improved.   He began to relax when the owner was not home.

It’s not hard for me to see why this might work with some dogs.  The smell of the clothes to snuggle up against could give the dog comfort and if the dog is feeling more comfortable, anxiety might reduce in that dog. If anxiety reduces and the dog is happier? What more could you want?

I was intrigued by some of the responses I saw.   Sort of a pushback against the idea that there could be a quick fix to a complicated problem.

Recently I offered a webinar called “Cutting corners to Loose Leash Walking” and I got pushback on that too! Doesn’t cutting corners mean a quick fix? Doesn’t it mean lower quality?

That’s asking the wrong question. The question we need to ask is about the RELATIVE value of the solution. Effort put in for results turned out.

So back to the dog with separation anxiety….let’s say you put a pile of clothes with the dog or you dress up a pretend dummy and the dog’s behavior improves. What is the effort in? A few minutes.  And what if the dog’s behavior improves 50%, 60%, 80% or 95%?  That’s an amazing return on investment!

Now let’s say there’s another method that can get your dog to 100%. Unfortunately, to apply it takes 50 hours of training time and a lot of additional expense. Which method is better?

For the vast majority of pet people who need to get on with their lives the quick fix is better. Of course that assume it works! But if you can get to 80% with a few minutes of effort versus 100% with a significant investment in training?  Try the quick fix first.  Keep the complicated solutions in your back pocket and use when the easy answers fail and you think you can inspire handler compliance.

Heck, even if the quick fix fails 90% of the time?  Think how happy that 10% is going to be!  It’s worth it as a first line offense.

If you work with the pet dog community, I certainly hope you see the value of the quick fix as your initial “worth a try go to” solution, even if the end result is not as impressive.

Back to my method for loose leash walking. The reports I’m getting back are that it works pretty much instantly for a sizable number of dogs. It’s pragmatic, kind and effective – my three criteria for all “manners” pet dog training. If your dog is going to benefit, then within a few days your dog will be walking much more nicely on a leash without relying on food, frustration levels will be way down for both of you, and odds are pretty good that your reactive dog will behave better to boot – an unexpected side benefit that I plan to thoroughly explore because…we need a pragmatic, kind and effective method for improving the behavior of reactive dogs going out on walks!

What more could you want?  The dog is happier. The handler is happier. Everyone goes for walks now because they are…happier! The relationship around the house improves because the dog is getting exercise, and all of a sudden we are closer to our ultimate goal –  time enjoying our dog rather than training our dog.

Let’s face it, most people get dogs to enjoy them and not to train them, so our “go to” training solutions should start there.  Not working?  Okay – bring out the bigger guns and work hard to get handler buy-in.

I’m all about the quick fix. If there is a simple way to get from here to there, it’s pragmatic, kind and effective, and a person gets to 80 or 90%?  I’ll start there every time.

And if I’m training for competition? That may be a different matter.  If scores or competition are involved, it is perfectly likely that I need 100% to reach my goals, but keep in mind that I am a professional dog trainer who owns dogs not only to love them but specifically to train them.  And honestly, a lot of my training for competition also involves cutting corners and it works out just fine. This blog is full of simple solutions that work quickly.  Lots of corner cutting!

Pragmatic, kind and effective.

Pet dog training should be about getting the dog and handler happy with each other.  If you are a pet dog trainer I truly hope that is your focus with your clients.  From there the rest falls in the place.

I’d like to explore this direction of dog training in more depth – to see pet dog training strive to be as pragmatic, kind and effective as possible.  Maybe we need to start doing more “out of the box” thinking – what else can we try that might be new or different?  Can we share our most successful strategies more broadly? How can we address the specific requests and interests of our average pet person?  It’s not always an easy group to work with!  What can we do to more effectively reach them – help them fall in love with their dogs and apply training that solves their problems to a “good enough” degree and keep both the dog and the handler happy? I hear professional trainers complain a lot about pet people! Pet people don’t want to rely on food long-term!  They don’t want to practice every day!  They want to get on with their lives and have their dogs fit in!  Frustrating?  Sure.  Now let’s talk about solutions that work for that audience.   Because if the dog is happy and the handler is happy then you have a winner.

