Positive Gun Dogs Clicker Training for Sporting Breeds
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Positive Gun Dogs Clicker Training for Sporting Breeds Jim Barry Mary Emmen Susan Smith Contents Introduction. 1 Chapter 1 Basic Learning Theory . 5 Chapter 2 Positive Reinforcement and Clicker Training . 15 Chapter 3 Criteria Setting and Record Keeping. 25 Chapter 4 Obedience Fundamentals. 31 Chapter 5 Into the Field. 45 Chapter 6 Basics of Retrieving. 53 Chapter 7 Blind Retrieves. 73 Chapter 8 Upland Hunting. 87 Chapter 9 The Positive Gun Dog. 99 Appendix I Gun Dog Training Resources. 101 Appendix II Gun Dog Tests and Trials. 103 Appendix III Training Records. 105 About the Authors. 110 Chapter 1 Basic Learning Theory A basic understanding of learning theory is essen- does not understand what we want her to do. tial if you want to be an effective and efficient dog Let’s say we’ve taught our dog to retrieve a dummy trainer, and have fun in the process. Most dog train- in the backyard. We’ve worked diligently and done ing today is based on tradition and lore that has some fairly advanced work such as blind retrieves. been passed down from trainer to trainer in a sort We then take the dog to the field and ask our dog of informal apprenticeship system (see box: A Brief to do a very simple retrieve from only about 2 or 3 History of Dog Training). If you were to ask the yards away. Our dog does not retrieve the dummy. average gun dog trainer to explain learning theory, We might attribute our dog’s inaction to stubborn- he or she would not be able to do so and might even ness, but in reality what’s happening is that the scoff at the idea of needing to understand such a behavior we have trained our dog to do has not thing. Despite their lack of familiarity with learning been generalized to situations outside the backyard. theory, though, these trainers are applying the laws The dog simply doesn’t understand what she’s sup- of learning—whether they know it or not—when posed to do. they train their dog and the dog learns the behavior. Many trainers are also probably not aware that they Let’s think about this scenario in terms of Morgan’s may be wasting valuable time and energy on tech- Canon of Parsimony. Stubbornness, which we might niques that do not teach the dog anything and may originally think is what’s behind the dog’s behavior, actually be impeding the learning process. We are in involves a lot more than the dog just not knowing no way suggesting that these trainers have nothing what to do. Stubbornness implies resistance, malice, to offer—on the contrary, they have a great deal of forethought, and a whole host of other complex knowledge and experience to pass on. However, we processes, whereas not being trained is very simple. can’t help but wonder how much greater they’d be if We, as trainers, need to get away from the belief they knew their learning theory! that our dogs are deliberately defying us. In general, dogs will perform the trained behavior if they know One problem with traditional models of training is what is expected of them and how to do it, and the that they defy what’s known as “Morgan’s Canon motivation is sufficient. of Parsimony.” At the end of the nineteenth century, Lloyd Morgan addressed the problem of attributing Increasing numbers of animal trainers are beginning complex reasons to simple behaviors. Pamela Reid to put learning theory to good use. Many train- quotes Morgan’s Canon in her book Excel-erated ers working with wild animals in zoos and animal Learning (James & Kenneth Publishers, 1996): parks have been using these techniques for years; “In no case is an animal activity to be interpreted only within the last two decades have trainers of in terms of higher psychological processes, if it can domestic animals such as dogs and horses begun to be fairly interpreted in terms of processes which use these methods seriously. There are some excep- stand lower in the scale of psychological evolution tions, such as the Baileys (Bob and Marion), who and development.” have trained many hundreds of animals for com- mercial and military use over the last 50-plus years Too often we assume there are complex causes using the principles of operant conditioning. motivating our dogs when, in fact, the dog simply 5 Positive Gun Dogs: Clicker Training for Sporting Breeds A Brief History of Dog Training Why bother with learning theory? The answer Bob Bailey told us in a personal communica- is that learning theory helps to dispel the myths tion that his colleague Kellar Breland used that have plagued dog training and have led to positive training methods on two field dogs in the abuse of dogs when trying to change their the 1940s, but that he was unable to interest behavior. A little