Clicker Training

I'm excited to announce I've been invited to give a seminar for Your Dog's Friend in Potomac this Saturday entitled What Dog Trainers Know – That You Don't! I'll be talking about shaping, luring, targeting and capturing from 3:00p – 5:00p.

The talk is free, but you must register. Dogs aren't allowed – it's a people-only talk, so your four-legged friends can stay at home.

Shaping, luring, targeting and capturing are all techniques that trainers use to teach dogs (and anything else) many different behaviors.You'll learn what each of these are, how to use them, the pros and cons of each technique, how to use the techniques to solve problems, teach your dog manners, and do tricks.

Come on out and join us – it'll be fun and informative! And you can meet Lily, my little black Labrador (she's great at shaping, luring, capturing, and targeting – and loves to work, so she's the demo dog for the event.)

Nemo's expression reflects my attitude toward nail trimming. I hate it. I don't enjoy it. I avoid it as much as I can. 

But it's a necessary evil (actually it's not really evil, but that's how I feel about it!). And I need to teach myself and my dogs to tolerate it.

So today I worked with both Tango and Nemo on conditioning them to nail trims. Except we didn't jump right to nail trimming straight away.

There are lots of smaller steps we need to go through before a nail gets trimmed. And if we go too quickly or skip over a step, that will actually put our training back several steps. So what are those steps?

1. First, the dog must be comfortable with my handling his paws. Tango's ok with this, Nemo is not.
2. Next, the dog must be comfortable with the nail clippers touching his nails.
3. Additionally, the dog must be comfortable with my handling his paws and the nail trimmers touching his nails.
4. Finally, the dog must be comfortable with the sound and sensation of the trimmers actually cutting a nail.

I worked with each dog individually and used super delicious treats that they don't normally get. For both dogs, I started out asking them for their paws. I didn't hold onto the paws, simply wanted them to volunteer their paws. Each time the dog volunteered a paw, they earned a click and treat (c/t).

Once the dog was offering his paw, I began to gently hold the paw for a second (and only a second!). For the 1 second hold, the dog earned a c/t. If they didn't offer their paw, I didn't force them to give me their paw and I didn't pick up their paw. They simply didn't earn a c/t.

It's important to go at your dog's pace. Cooperation cannot be forced or rushed. If the dog is stressed, I'm going to be stressed. And I'm already stressed because I'm doing something I don't necessarily like – nail trims! So I want each of us to be as happy and comfortable as possible. Cooperation is the only way to get there.

Nemo began to slow his paw offerings. Instead of waiting for him to offer the paw, I gently touched his paw. At the very moment I touched his paw, I also c/t. By doing this, I was keeping him engaged in the "game," and lowering my criteria. I lowered my criteria because he couldn't do what I was currently asking: give me his paw voluntarily. He was quite happy to let me touch his foot for a c/t, so that's where we stayed until he was again offering a paw.

I was able to quickly move through that step and could then begin touching Nemo's paw with the clippers. Initially, he was a bit unsure of this step. (In the past, I've trimmed a nail or two while he's been asleep in my husband's lap. He's growing wise to my tactic, though, which is why I decided I needed to teach this skill, step by step.) But with only a few reps, followed by yummy treats, he quickly discovered that having the nail trimmer touch his foot was actually a good thing!

It'll take awhile before the dogs are ready for me to trim a nail (and before I'm ready!), but we'll keep working dilligently, a few minutes each day until each of us are comfortable enough with the process. I'll update the Blog with our progress!

After the first vocabulary lesson (Read the first part) you now know that a professional dog trainer isn't likely to use the term "correction" because it isn't a scientific word and has no use in the field. I promised we'd talk about the difference between positive reinforcement and rewards, so off we go…

At first blush, the words reinforcement and reward look like they might mean the same thing. But as we look a little bit deeper, you'll see the difference – and how that difference can affect your dog's training.

