Back To Basics

Positive Reinforcement. Balanced. Compulsion. Force Free. Science Based. Clicker Training. Nothing In Life Is Free. Shock Jock. Behaviour Adjustment Training.

The list goes on and on and on and on and on….

Different types of training, different methods, protocols, ideas, etc etc. Type in “how to train a dog” in a search engine and you will generate thousands of different hits, many of them varying slightly and largely.

We haven’t even added in certifications and memberships.

And we also haven’t even added in education platforms…go ahead and Google “how to become a dog trainer”, the options are endless (and here’s a hint, MANY of them are useless…did you know that you don’t need any qualifications to open a “school”?).

What an overwhelming area for the novice dog owner to navigate, let alone if they have a dog with behaviour problems and need help NOW.

Never has the term “buyer beware” been most accurate then when it comes to the world of dog training. In a completely unregulated industry, saturated with people who truly do want to help dogs, the choices and options can easily cause mental overload. It seems every trainer has the “next best thing” when it comes to training ideas, and that they have discovered some awesome new magic solution to treating behaviour problems.

But here’s the thing…the honest truth…there is no “next big thing” when it comes to dog training. The world of training has become so overwhelming difficult to navigate due to every new trainer wanting to be the best of the best. In this world, it is difficult as a “science based” trainer to sit back and watch owners and new trainers get caught up in the whirlwind idea that some new gadget or training method is the sure fix to their dogs problems. It’s become overly complicated.

So let’s bring it back to basics for a while shall we?

There is one thing that all trainers should know and know well: Learning Theory. How dogs learn. Taking the time to fully and properly understand learning theory will take much longer then the results promoted from some new trend, but it is so worth it because you never have to waste your time spinning your wheels with client dogs ever again.

Back to Basics.

Every trainer should be fluent in learning theory. It matters.

So what is it?

 

Classical Conditioning:

A term coined by Pavlov, Classical Conditioning refers to deeply rooted uncontrollable emotional responses that one develops as associations to a stimuli (person, place, thing, etc). Learning by association.

A dog can develop either a positive or negative conditioned emotional response to anything in its environment.

An example of a positive conditioned emotional response (CER): Rustle your dogs food or treat bag and see his response. That is a +CER…makes the dog feel good, happy, excited.

An example of a negative CER: pull into the vets office and turn around to find your dog drooling or shaking, maybe tail down between his legs.

When you have a CER of any kind, it is important to know that the dog is not in control of his/her response. The response occurs without foresight and planning. It’s automatic based on repeated positive or negative outcomes to the trigger (the thing that creates the response).

Operant Conditioning:

A term coined by B.F Skinner, Operant Conditioning refers to learning by “consequence”. When X occurs, Y immediately proceeds it and determines the likelihood of X occurring again in the future.

It is in Operant Conditioning that you will find the term “positive reinforcement”. Positive Reinforcement belongs to what is called the QUADRANT of learning. There are 4, obviously  haha, parts of the quadrant. Two of them result in an increase of behaviour, and two result in a decrease of behaviour.

1. Positive Reinforcement
2. Negative Reinforcement
3. Positive Punishment
4. Negative Punishment

Let’s pull them apart a bit more shall we?

Positive Reinforcement:

ADDING something GOOD in order to INCREASE a behaviour occurring. Example: The dog sits, the dog gets a cookie, the dog will sit more.

Pros: humane, scientifically proven most effective, easiest to understand, and quickest form of learning for the dog.

Cons: if not used properly you may reinforce the wrong thing, dog may put on a few pounds.

Positive Punishment (skipping # 2, negative reinforcement for now)

ADDING something BAD (Aversive) in order to DECREASE a behaviour occurring. Example: Dog jumps up, gets a shock, dog stops jumping.

Pros:

Cons: Overwhelming amount of studies providing evidence that P+ based methods hardly ever permanently solve the behaviour problem and in fact actually increase other anxiety based problems, it is incredibly difficult to implement “effective punishment” in the real world.

Negative Punishment:

REMOVING something GOOD in order to DECREASE a behaviour occurring. Example: Dog jumps, person turns back to remove attention, dog stops jumping.

Pros: considered second gentlest of the quadrants, can be used in a force free manner.