If you want to learn more about my “Cutting Corners to Loose Leash Walking” method, sign up for the webinar on April 4th at 6pm PT.  It’s okay if you cannot attend live because you’ll have the recording.  People who attend live can ask questions. The first time this webinar ran it sold out, so this is a repeat and I expect that this one may sell out too, so if you’re interested then sign up sooner rather than later.  This webinar is appropriate for pet dog owners, professional dog trainers, and anyone who wants more options for reducing reactivity in dogs.

And if you have found a solution to a common pet dog problem that is pragmatic, kind, and effective, feel free to describe it in the comments! As long as you meet all three criteria, I’d love to hear about it.   Management solutions count too!

 

Reactive dogs in Mexico

This is a rather poorly named post because there were no reactive dogs in Mexico. Not one.

Not one snark. Not one growl. Not one lunge.   Moreover, the dogs at the conference where I taught looked perfectly happy and relaxed. So many new friends to play with!  All sizes and all breeds! They were fine – happy!

Don’t get me wrong. I am quite sure there are reactive dogs in Mexico. But in the week I was there, teaching in a conference and watching dogs in public (both owned and street dogs), I didn’t see any.   So how is that even possible?

If I teach at a conference in the United States, I can guarantee that there will be reactive dogs.  Management becomes the name of the game.

I want to throw something out there.  Something to think about.

When we raise our children, we do not micromanage their every move.  We do not hover when they make a new friend.  We do not feed them treats to ensure that they will like other children.     We do not hyper focus on ensuring that they meet every “type” of child of every size, age and ethnicity.  We live our lives and allow socialization to happen naturally.

And our well loved American dogs who live on-leash?   We obsess.  Every interaction is scripted by us.  We “reinforce” what we like as if we know this process better than evolution knows it.   Wow. How controlling is that?

Isn’t the interaction itself reinforcing and the correct focus point?  Why are we distracting dogs from looking and briefly interacting?  We script what to do if they get excited and start to run around on their leashes, how we’ll handle it if they are fearful, etc. We have taken responsibility for a process that should happen naturally.   What would we do with a child who was not enjoying the interaction or who was behaving badly? We would move on.  How simple is that?   The bullies would learn that bullying ends the interaction, and the softer dogs could make a choice… Maybe next time they would want to be more bold if they were truly interested. Or not!

How about puppy play groups?   That’s not natural either.   They generally take place in small spaces where the dog doesn’t have a lot of choice about what they do and where they go. If the dog wants a break they can’t just walk away, because it’s very likely that some other puppy will come barreling after them. And if there’s an overly assertive puppy? They can hound other puppies mercilessly, because the others can’t get away.  Imagine a playground where the bullies get to bully and the softer ones can’t leave.

That’s not great.  So what’s the solution?

Honestly, I’m not sure there is one because our culture is one of on-leash dogs and scripted interactions as a way of life. But I can say this. The next time I have a puppy there won’t be puppy playgroups. There won’t be heavily scripted greetings. My plan is to take my puppy walking and hiking in areas were off leash dogs are allowed, and just keep right on moving!   The dogs can greet, I can walk, and then we move on. I happen to have access to a dog park which is more of a hiking place than a dog park, and I plan to make good use of it.

I’m not going to reinforce greetings in any way, shape or form, because I don’t believe it’s my job to create positive associations, and I think that is distracting from the real source of reinforcement – the interaction itself. I will not hover!  I will allow the interaction to happen and then I will continue.  Just like if I were hiking with a child who encountered other groups on the same trail.  If we’re heading the same direction we’ll interact – or not. And if we are heading in different directions? We greet and move on.

How about in formal training spaces? That’s not a place to socialize; that is a place to work.  And that’s the way it will be right from the start – it’s about me and my dog.  They’ll figure out the difference.

Am I taking a risk?   Could my dog be harmed?  Yes, but life has risk. Fortunately I’m not a highly risk-averse person so this will work for me. You should do what makes sense for you, based on where you live and what kind of dog you are likely to encounter.