"Reward" refers to giving (or receiving) something to compensate for a service. Whereas "reinforcement" refers to strengthening something. You reward a person for turning in a criminal by giving them a sum of money. You reinforce a bridge with steel beams and make it stronger.

In terms of behavior, the only thing increases the chance that behavior will happen again is reinforcement. Here's the difference between a reward and a reinforcement: the person (or dog) gets to choose the reinforcer (you can't tell me that an Almond Joy bar is good, especially if I don't like almonds!). But in a reward, the thing that is given (cash in our example above) is just laid out – regardless of who the recipient is or if cash is valuable to them.

So what's the difference? Well, if you're Bill Gates, what good is $1,000? Not a whole lot. How appealing is an apple pie if you've just finished a five-course meal, complete with double chocolate mousse as dessert? A reward doesn't ensure that behavior will repeat. If the reward is truly a reinforcement, the behavior will repeat. But if the reward isn't reinforcing, the behavior probably won't happen again.

A reinforcement, by definition, increases the chances that the behavior will recur. So if you gave me tickets to the opera as a reward for watching your dog, I probably won't volunteer to watch your dog anymore – I don't like the opera! However, if you gave me tickets to a Redskins game at FedEx field, I'd be asking you when I could watch your dog again!

The bottom line: make sure you know —and provide — things your dog loves as reinforcement for behavior you like. Not things you think your dog should love, but things that really float his boat.

Each of my dogs requires a different reinforcement for a job well done. For Tango, a chance to swim is on the top of his list. For Nemo, being chased by me is a huge reinforcement. And Lily would like nothing more than some one-on-one attention from my husband. If I tried to reinforce Tango's good behavior by chasing him (Nemo's favorite thing), I'd probably see less of Tango's good behavior because I'm not really reinforcing it.

Remember: the dog knows his own reinforcements – you can't tell him what he should like. No more than I can tell you that you should like boiled brussel sprouts because they're so good for you.

Quick – what's the difference between a correction, an aversive, and a punishment? It's ok if you don't know -  but your dog training professional should definitely know the difference!

A correction is a non-scientific term with a multitude of definitions. Which makes it pretty useless in the world of animal training. You're not likely to hear a professional trainer who knows behavior science use this word.

What's being corrected? How does that help the dog's behavior change? What is the correction? How can you tell if it worked?

How about an aversive; what's that? A scientific word, this term describes something that's not particularly pleasant. It can be, but isn't necessarily a punishment. It will help clarify if I define punishment.

Punishment suppresses behavior. If it doesn't suppress behavior, it is not punishment. So if you "punish" your dog by yelling "Off!" when he jumps on you, and that doesn't suppress jumping, it's not punishment. Or in human terms: if you punish your teenager for missing curfew by taking away the car, and he's still coming home late, grounding him is not punishment.

So now, back to the aversive. An aversive is something that isn't pleasant. But it doesn't necessarily constitute punishment. For example, you yell "Off!" at your dog when he jumps. He doesn't particularly care for the yelling, but it doesn't stop him from jumping. In my world, an alarm clock ringing at 5:00a is an aversive. But I still set the alarm every night. No, I don't like getting up at 5:00a, but it's a fact of life.

Next time, we'll talk about reinforcements and rewards – what makes them different and why you need to know.

So, ask your dog training professional the difference between a correction, an aversive, and a punishment – and find out if he really knows his science. It makes a big difference to your success with your dog!

The saying goes like this: "The only thing two dog trainers can agree on is what the third is doing wrong." While not exactly accurate, there is a shred of truth there. Dog training methods are somewhat like religion and politics in that each trainer has an opinion and we are convinced that our way is the "right way."

While there are lots of ways to approach a problem, and plenty of tools available to trainers, one thing remains the same: the science never wavers. Research in behavior science has shown that behavior that is reinforced will be repeated. Behavior that is punished is suppressed. Behavior that isn't reinforced simply goes away.

