Weekly Tidbits - May 26, 2021
On my mind this week and random things from around the web on dogs, behaviour and training.
The “Intangibles” of Training
When I first started learning about modern reward based training, something Karen Pryor pointed out in her book “Don’t Shoot The Dog” stuck with me. It has become something of a foundation for my approach to all of the training I do with my dogs. She talks about there being “two aspects to shaping” behaviour but I think these two aspects apply to all training. The two aspects are methods and principles.
Simply put, methods are WHAT you do when training a behaviour - “lean into the dog” (prompt), “give a marker signal when they make any backward movement” (mark), “deliver the treat and reset” (reward). These are tangible step-by-step instructions that you follow to teach the behaviour. Most training books and classes are focused almost entirely on methods.
Principles are WHY and HOW you do those things and these can cover a broad range of things, all of which can affect the effectiveness of your training. When and where should I do this training? How long should my training session be? When and how should I raise my criteria by reducing prompts or requiring more behaviour? Do I take training breaks and should I leave my dog to relax or engage them in play during those breaks? These are all things that can affect motivation and my dog’s readiness to learn.
Getting and keeping my dog’s interest is a big part of being able to teach them. But it can be just as important to keep the training fun. These are two of the “intangibles” of dog training. They will vary based on the dog you are working with, the behaviour you are trying to teach, or even the environment in which you are working with your dog. These intangible principles of training often come with experience and it seems that the best trainers have an intuitive understanding of them. But, like any other skill, understanding and applying these principles can be learned.
There are lots of great books out there that include good training principles along with examples of good training. Most of the best trainers will talk about principles when they teach seminars or classes. I try to make it a habit to learn about the principles behind any new training method I learn so that I can be as effective as I can when I use it. Training isn’t just about following the steps in the right sequence to get the behaviour you want. Learning the principles of behaviour and animal learning will make you a better teacher and will make training easier and more fun for your dog!
Quickly Quickly Teachy Doggy
Speaking of training principles, let’s talk about one. I’ve learned over the years that it can very much matter how quickly you move through repetitions during training. What’s a repetition? Think of it as a “try” to get a behaviour. Whether you lure or prompt or shape, a repetition is defined by the opportunity for the dog to earn a reward. So why does it matter if you do 2 repetitions in a minute rather than 10 or 12? Because it affects your dog’s ability to learn what you are trying to teach them.
Let’s take a step back for a moment. Learning, from the dog’s perspective, is the process of discovering what behaviours “work” and get rewarded and which behaviours don’t. So a big part of teaching my dog is to make it really, really clear what is being rewarded. Leaving time between repetitions creates all kinds of opportunities for distractions and things not related to learning the behaviour I’m teaching.
In a way, it’s about pattern recognition. If you see something demonstrated 4 or 5 times in a row, you are likely to remember it because you were focused on it and gave it your attention. On the other hand, if you saw the same demonstration only once a day for 4 or 5 days. Your recollections might be a bit foggier because of all the other things you thought about between those demonstrations. It’s the same with training our dogs. The more time and things that happen between successful repetitions, the fuzzier the learning can become. Can the dog still learn? Yes. But it’s not as easy, it’s not as effective, and it’s not as much fun.
How fast is fast enough? Well, now we’re stretching into other principles of training. Not all dogs need the same pace for learning. It’s important not to stress the dog by making the pace too fast. And, of course, we have to keep the success rate of our training high by using the principles of setting our dog up for success when we design our training plans.
Mostly, it’s about not distracting the dog. Working quickly reduces opportunities for both your dog and you to engage in non-learning behaviours. Lots of celebrating (“Good boy! You’re just so awesome.”) or fumbling with food or training aids might be distracting enough for your dog to lose the plot. That’s means more repetitions before the learning can happen. Working quickly means working cleaner and keeping distractions out of the way. Just remember to take breaks and not overwhelm your dog!
Dog Discussion Disappointments
If you are like me, you joined lots of social media discussion groups about dogs and training. Back in the day I was very excited to be part of lots of Facebook groups dedicated to “positive training.” I even joined a couple of organizations in order to gain access to their discussion groups. I was hopeful that these would be places where people shared knowledge and compared notes about how their training was going. But instead of finding a supportive community trying to get better at working with their dogs, I found myself watching or participating in one philosophical debate after another about some aspect of dog science or dog training.
I went to these groups to share what I knew and to learn what others had discovered. But something was missing. Actually several important things; honest engagement, charity, and questions. I found that many of the people chiming in on discussions were not doing so for their own learning or out of a sense of sharing what they knew with others. Their posts were not honest engagement in conversation so much as they were declarations of one kind or another meant to please others who felt or thought the same way. Replies to these posts were often met with the most cynical and uncharitable interpretations of what had been written. In some cases, it seemed to me that people were mostly agreeing but were still arguing so that one could be declared a “winner” by the rest of the group.
And questions were scarce. If someone posted something about a training idea or technique, replies came fast and furious but never in the form of questions for clarification. If a post said that a prong collar was suggested for a 115 pound Rottweiler until a better training protocol could be established, in minutes there would be 20-30 replies about the evils of prong collars or the incompetence of the trainer who suggested it. But not a single question about the details of the situation, the reasons this might be considered the best option at the time, or even whether the original poster had heard of an alternative training method that could be explained to them.
Needless to say, after a few years of watching this circus and even trying to participate, I just gave up. I pulled myself out of social media dog groups. In doing so, I know that I “threw the baby out with the bath water” so to speak. There are good people having good, productive discussions about dog training on social media. I just wasn’t lucky enough to be a part of enough of it to make it worth my time. But maybe it’s time to reconsider.
I know many of you are still part of dog discussion groups out there. I’m wondering if your experiences were more productive than mine. I’m wondering if I’m missing out on some useful places on social media that I should be a part of. After all, I’m not finished learning and while books and blogs are great ways to get input, maybe some fresh conversations would do me some good. So let me know what you think.
What are your favorite dog discussion groups and why are they worth spending your time on them? Or maybe you have a caution about groups to stay away from. Either way, I’m interested to hear what you have to say!
I absolutely agree about the overload of information out there on Social media on dog training and behaviour, both good and bad. It has managed to create friction and non productive discussions amongst our group of friends and dog parents. Unfortunately people tend to take a firm stand as opposed to being open to learning and sharing experiences. After years of experience with dogs, the most important thing I learned is that each individual is different and although basic training principles remain the same, pulling out tricks from all that I have learned is invaluable. With my next puppy, I do hope to participate in fun and positive training classes with the goal of building a strong bond with my dog. I value in person group training approach for the first 2 years of a dog's life.
Thank you for promoting positive discussions on dog training!
Dominique
Victoria, BC