Siena is our 13th service dog we’ve had a hand in raising. And she’s the 13th dog that doesn’t know what the word “no” means. How can that be, I hear you saying. She must be a monster if you don’t say “no.” She, like the other dogs we’ve raised, are very well behaved and don’t find any valuable information in the word “no.”
I don’t use that word in my training. I don’t need it and here’s why:
“No” doesn’t give the dog any information whatsoever as to what he should be doing. Here’s the thing — unless your dog is dead, he’s always doing something. He’s sleeping. He’s barking. He’s sitting. He’s chewing a bone. He’s running. He’s laying down. He’s doing something all the time.
A living thing can’t exist without doing something. So, the smart dog owner says to herself “What can I teach my dog to do that’s acceptable to me?” [Hint: what the smart owner does not say is: how can I get my dog to stop doing x.]
It’s 100 times easier to teach your dog what to do than it is to get him to STOP doing something. Because in order to get your dog to STOP doing something, you’ve got to insert something ELSE — remember, only dead dogs do nothing.
Here’s my hint to you: it’s a whole lot easier to simply teach your dog what to do than to waste time thinking about how to STOP something.
An example may help illustrate this idea. Let’s say your dog jumps when people come to your house. Almost everyone says “how can I get my dog to stop jumping” and all they do is work on getting rid of the jumping. It’s frustrating — to you, to the dog, and to your guest. Because trying to stop the jumping the hardest solution to a very simple problem.
If you’re a smart dog owner, you’re thinking: what else can my dog do so he won’t jump on people. Forget about stopping the jumping. Focus on what your dog can do — that you can reward — that will get you to your solution. There are so many things your dog can do instead of jump. Here’s a partial list:
- sit
- lay down
- go to a specific spot (his bed or crate, for instance)
- run to his toy box to grab a toy
- go belly up for tummy scritches
- perform a cute trick like dancing or begging
- touch the guest’s hand with his nose
- the list is endless.
So instead of saying “No!” repeatedly, you can simply teach your dog to do any one of these behaviors, reward him heartily, then sit back and wait for your guests to tell you how well-behaved your dog is!
Great Dane, Siena, has learned how to put her front paws up on the counter. This is not a good thing. She’s not very tall now, but she can still reach the countertops! Give her a few more months and she won’t have to get on her hind legs to reach, she’ll be able to simply stand on all four feet with her chin on the counter. Instead of saying “NO!” everytime her paws hit the counter — which would be such a downer — I’m either ignoring her and then praising her like crazy when she finds nothing and gets down on her own or I’m redirecting her to put her feet on the floor (then adding in that praise). In addition, I’m reinforcing her for sitting while I’m doing food prep. Amazingly [from her perspective] food jumps off the counter and onto the floor only when she’s sitting. She can actually make food jump into her mouth if — and only if — she sits politely when I’m prepping for dinner.
Voila! I’ve got a dog who lays down quietly while dinner is being prepped. It really is that easy!
Siena’s our 13th dog and I’ve not used “no” yet. I challenge you to think of something else for your dog to do instead of saying the word “no.” It’s a crutch you don’t need. I promise.
Hmmm, this brings up a question. Isn’t it useful to have no (in my case, I say enh) to interrupt a dog in the middle of doing something dangerous?
Cherie, our foster pup, likes to chew on electrical wires. Yes. we’ve learned to put things away so she can’t get to them. But if we fail, I rely on a quiet enh to catch her attention so I can get the cord out of her mouth and replace it with a toy. I understand it wouldn’t work with every dog. But my “soft” pups usually stop whatever their doing if I make an odd noise.
Elka has many talents; responding to the word “no” isn’t one of them. She seems to understand that “no” on its own doesn’t really mean anything, and challenges me to “use my words!”
I find myself using “Excuse me” if she’s doing something that I want to interrupt; she looks at me, and then I give the redirect instruction. It tends to work very well.
It’s funny, food jumps into Elka’s mouth from the counter as well, if she’s sitting or in a calm down while I cook! Kitchen magic!
Wow, although I still use the ‘do nothing no’ word, I have gained awareness and have continually caught myself. Until just reading this blog post I can say now ‘I get it’! Yes, this has given me an ‘Ahh-Haa’ moment! Thank you!