Notice that punishment only suppresses behavior – it doesn't get rid of it.Yet so many trainers are devoted to the use of punishment. Usually called a correction, trainers rely on punishment as the primary method of getting rid of behavior. And sometimes punishment looks like it works, which makes it reinforcing for the person using it. It's a tricky trap – because what you see isn't always what you get.

Sometimes the dog associates the punishment with the person – so the "bad" behavior doesn't happen when the person is around, but the minute that person is gone, the "bad" behavior comes right back. A good example of this is going to the bathroom in the house: the dog goes into another room to do his business. Why? Not because he "knows he's bad," but because he never gets in trouble for going to the bathroom inside if the person isn't in the room. The dog doesn't really understand that he should go outside – he only knows to get away from that person. That's not at all what you're trying to teach the dog, is it?

In more serious cases, punishment can lead to fear, anxiety, and even aggression.Your dog growls, you yell at him. He growled because he felt threatened or was afraid, and you yelled. Do you think you helped the situation? Sure, the growling went away, but the underlying cause didn't. Now, the next time your dog feels threatened or frightened, he'll skip the growl and head straight for the nip or the bite. Not because he's necessarily an aggressive dog, but  because the person punished the growl but never got to the root of the problem (the fear or anxiety).

Finally, you can't teach a dog what TO DO by using punishment. Punishment only suppresses behavior – it doesn't help the dog figure out what TO DO. Don't waste your time using punishment – you're only suppressing behavior at best. Instead use positive reinforcement and teach your dog how to behave. Positive reinforcement will give you more of the good behavior. It's much easier to teach the one or two things you'd like your dog to do than spend your days yelling "No!" (More fun for you AND the dog.)

 

   A common problem dog-people encounter is their dog not coming when called. Systematically training a recall isn’t difficult, but it does take consistency and practice.

First, be sure your dog knows what the word "Come" really means. (Note: you can use whatever word you want for the recall. In this entry, I’ll use the word "Come.") How do you know if your dog really knows it? Try it out in different situations with variable difficulty. Call your dog (indoors) when he’s just laying around. He should be pretty good at that – no distractions. Then call him when someone else is in the house with you. Call him away from his food bowl. Call him away from his toy. Call him away from the door when guests are entering.

As the situation gets more distracting, the dog will probably have a harder time following your request. Not because he’s stubborn or dominant, but because it really is harder to do what you’re asking in the face of those distractions.

Plan your training sessions around naturally occurring distractions. If your dog is interested in the school bus when it lets off the kids, get prepared ahead of time with some really yummy treats. Have your clicker handy, too, and go out in the yard about 5 minutes before the bus usually arrives. Work with your dog, asking him to do easy stuff like sits and downs. Click and treat each success. Get him really interested in working or playing with you, so that when the bus comes, he has a reasonable chance of success.

When the bus shows up, you’ll need to really up your rate of reinforcement. What this means is that you’ll need to find really easy stuff for your dog to do, so you’re able to click and treat quickly and repeatedly. So it might look like this:

Fido, sit. Click and treat (c/t). Fido, watch. C/T. Fido, touch. C/T. Fido, sit. C/T. Fido, down. C/T. Fido, Come. C/T. All of that happens in about 10 seconds. LOTS of clicking and treating! Make this really easy for the dog to get right!

Why? We want the dog to figure out that hanging out with you is a lot more rewarding that paying attention to a distraction. Once the dog figures that out, it’s easier to get success with the recall.

Keep working with small, but noticeable distractions with your dog. Always have your dog on leash unless you’re in a fenced yard. You don’t want your dog to reinforce himself by running off and having a grand time!

Also, make sure what you’re using as a reinforcement (reward) is better than what your dog is leaving or giving up in order to comply with your request. Never use the word "Come" to start something yucky like giving a bath, trimming nails, or putting your dog in the crate and leaving for work.

And never ever (ever!) reprimand your dog for coming – even if it’s 5 minutes after you called him and he stopped at every bush before getting to you. Reward him a ton, and he’ll come even faster next time knowing that you’re more rewarding than some old bush!