history may help to demon- gun dog trainers in his techniques. He—and strate the value of learning theory as it relates to later Bob—turned his attention to commercial dog training. The following is condensed from animal training, where he had great success. Mary Burch and Jon Bailey’s How Dogs Learn In the 1950s and 1960s, the training of gun (MacMillan, 1999). dogs in the United States became systematic, and a number of professional gun dog trainers People have been training dogs for thousands set up shop. Prominent among these was Rex of years, but the modern history of dog train- Carr, who developed the basic drills used by ing begins with our own sporting breeds. In the most retriever trainers today. In addition, the nineteenth century, British sportsmen exhibited invention of the electronic collar, which can their well-trained sporting dogs; this practice deliver a shock to a dog at a distance from the spread to the United States. Training for obedi- trainer, provided a new tool that gun dog train- ence began in America in the 1930s. Dog train- ers could use in their programs. Trainers were ing first became a profession after World War quick to institute these devices in their training II, when returning soldiers taught others how programs, and almost all professional gun dog they had trained war dogs. Not surprisingly, the trainers in the United States now use them. methods used tended to be harsh. Two trainers in particular, Konrad Most and William Koehler, While the training of pet dogs and dogs that advocated the use of choke collars and other compete in obedience, agility, and other sports punishment devices. Their approaches had been has relied increasingly on learning theory, the effective for protection dogs, and Koehler’s training of gun dogs has remained largely the fame as principal animal trainer for Walt Disney domain of professional trainers who rely on helped popularize his techniques. tradition and electronic collars. We would argue that the success achieved by most gun dog During the 1960s, several books suggested trainers has come not because they understand gentler methods, but it was not until the 1980s how dogs learn, but in spite of their lack of that learning theory became an integral part of systematic understanding. And the popularity dog training. Dr. Ian Dunbar, a veterinary behav- of their aversive-based methods has led to the iorist, began teaching seminars in which he continuation of myths that get in the way of applied learning theory to help resolve problem effective training for hunting dogs—such as that behaviors. In 1984, Karen Pryor, a marine mam- pointing dogs should never be trained to sit, or mal trainer, published her groundbreaking book that dogs must be punished in order to learn to Don’t Shoot the Dog, which forged an important retrieve in difficult conditions. It is our hope that link between science and training. In 1994, sound scientific methods can eventually replace Dunbar and his colleagues founded the Associa- these myths. tion of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT), an organization dedicated to promoting dog-friendly training through education. Chapter 1: Basic Learning Theory Learning theory is based on proven science, with How Animals Learn laws governing its principles. All types of learning The ability to learn is genetic; learning itself is not can be understood through principles of learning genetic. Essentially, animals learn through experi- theory. According to these principles, there are ence. The ability to learn and adapt is what allows certain laws of nature that apply to all physically us to survive in this dangerous world. The psycholo- and mentally healthy animals. Further, all animals, gist named Edward L. Thorndike boiled it all down from the lowliest cockroach to the most sophisti- in his very simple Law of Effect: “The principle cated human, learn in the same way. Once you’ve that, in any given situation, the probability of a read this book and understand some basic learning behavior occurring is a function of the consequences theory, you will not only know how to train your that behavior has had in that situation in the past. dog, but also your spouse and your boss! Just to An abbreviated form says that behavior is a function clarify, when we talk about animals as a group, we of its consequences” (Behavior Analysis Glossary, are including humans in that group; humans learn University of South Florida, www.coedu.usf.edu/ the same way dogs do. abaglossary/glossarymain.asp?AID=5&ID=2194). Some excellent books are available that explain learning theory in a clear and easy-to-understand Operant Conditioning manner. We’ve already mentioned two of our Thorndike’s statement brings us to the foundation of favorites.