Are there dogs that are simply reactive and will not thrive this way? Sure there are. If I get a dog like that I’ll deal with it when it comes, but I’m not going to assume a need for intervention

So someone is thinking….but dogs where I live are not friendly! Well. If it were me and if I lived in a place with unfriendly off leash dogs, I can guarantee you I would get in the car and drive somewhere else to do my puppy socialization rather than trying to protect my dog from bad situations in the neighborhood. In the same way that it wouldn’t take my small child into a bad neighborhood and try to protect them from bullies, I would do the same with my dogs. Find other places which can be safer for your situation.

Your mileage may vary.

Wait. I’m not the perfect trainer?

I got the following response to a recent blog:

“I’m pretty sure I’ve heard YOU use No Reward Markers in your training.”

I have no idea how to respond to that.

You should see what I do when a squirrel cuts across the front of my house and all three dogs go careening and screaming from window to window when I’m too busy to stop what I’m doing.  I yell something along the lines of, “DAMN IT STOP THAT!”  Two out of three generally take note and settle – for that moment anyway.  For those two, staying in my good graces via direct communication worked – you can call it punishment if you’re quadrant focused if the behavior gets less common over time.  For the third?  Not so much.

I’m being irritable. Let’s call occasional yelling a form of management or training based on the fact that I’m human, and my entire life is not structured around my dog’s preferences. I exist as an independent being too!  I’m interrupting the behavior at that moment so I can finish my conversation or activity in peace.  The fact that the careening behavior happens again for the next squirrel strongly suggests I’m accomplishing nothing long-term, and if I really wanted to change that behavior then I’d need to commit to a training plan but right now that’s not a priority so I yell, two dogs care that I’m annoyed so they stop and the third will quit on his own when he realizes his cohorts have abandoned him. And honestly?  Some dogs would get the message and change their behavior; the punishment would work. Fine.  People matter too and if the dog is not melting down over the occasional human tantrum then I’m not going to either.

Good training? Of course not. Since training requires change, I think it’s fair to say it’s not training at all in my house.  It’s just me being crabby and too lazy to deal with the dogs properly but it may well work in another house with different dogs.

Being a positive reinforcement trainer doesn’t mean I’m some kind of Buddha.  I’m just not there as a person.  My husband has to put up with the fact that sometimes I’m grumpy and irrational.  My kids have to put up with the fact that sometimes I’m grumpy and irrational.  And the dogs?  Same deal – sometimes I’m grumpy and irrational. And if they are afraid of me, all I can say is that all of the relevant players are hiding it quite well.

If I take a five minute video of my training, within that five minutes I will easily be able to pick out good decisions, bad decisions and everything in between.  Since I put my training videos on my blog and I often train in public, anyone is welcome to watch a five minute video and pull it apart.  Have I used NRM’s?  All the time!  Do I think that they are helping my training?  Not much, but that’s a different question.  It’s just me being human; being a bit frustrated at the moment.  Im okay with that.

I follow a philosophy of training – I strive to be kind and effective with dogs and people.  I test variables and I refine my techniques constantly. But as often as not, I’m muddling along.  Maybe I’m muddling at a higher level than many other trainers, but muddle I do.

It’s good enough for me.  If you’re looking for the perfect trainer, keep looking.

To reinforce or not to reinforce, that is the question

Today I was reviewing a video for one of my online classes. The student was aware of three specific criteria to be met before she would reinforce with a cookie.  Everything was going great! And then, right in the middle of her training session, her cat walked through.

Her dog likes to chase the cat.  It’s been a longstanding issue.

Her dog started to chase the cat, stopped, and turned back to the handler.

In a case like this, what should the handler do?  Should the handler praise the dog for turning back and start over with her three criteria? Or should the handler blow off the pre-established training plan altogether and reinforce?

In this case the handler should reinforce. Why?!

Because chasing the cat has been a chronic and long-standing problem. So what’s the greater good here? The pre-determined training at hand, or the fact that the dog resisted chasing the cat? Remember, the dog chasing the cat has been an issue!

But what if the dog never chases the cat? What if it’s just another random distraction, no greater than any of the other random distractions that the dog normally has to overcome in order to meet its three criteria for reinforcement?