Cons: If selected for use inappropriately then it can create some emotional turmoil (dog doesn’t know what to do to get what they want, just what NOT to do). Example used above is a poor one admittedly as the act of jumping can be very self rewarding to a dog or it can be occurring out of anxiety, in which case turning your back will serve no purpose. Again I go back to if used inappropriately it can create stress. One can minimize this risk by following up immediately with R+

Negative Reinforcement:

I saved this for last as its the most difficult to understand.

REMOVING something BAD in order to INCREASE a behaviour occurring. How the heck does that happen? Example: pinching dogs back, they sit and pinch stops, they sit more often to avoid pinch.

Pros:

Cons: Many. R- works primarily off of avoidance. The dog learns to do (or not do) something in order to AVOID pain or discomfort. This can cause a significant amount of anxiety and stress in a dog…imagine never knowing if you are or are not avoiding something bad.

 

Here’s the reality of the parts of the quadrant: ALL OF THEM CAN WORK. Yes. This is true. When we are looking plainly at one single behaviour (lets say jumping up) and we train a dog to not jump, we can absolutely use any of the quadrants.

But ethics, morales, education, and more tells us which one we can and should use first and foremost. We also know, from decades of studies, that R+ is the only quadrant with no emotional turmoil or negative side effects – of course so long as the trainer is using it right. Once you master R+, you don’t need to bring in positive punishment or negative reinforcement, you truly have everything you need.

Lets take the dog who jumps up:

Positive Reinforcement: options include training an alternate behaviour such as “sit” when greeting people.

Positive Punishment: kneeing dog or shocking dog when they jump. You are also sending the message that greeting people can be dangerous – you can’t pick and choose what you want the dog to learn, they learn from what is presented in front of them despite what your intent is.

 

When do you use Operant Conditioning and when do you use Classical Conditioning? Well the truth is, often times in real life these two things intertwine. Even when you are training tricks with OC (operant), the saying goes “Pavlov is always on your shoulder” which is CC (classical). Dogs form associations to cues: “time for a walk” vs “time for a bath” (assuming they don’t like baths.

Sometimes you need to split them apart though. If a dog is experiencing a CER- (like fear) you can’t teach them to perform a behaviour with Operant Conditioning. You first need to use Classical Conditioning elements to alter the CER- into a CER+, then you can train.

Just as my child would not be able to learn algebra when sitting in the closet where he thinks the boogeyman lives, a dog cannot learn obedience cues when scared of his surroundings.

You first have to deal with the fear.

 

Going back to basics and learning them well is essential for any trainer. What I provided above is a very simple overview of both Operant and Classical Conditioning, but there is a tremendous amount of information more belonging to each area. There’s much that can interfere with learning, and many mistakes that can be made.

It’s not enough to just understand the surface. The trainer you select to work with must understand all the nuances and details belonging to each. This is how dogs learn (this is how people learn!) and it is imperative that trainers understand it. Sure those who come up with their own little tricks may hit it lucky every now and then, but if I throw enough darts blindfolded I’m sure to hit some high points on the dartboard every now and then also. Flukes are not reliable.

 

 

Carrie Castaldi ~ Owner Positive Paw Dog Training ~ http://www.positivepawdogtraining.com

 

 

 

My Dog Pulls On Leash!

I often have people asking me what type of tool should they purchase to help stop their dog pulling on walks, and my answer is never entirely clear cut! You will mostly hear me land on a front clip harness…my favourite being the Freedom Harness…and there are of course other humane options (as opposed to choke chain or prong collar) such as head halters like Gentle Leader and Halti brands.

I usually answer front clip harness because harnesses take significant less time to condition your dog to then a head halter does…and there is no physical risk if the dog does a lunge for any reason as there would be with a head halter. By and by, my preference for a walking tool is a front clip harness.

If your dog constantly pulls on the leash, something absolutely needs to be done to address this – even with a humane flat buckle collar, tremendous damage can be done to your dogs throat/trachea and often this damage is irreversible. However, when asked “what tool should I buy to help with my dogs pulling”, my answer “front clip harness” is not the end of the conversation. I recommend the harness to help alleviate the pressure from the dogs neck, not as a tool to train your dog with.

The answer to reduce pulling lies strictly in training loose leash walking skills. Period. Will putting a head halter on your dog, or a harness, prevent them from pulling? In *most* cases, YES it will, because when they pull it becomes uncomfortable or their body is redirected slightly and they learn to avoid this discomfort by not pulling. I say *most* cases because there are some very dedicated pullers out there who will learn to pull through any tool.