I’ve found that the constructive solution for my dogs has been to teach a cue for “FREEZE!” (The actual words I use are “hold it!”) It’s much more positive than “no” in that it’s a positively taught cue for a very clear action. (I first taught it before going through doors, and it spread from there.) Once the dog is frozen, it’s easy to fix the situation and go on to something fun, without any punishment involved.
This is especially good for dogs that are tangled in something. Being able to tell them to just hold stock still for a moment while I get them untangled has saved a lot of trouble over the years.
Are you SURE you don’t want to open a branch office in Seattle? It’s really, really nice out here. Mountains, water, city; we’ve got everything. Puleeze?
Well said!!! My dog, Peanut, also doesn’t know the word No. Amazing what happens when you focus on the positives. And Jeanne, check out Ahimsa Dog Training in Seattle. http://ahimsadogtraining.com (full disclosure, that’s my school).
Hi Pamela,
Thanks so much for stopping in and leaving a comment. Would Cherie respond to your simply calling her name? When she looks at you, you could then tell her what to do — like come to you, sit, lay down, whatever. Generally, if I see one of my dogs contemplating about whether to do something (especially if it’s something I’d rather they not do, like counter surf, for instance), I can call their name in a friendly voice, thereby interrupting their thoughts and have effectively stopped a problem before it even starts. And I, of course, heap on the reinforcement for doing the “something else” behavior! 🙂 Thanks!
Jen, I love that Elka challenges you to use your words — so true, isn’t it?! Yes, excuse me is a great interrupter. I find myself using a version of that, too, occasionally. Thanks for stopping by!
It’s hard to change our habits. Good on you for being so self-aware!
Freeze can be a good one, too. I’m loving all these cool ideas – thanks for sharing!
Jeanne, you’re so sweet. I think I’d like Seattle — you really know how to sell it, that’s for sure! Thanks for reading and for stopping in! I have relatives in Camas, WA and my nephew goes to school in Seattle. Seattle is on my to-do list, I’ll look you up when I eventually get there!
I love the dogs who don’t know no! 🙂 Thanks for dropping by, Grisha!
I love saying “excuse me” to get a dog to move out of the way. I really like the idea of teaching the dog to go to place or sit or some other thing rather than jumping up. However, when an unexpected person arives and there is no time to pre-cue the dog, I wonder how the dog processes the positive reinforcement of having gotten off the person versus being told no when jumping up on them? To me, it almost seems we are teaching the dog to jump up to be reinforced for jumping off – when being told “no jump” is the clearer instruction.
Sheryl, yes, I, too, like that “excuse me.” Instead of no jump, which is so vague, “sit” is so much clearer for the dog. Another word telling the dog what *to do* can always be inserted instead of the word no. And — the cool part is when the dog does sit, he’ll get heaps of reinforcement: praise, petting, attention, lovin’…
Thanks, Grisha! Yes, I am familiar with your school and wonderful ways of training. You are a legend around here (: and beyond. I have been very fortunate to work with a couple of great trainers through SHS, and feel so blessed to have resources like yours and Laurie’s to better my ability to partner with my dogs.
“Amazingly food jumps off the counter and onto the floor only when she’s sitting. She can actually make food jump into her mouth if — and only if — she sits politely when I’m prepping for dinner.”
OMG that happens to me too! At first I thought it was magic and then I figured out that mama thinks I am so cute when I am sitting patiently that she cannot help but drop little pieces of sweet potato in my mouth.
She is a smart cookie! I wonder sometimes what it would be like with a “less sharp” (meaning smarts, not temperament) dog. Other dogs I’ve known seem to know “no”!
Hi Jen, thanks for the dialogue! I do think dogs know that if they don’t quit doing whatever they’re doing, the consequences will not be good. My problem with “no” is that it doesn’t tell the dog *what to do* AND (this is even more important to me) that someone could just as easily tell the dog what to do *instead of* just “no.” The word “no” to me, is a lazy way to interact with a dog (or a person). I have to open my mouth to say “no,” wouldn’t it be just as easy for me to tell the dog what to do?
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