In that case, the handler should simply start the repetition over.

This is why I love training dogs.  Because so often the answer to a training question is “It depends,” but it’s not voodoo!  There are  reasons for our different decisions and they can be learned.  The trick to making decisions in real time is to go back and forth between the whole picture and then narrow in on your specific focus.   Work hard not to get locked in on the narrow focus!

To train well and effectively you absolutely need both skills. Consider both the circumstance at hand along with your pre-determined training decisions and goals.  What is the greater good, at that moment?

Consider how you handle distractions under a variety of circumstances.   If you don’t recognize your dog’s good decisions, then you risk your dog giving up and opting out of your training – losing confidence in their ability to win.  But if you are too generous, reinforcing when no true effort was exhibited,  then you risk that your dog will fail to develop endurance and tolerance over time.

These are not matters of right and wrong but they certainly deserve your consideration!

Training: Open middles or tight edges?

You are preparing your dog for competition, and you are at the point where you take your dog to novel places to practice. If you do obedience or rally, that includes jumps, signs, etc.  For agility, you’ve packed up a few jumps and a travel board and whatever else you might need, and now you’re heading to the park.  You’re getting serious!

Now let’s do some visualization.

Before reading further, I want you to consider what I wrote above. Let’s say you’re free tomorrow. I want you to visualize the location. Where will you go? Got a place in your head? Excellent. Now I want you to visualize what you plan to do in that space and where you plan to do it.  Exactly where are you going to set up?  Where will the jumps go? Got all of that?

Okay, now ask yourself this question:

When you visualize where you plan to set up, did you unconsciously make it as easy and as predictable as possible for your dog? For example, did you set up your training right next to (or over!) a walking path, or did you go into the middle of a big open park where you were least likely to face distractions?

Did you face a parking lot or a busy walkway ten feet away, or did you face a tree line 200 feet away which is unlikely to have distractions?

Did you set up in a place that includes trees and bushes right in the middle of your training area – things that might attract your dog? Or did you set up in the most open, flat, and least enticing environment possible?   Did you place jumps near corners where the dog will feel the tightness of the space around them?

Now let’s think about what dog shows look like. Dog shows are generally crowded because there are other rings. There are other dog-handler teams walking around. There are walking paths between the gates, doors opening in the distance, and a generic hustle and bustle that involves…reality.

Where you should set up in your mock training situation would depend on your stage of training and what you are trying to accomplish. But if you are working in Utility or Rally excellent or if you have a seasoned agility dog, you definitely shouldn’t be going into the middle of the park where there is as little going on as possible! You should be doing your “go outs”  facing the parking lot and your heeling routine should cross surfaces so that you go from the grass, over the walking path and onto the dirt area….right along the bushes! Agility?  Your start-line should face the people, distractions and cars, not the empty side of the park.

All of these minor challenges are part of what make your dog stronger and help them be more successful when you’re ready for the real deal.

What if you are in a training facility? Are you facing the direction where the crates are situated for your recall? That’s a completely different picture for your dog than a blank wall behind you. Have you considered leaving the door open so your dog can see and hear what’s going on outside?   Do you always enter the ring from the same location and can that be altered? Are you using the entire ring for your heeling pattern? Try squishing yourself into 25% of the ring and see how that feels.   Or include a heeling trip right outside the ring entry and then do an about turn to come back in.

Our tendency is to unconsciously make things easier for our dogs in training.  Consciously, we know that we have to add distractions and challenges!  Instead of worrying about adding distractions for your dog, start by taking advantage of what is already out there. Believe me, if you heel straight towards that bush that’s been peed on by 20 dogs, that is going to be much more attractive to your dog than anything you might place in the environment. Set it up as a training exercise! Can you heel 5 feet towards that bush and then make an about turn? Give your dog a cookie! That’s perfect. Now how about 3 feet? But if you set up in the middle of the grass you can’t use that bush at all.

The trick to making your dog stronger is to add small and incremental challenges that your dog can master. The goal is not to set up for failure and punish your dog, the goal is to set up for success and to have the dog vaguely aware of challenges around them – a little bit at a time!