With a walking tool, your dog is physically prevented from pulling due to the tool that is on him, he is not actually learning or changing his mindset. He is simply avoiding the discomfort and succumbing to the fact that he can’t go. Ask anyone who decides to walk without the head halter one day…the dog will revert back to pulling really quickly.

But my major concern with preventing something physically and not mentally, is that they still WANT to pull. The desire is still there, but something is physically blocking them from getting it. Many dogs will begin to develop some form of frustration, or even anxiety which may manifest in a multitude of different ways. They may even develop an aversion to the tool itself (have you ever seen a dog try to avoid a harness or halter? They lower their body with ears down, even turn their head away).

At the end of the day – we have not solved the problem. And the problem is not that the dog pulls…the problem is that he has not learned to stay close to you. He is not purposely doing something wrong, or trying to be leader! He is simply being a dog and trying to go do dog things.

Why do dog pull to begin with??

Here are some common reasons:

1. We don’t walk as fast as they would like. Dogs seem to be very comfortable moving at a trot, and the bigger the dog…the bigger the steps!

2. The smells over there are VERY alluring…dogs can pick up a small interesting scent very easily, and if it’s a novel odour they are more driven to go explore it. After all, smelling things is how a dog explores their world!

3. Pulling has been reinforced. What? You may be asking “how?” How has it been reinforced?? It got him to where he wanted to go didn’t it? Think of that cute little puppy that you hooked on the leash for the first time and then YOU followed HIM around as he sniffed and explored! Pulling is reinforced when it gets them to where they want to go. A reinforced behaviour is likely to repeat in the future.

4. Finally…and to me this is the most essential one…they just haven’t learned what is expected of them! We put a leash on a dog and we assume they understand it means “stay by me”. But do they know that? NOPE! They are going along…doing their own thing…and then all of a sudden BAM…hit the end of the leash.

The goal to teaching loose leash walking is to reinforce the dog for being near you, for teaching them that it is better and more rewarding to be near you, and not wandering off all over the place.

Leash corrections don’t work, ask anyone who uses them and I am confident they will tell you that they have to repeat them each walk. Often times the motivation of getting where they want far outweigh the leash correction. The dog will respond to the correction for a little bit of time, but eventually they head off again.

In short; loose leash walking begins at home, in the house, off leash. It begins by reinforcing your dog for looking at you, orienting their attention to you. Then as you begin to walk around you will reinforce them for catching up to you. Then you increase your expectations and reinforce them as they stay by you, zigzagging all over the house.

Then you move it all outside and start from square one again.

Once that is mastered you add in the leash, and do the exact same.

Finally you begin to increase distraction by moving to the front lawn/driveway. Slowly, bit by bit you begin to walk further away from the house.

A high rate of reinforcement is absolutely necessary. This can be slowed down at a later time but it is essential to get things going and establish the behaviour you want.

Working at this daily, you can yield results in a matter of a couple weeks. It truly is not a lengthy process. Each dog does learn at a different rate and its important to note that dogs who do experience anxiety or fearfulness to anything in the outside world may struggle with this until their fear is addressed first.

Some common mistakes when training loose leash walking includes:

– too low a rate of reinforcement…remember, this can be reduced once the behaviour is established. It will not last forever. But it will yield tremendous results!

– pushing through distractions too fast

– allowing the dog to practice the pulling behaviour in between training sessions. You may need to drain your dogs energy in the backyard and through mental games while this training is going on. If pulling is permitted, then there is a lack of consistency and it’s much harder for the dog to learn.

– reinforcing the incorrect behaviours. You get what you reinforce, and if you reinforce the dog looking over his shoulder at you, then you will establish that behaviour. If you reinforce the dog returning to your side from up front, then that is the behaviour you will establish. Be sure only reinforce for STAYING at your side, not drifting away and then returning…then you have a ping pong dog!

Finally, allow your dog the opportunity to stop and sniff. They love to sniff. Sniffing is AMAZING to them. Give them mental breaks frequently with a cue like “all done” or “go play” so they can move away from your side a bit and sniff…or pee!!

