How to Train Your Dog the Scientific Approach
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How to Train Your Dog: The Scientific Approach Whether we want to admit it or not, our dogs process information in much the same way we do. We are both mammals and we both have the same brain composition. We both have a portion of our brain that controls automatic functions such as fear, hunger, or even breathing. We both have a region of the brain that is responsible for emotions, and dogs and humans both have thinking centers. What you might not realize is that the automatic functioning centers and the thinking centers don’t work very well together! What does this mean for training? Any training method that is based on fear will effectively shut down the thinking centers of the brain. There is a reason why fear based punishment tactics have been removed from our schools. Most people gasp when they think of teachers hitting children, but it was common thirty years ago. Mammals cannot optimally learn in an environment filled with fear. Just as our understanding of human learning has evolved, so has our understanding of canine behavior and learning. We know, without a doubt, that the most effective way to train a dog is through positive reinforcement methods. Here is an example: If I wanted you to raise your right hand, wouldn’t it be easier for me to just tell you ‘Please raise your right hand’ than for me to tell you everything else you did was wrong until you guessed that I wanted you to raise your right hand? The same holds true for dogs. It’s much easier and less stressful for us to show the dog what ‘Come’ means and reinforce for it, as opposed to having them guess until they get it right while getting punished at each step of the way. Contrary to what some outdated training methods might state, dogs are not ‘disobedient’ out of an attempt to gain control over you, or to show you they are the alpha dog, or even to get revenge for being left alone. Dogs who do not behave as expected are usually doing so because they have not been taught appropriate behaviors, or they are acting from a place of fear, anxiety or boredom. There are two different types of learning that take place. Classical Conditioning (Pavlov) – This is about learning associations. The phrase ‘Go for a Walk’ often gets dogs excited because they know that phrase precedes a fun outing. The dog is responding because he is anticipating what will happen next. Classical conditioning also works on involuntary responses such as hunger or fear. We don’t smell brownies and think ‘I am going to get hungry’, it just happens! This is classical conditioning at work. Brownies = Yummy! Operant Conditioning (Skinner) – This is about learning behavior has consequences. In other words, the dog can make things happen! If I sit, I get a treat. If I jump, I get ignored. Operant conditioning works on voluntary behaviors and it’s how we train ‘cue’ behaviors such as sit, down, come and leave it. In other words, the dog gets to choose what behavior to provide, and what is chosen controls the outcome or consequence. The key to operant conditioning is ABC: Antecedent (preceeds) Behavior (preceeds) Consequence Antecedent is the cue: for example ‘sit’. Behavior is the act of sitting. The consequence determines if the behavior is more or less likely to be repeated. So if we reward a sit with a treat, the behavior will be more likely to repeat. If we ignore the sit, the behavior is less likely to repeat because it didn’t produce any sort of reinforcement. 4 Quadrants of Consequence: Reinforcement Punishment GOOD BAD Present something good, like a Present something bad, like a choke Positive treat. or a shock. ADD Behavior is more likely to repeat. Behavior is less likely to repeat. Take away something bad, like Take away something good, like Negative stopping the shock. attention. SUBTRACT Behavior is more likely to repeat. Behavior is less likely to repeat. In training, positive means we add something. We can add something good, like a treat, that makes the dog more likely to repeat a behavior, or we can add something bad that makes the behavior less likely to repeat. The problem with adding something bad is that you are adding something unpleasant to your dog. For instance, if your dog doesn’t come when called and you issue a leash correction, how does that make your dog want to come to you? Whereas positive punishment training (adding something bad) can destroy a relationship between you and your dog, positive reinforcement builds a relationship between you based on trust and kindness. The negative (take away) quadrants are used for problem solving or rehabilitation. For instance, if you have a dog that jumps, using negative punishment is the fastest way to resolve jumping. Because dogs are social and crave companionship, if jumping takes away attention the jumping will stop. (Taking away attention is negative punishment because it removes something that is pleasant to your dog.) If your dog is mouthy during play, and the play abruptly stops, your dog will learn to stop mouthing if they want the game to continue. In order to train with the 4 Quadrants of ConseQuence, you need to know what is reinforcing to your dog. The answer to this question is not always simple. Lots of things can be reinforcing to a dog but some common reinforcers are food, attention, and toys. Food is generally a favorite reinforcer for dogs and it’s why we often use it in the early stages of training to speed things up. However, if your dog loves fetch every toss of the ball is actually a reward. Any time you give a dog attention, it’s reinforcing. Whatever your dog enjoys can be a reinforcer. There is a notion that rewarding with food is bribery. This is incorrect. Food is a primary need for mammals; therefore, its presence can be a powerful motivator. You can think of food as your dog’s paycheck for a job well done! By using our knowledge of how mammals think and learn, and the tools of learning theory, you can train your dog to do anything in a humane way that creates a bond between you and your dog that will last a lifetime. Recommended Reading: • Victoria Stilwell Train Your Dog Positively • Pamela Reid Excel-erated Learning • John Bradshaw Dog Sense Reprinted with permission from Happy Dog, LLC. www.HappyDogKy.com .