If this way of thinking is totally new for you, setting your dog up for success rather than failure in order to proof their work, check out a book I wrote called Beyond the Backyard; Train your dog to listen anytime, anywhere!  If you use that direct link to my store, you will receive free shipping on orders over $18 (for the next week), which covers the book.  If you’re outside the United States, head over to Amazon.

Good luck!

What is trial readiness?

When I say a dog is “trial ready”  I mean that he is fully prepared to compete and has a good chance of being successful at a real event.

That means that my dog is comfortable in crowds, can handle the pressure of the competition ring, and is not relying on classic motivators like food and toys on my body. It should go without saying that the dog knows how to do the basic portions of all the exercises.

So what is there to talk about?

In one of my steady stream of learning quizzes, I asked a question about “trial readiness.”  Here is the question, along with the possible answers:

Your dog is back! This week in class he’s fantastic. All of his behaviors are rock solid. You’re seriously thinking about going to a dog show. But how do you know if you’re ready? Which of the following might be a reasonable test of trial readiness?

a. You head to a nearby training club and have a stranger put you through a formal run-through. You have no cookies on your body, and you expect your dog to finish all of the exercises.

b. You head to a nearby training club and have a friend put you through a run-through. You reinforce each exercise with a cookie from your pocket.

c. You head to a nearby training club and have a stranger put you through a formal run-through. You ask the person to pressure your dog in a variety of ways, some of which stress your dog but you expect him to work through it. Because you are given several opportunities to enter the ring, you repeat this randomly throughout the evening.

d. Any of the above is a fine test of trial readiness

Here is the full quiz for those of you who want to try it:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/HKDS9LC

The most commonly selected answer was B, followed closely by D.  The correct answer is A.

Let’s talk about this!!!!

Look. I’m pretty optimistic, and even with my cheerful spirit I would not consider a dog trial ready if I were not comfortable doing an entire program, pretty much exactly as it would take place at the dog show, without reinforcing every exercise.  Heck, forget the dog for a moment.  What about me?!   To be trial ready I need to be comfortable ending an exercise without handing my dog a cookie. What do I plan to do instead? The time to figure that out is not the dog show.

If you want to know if your dog is trial ready, then you’re going to have to run through an event, pretty much exactly as it’s going to take place when it’s the real deal. You don’t need to do it several times. You don’t need to have the judge stress your dog out and create problems for you. And you cannot be relying on cookies.

Once you are mentally targeting dog shows and you want to know if your dog is ready to compete, then test that and exactly that.

“But”, you say, “weird things happen at the dog shows!”

Yes they do. I do not doubt that most individuals who have competed can tell you some stories.  So in PRACTICE you might want to teach your dog about novelty – weird things. But this is a run-through.  Treat it for what it is, and that is a test of readiness, not a training opportunity.

If you want to know if your dog is likely to get through a trial class, then run through that class. Exactly as it should take place. No more and no less. No cookies in your pocket. No weird stuff. Can your dog do it? What were his strengths? What were his weaknesses?

Now take the information you got from that run-through and go home and start practicing. Did your dog seem a little nervous about the judge? Okay. Now with all of your food and toys and games and personality, work on that!

Did your dog struggle with the lack of reinforcers? Work on that! You can do it a variety of ways, from back chaining to substituting ring-acceptable alternatives.

And please, don’t practice five times just because you can. You want your dog to love this! Even an enthusiastic dog is going to start to worry if you keep doing the same thing over and over again.

Now, before you move on from this article, there’s one more thing to consider. When I say “Trial readiness”, it’s up to you to decide what “ready” is.  And we may not agree on what that should look like.

Here’s an example:

I entered my nine-year-old dog in a Mondio Ringsport trial, even though I knew perfectly well she wasn’t properly prepared. I figured we had about a 50% chance of qualifying and I decided that was good enough. She would be emotionally comfortable and physically ready for the event, and I knew no harm would be done by competing. However, I also knew that she wasn’t fully prepared for the exercises and I decided to go forward anyway.

I recognized that at her age this was probably our last chance to qualify. We had picked up the sport late in life and I simply hadn’t prepared her to do all of the things she might need to do. I also considered the fact that if I did not enter this trial, my next opportunity would be about 500 miles away and six months down the road.