Walks should be enjoyable for everyone involved! They are relaxing and bonding and great for physical and mental health. Happy walking everyone!

Carrie Castaldi ~ Positive Paw Dog Training ~

289-926-9627 ~ positivepawdogtraining@gmail.com

A Dogs Quest for World Domination

Apparently, this is how the day looks through the eyes of our power hungry, rule the world canine friends…

6:30am ~ aha, the door on the box has been opened, now my conquest shall begin…watch out humans, I shall claim my rightful place at head of the realm today.

6:45am ~ bwahaahaa it begins already, these simple fools have provided me with my breakfast before they ate…oh, no wait…He has eaten already, guess he rules me…but I own the rest, oh yes, I own the rest

6:55am ~ I will allow him to put on my leash, because the real test comes up now…door opening…opening…and GO!!! hahhaaaahaaa I was out first! yes! score 1 for the dog

7am ~ pulling here, pulling there, twisting here, smelling there, tugging here, almost tripped Him there…control is mine, all mine!

7:30am ~ clearly I won, they all left from fear of my master plan and ruling the house. They are likely plotting to rule the world, I will need to be on alert when they return.

4:30pm ~ aha…they return….I better stake my claim quickly by jumping all over them. Mine! Mine! Mine! My house!

6pm ~ fools. simple fools. I’m eating on the kitchen floor and not in my box. I am making them weaker. They are slowly bending to my will.

8pm ~ perfect…they are on the soft thing. This is where my victory will arise. Fall humans, fall. Fall to your own demise by making such weak and foolish choices. Watch me raise myself to the head of the house by climbing onto this soft thing next to you. See…I am now at level with you. I own you. Kneel before your righteous king.

9pm ~ back in the box. Back to the drawing board. Maybe tomorrow I will try sitting on them when they are on the floor….

 

The actual, much simpler truth:

6:30am ~ woohoo, I’m out! Hi human, Hi toys, Hi door, Hi window, Hi everything!!!!

6:45am ~ food, nom nom nom nom nom nom nom, crunch crunch, nom nom

6:55am ~ Leash! Walk! Door! Outside! YAYYYYYYY

7am ~ good smells here…who was here…whats over there…smell smell smell smell

7:30am ~ snore

4:30pm ~ yayyyyy people!! hi! hi! hi! hi!

6pm ~ food, nom nom nom nom nom nom nom, crunch crunch, nom nom

8pm ~ oooooooo soft thing! tummy rubs!!

9pm ~ bed. night time.

 

Despite the determination of some, the theory that dogs are out to “dominate” us, or be “leader of the pack” is absolutely preposterous. There has yet to be any evidence that even remotely backs up this claim. It is one of those beliefs that just won’t die: I believe because it is much easier to use this theory to justify any punishment based methods, and it is often much easier to use such methods then to commit to positive reinforcement training.

For example;  take a dog that gets comfortable on the couch, only to be removed by a human by being pushed off or having their space invaded rudely enough that they finally get up and go. After repetitions of this, the dog realizes that the human approaching is a precursor to something unpleasant for them, and so they growl. It is all too often that the human in this case interprets the growl as the dog trying to assert his dominance over being on the couch, which serves to fortify their belief that being allowed on the couch teaches a dog he is higher in a pack. In fact, and a much simpler explanation, the dog is only reacting due to anticipation of an unpleasant event. But the human, believing his dog is out to rule the world, takes it as a sign of dominance and therefore punishes the dog further. This increases the dogs anxiety about the presence of the human. It becomes a snowball effect until the dog is described as aggressive and dominant, surrendered to a shelter…etc etc.

It is a dangerous and slippery slope to inject our own perceived motivations onto our dogs behaviour. A dog rushing out the door is just excited to get outside, he is not claiming leadership. Think simplicity. Don’t overcomplicate things by creating something that isn’t there. The old saying…when you hear hoofbeats think horse, not zebra. A dog pulls on the leash because it gets him where he wants to go, he hasn’t been taught not to. It is not a quest for world domination. Yes these are all behaviours that we don’t want a dog to participate in, and yes good manners is very important. I am not saying a dog should pull you out the front door. But we need to stop thinking of them as mini Trump’s.