Were we trial ready? Not in my book. Did I compete? yes.

We got through by the skin of our teeth on one day and did not qualify on the other.  We had a good time, picked up a new accomplishment and made a few friends, so I’m glad I did it!

You get to decide for yourself if you’re ready or not. But you won’t even know what your baseline is unless you try practicing a few times with a scenario that is as close as possible to the real thing. What you do with that information is up to you. You might decide to stop  preparing for competition and instead focus on cleaning up your weak areas or you might decide you’re ready to go forward.  But you’ll be in no position to make that decision if you don’t actually try it in your mock run-through opportunities.

 

Dogs shows are for…who?

Training dogs is fun. Obviously I like training dogs or one hopes I would have found a different direction in life.  And I’d like to believe that my dogs think training is fun too. Indeed, I go to a good deal of effort to make it fun for them. So how about dog shows and competitions? Do my dogs enjoy that?

Most competitions take place away from your familiar environment, in the presence of strange dogs who may or may not be social, and with a whole lot of stressed-out people. Most events take place without the food and toys and games that make it fun for the dog.  Traveling, extensive period of crating, and a complete disruption of the routine may also be a hallmark of competition – from the dog’s point of view.

So what does the dog get for it?  A hamburger a few hours later?   One to one interaction with their owner and handler?

It’s an interesting question. In my opinion, my dogs that were trained for competition did benefit, but indirectly. When competing, I train much more regularly and with a plan. Competition focuses me and drives me forward. There is no doubt in my mind that my dogs benefitted from that, because they truly love to work. But the dog shows?  Those were for me.

So the way I see it is this…. dog shows are for me and training is for both of us. I get to show the results of whatever I learned and I get to progress my skills.  My dog gets intense quality time every day. As long as my dog is okay with the dog show, not necessarily loving it but okay with it, then we continue.  In exchange, they got the joy of regular training and interaction – it was a good deal all around.

But what if the scenario were different?  What if my dog had a sensitive temperament and found the presence of other dog stressful? Or, as an interesting corollary, what if my dog’s behavior were such that it caused other dogs to find their presence stressful?  What if my dog did not travel well, or did not particularly enjoy training nearly as much as they might enjoy a walk for an equivalent amount of time? Are we doing our dogs a favor when we take them to the dog show?  Participating in training classes with shy or reactive dogs?  Desensitizing dogs to things that don’t actually matter to the dog, and are only relevant because of some specific competition interest that we might have?

In my mind, our dogs are doing us the favor! I do not believe all, or even most, dogs should go to competition events. I believe all dogs should be trained in order to make them good members of our families and society, and they can be trained well beyond that if it is enjoyable for both the handler and the dog. But it confuses me when people imply that somehow, a dog is lucky if they have a handler who does competition dog sports with them. Maybe. Maybe not.

Some dogs are lucky, yes! Those dogs love to learn and practice and travel and compete, and they live for the quality time with their handlers. And for some dogs, competing in specific sports, training (and less often, competition) may also give them confidence that serves them well in life as a whole. But I don’t consider this the norm. The normal situation is that the handler wants to compete, and the dog comes along for the ride. The normal situation is that the handler convinces themselves that this is wonderful for the dog as well, despite all evidence to the contrary more often than I care to call out.

I’m not against dog sports. I like dog sports. I think they’re good for the dog-human bond, in particular when the dog and handler have the appropriate temperament for whatever sport they have taken up. I also think a good percentage of dogs truly love training enough to offset the stress of competition.  But it’s a mistake to confuse our interests with the dog’s interests – it feels too much like rationalizing to me. If your dog doesn’t particularly enjoy training, or you are spending months conditioning him to crowds because they make him nervous, or your dog makes himself scary or a nuisance when are around other dogs, then don’t be confused… you’re doing it for you. Not the dog. Your dog would like to be doing something else altogether.

Which is fine.  I’m all about compromise, and if your dog does dog sports for you – because you like it – and they don’t mind too much? Go for it! Learn all you can! Develop your hobby!   But remain grateful because your dog is doing you the favor.