 

Carrie Castaldi ~ Positive Paw Dog Training ~ positivepawdogtraining@gmail.com

My Truth About Hugging A Dog

Over the last couple of weeks the internet and local news stations were plastered with a “study” that proved dogs do not like being hugged and that it can increase their stress and anxiety. The “study” was completed by Dr. Stanley Coren, a Psychologist and well regarded dog guru. Dr Coren has written numerous books about dog behaviour. I had the pleasure of meeting Dr Coren and listening to one of his seminars in 2007 at the annual conference for the Canadian Association of Professional Pet Dog Trainers. He speaks eloquently and full of detail when referring to his work, and he is always quick to crack a joke. Also speaking at that conference was Dr Ian Dunbar, who is legendary in the field of positive reinforcement, and between Coren and Dunbar we were not left without a good chuckle.

The point is, Stanley Coren is not just an “average person” as many comments I have read allude to. He has decades of experience and quality research behind him. His opinion does matter.

With that being said, allow me to take a moment to briefly clarify some misleading comments that have been running rampant since this article has been released. The key word in my last sentence is “article”…I repeat, ARTICLE. What was written was just that, an article. It was not a part of scientific research, nor was it a completed study. It was an observation by Dr Coren after viewing 250 pictures on the internet of people hugging a dog. A scientific study is not completed in a matter of days, nor under such loose guidelines. A scientific study gathers all possible information, sorts through different variables, limits the unknown, covers all possibilities, and then gets put up for peer review…at which point other scientists do the same while accounting for other variables such as the original scientists possible bias when selecting subjects and components to the study. Essentially a study is pulled apart from every single angle possible. This was not done here, and it is imperative that we address and understand this. Dr Coren himself states that it is an observation based on data and that once the word “data” is used, people take it as science and factual. So if it wasn’t a study, what was it? It was, plain and simple, an observation. An observation performed by someone respected in his field of expertise. Why do I feel the need to emphasize this? Because many people are dismissing 100% of what Dr Coren has said due to the fact that the websites that chose to publish the article did so with sensationalized headings in order to gain interest. He has not said it is a valid study, he has claimed it for what it is – observation based on data. So be careful not to throw out the baby with the bathwater…just because the heading is misleading does not mean there is no merit to the content.

Moving forward.

There are many terms tossed around in the dog world that refer to how to tell if a dog is feeling stressed. Terms you may have heard include Displacement Behaviours, Self Directed Behaviour, or even Calming Signals. To be clear, the first 2 terms listed are the ONLY ones which have any scientific backing and they mean the same thing! A displacement behaviour is a self directed behaviour which one participates in if experiencing what is interpreted as turmoil between 2 strong emotions (such as fear and anger), basically nail biting is a self directed behaviour. Displacement behaviours have strongly been studied and researched in the field of behavioural science. Calming Signals is a phrase coined by Turid Rugaas regarding behaviours she believes dogs send out in order to calm each other. She compiled an extensive list of these behaviours, such as lip licking, yawning, scratching, etc, but this list has in no way to date been backed by scientific findings and many of these behaviours she classes as calming signals are also displacement behaviours. The work done by Turid Rugaas is extremely impressive and I have enjoyed reading her findings. I am not saying that there is no merit there, I am simply saying that we just don’t know enough about calming signals to quote them as factual. More research should be conducted first. Displacement behaviours, however have been studied and can be backed up with concrete findings. However much needs to also be addressed when trying to interpret displacement behaviours, and I will discuss this further on. These displacement behaviours are the behaviours which Stanley Coren looked for when he reviewed the pictures.

In his observation on hugging, Dr Coren noted that 81.6% of the dogs were demonstrating stress behaviours such as head turned away, tongue flick, “whale eye”, and more. It is believed that if these signals go ignored, a dog will escalate into a growl, and then eventually a bite. So, we know that many of the dogs in the pictures are showing behaviours that can be described as displacement behaviours. What we do NOT know is WHY the dogs are exhibiting these behaviours and this is truly the most important part lacking from the observations; is the dog actually stressed, is the stress because of the hug, what type of exposure did each dog have to the person hugging them before the picture was taken, what kind of handling the dog is used to, or what happened to the dog just before the picture was taken. These missing parts are essential if we want to take this “study” as factual. We do not KNOW that the dog is stressed by the hug in these pictures. Referring to these pictures and these pictures alone, we actually don’t know anything about what the dog is feeling. All we know is that they are exhibiting signs that a stressed or anxious dog also shows, but they are also signs that a content dog may show…A lip flick on its own does not mean stress, it may also mean that the dog just ate a treat or sees something yummy. A yawn on its own does not mean stress, it also means the dog is actually tired. Looking away on its own does not mean stress, it also may mean that someone or something moved over “there”. On and on, you get my point. You cannot take a displacement behaviour on its own and interpret it as stress or anxiety. Some times I chew my nails because I have a hangnail, and sometimes a dog yawns because they are tired. Just because they are participating in a certain  behaviour does not mean they are stressed, everything must must must be taken in context. With that being said, I can personally tell you that I most often err on the side of caution when it comes to witnessing possible displacement behaviours. For example, when we pass a dog being walked on the street, my kids know they must ask me AND the dogs owner if they are allowed to pet them. If the dog looks away from my kids on approach or yawns after a few strokes, I encourage my kids to say goodbye and move along. Truthfully, I’m fully aware that the dog may have yawned because he’s exhausted from a long hike, or may have looked away because he knows a cat lives in the house across the road. We never really know what a dog is feeling, but if theres a chance that he is stressed with my kids petting him, our visit is done. With the information we have about stress signs, and the ability as a qualified trainer who is familiar with dog body language, we can absolutely make our best guess to a situation based on case history – but we likely never really know (unless we can become canine mind readers). We guess that the dog is uncomfortable with the hug because he is showing behaviours that are consistent with a stressed dog.

So, to take a moment to summarize all this jibber jabber of mine; It was not a scientific study conducted, it was simply observations by an experienced individual. These findings do not prove anything concrete as there are many variables that have not been considered. These findings also don’t not prove anything either…

 

What the heck Carrie, can we hug our dog or not???

All I’ve done so far is tell you that what Dr Coren observed MAY or MAY NOT be true…frustrated with me yet?? LOL. My goal with all info above was to bring light to the reality of the document that was published as well as insight into some canine behaviour to avoid future misunderstandings. Dr Coren’s findings are something that deserves a great deal of discussion because based on what we do know for a fact, there is a great amount of concern for safety if we do not take to heart what he has said.

It is my personal opinion that most of those dogs in the pictures probably do not enjoy hugs – at least by the person hugging them in that moment. This does not mean that all dogs do not enjoy hugs, or that your dog does not enjoy a hug from you. But there are some important elements to make sure we keep in mind:

1) Hugging is a very intimate behaviour involving body parts touching. I’m not comfortable with a stranger hugging me, and I am very confident that neither is my dog even though she seeks out close personal attention from me.

2) Timing is critical. Your dog may tolerate or even enjoy a hug, but if they are laying down napping, or intently watching a squirrel out the window the hug will likely not be as readily accepted.

3) A hug is a HUG. For the purpose of this discussion it is not snuggles on your lap or jumping up in your arms. A hug is the action of putting your arms around your dogs neck and squeezing. I believe that dogs tolerate hugs, mine included. They seem to LOVE cuddles and rubs, but for the most part seem to just tolerate hugs.

4) Puppies can and should be exposed to hugs early on from a variety of people in order to condition them to this kind of touch. Why?? Because the chance of some stranger or even child hugging your pup when he’s grown into a full size dog is way too high to not take the steps to prevent a bite. By making a hug a pleasant experience with your puppy by pairing hugs with juicy pieces of chicken, you can reduce future risks. Just as a dog can learn that a leash means really good things or really bad things, I believe they can also learn the same about a hug (this is oversimplifying it slightly, as many more elements exist to conditioning a dog to a hug then to a leash…).

5) Unless you are absolutely 100% certain that your dog not only tolerates but actually enjoys hugs, refrain from using them as a means of reinforcement for a behaviour. If the reinforcement you are offering is not pleasant in the dogs mind, its not really a reinforcement is it?

So in conclusion; some dogs dislike hugs, some tolerate them, and maybe some actually love them. We don’t know for sure, but there is evidence suggesting that it is not a very pleasant experience for the dog. Do not hug a dog that is not your own, and be aware that your dog may not actually like an actual hug from you. This does not mean he does not love you, but it means he doesn’t show his love in that way.

 

Carrie Castaldi

Positive Paw Dog Training * positivepawdogtraining@gmail.com * 289-926-9627