Training 4 Paws

The Stalking Game

annika — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 11:10:40 +0000

The Stalking Game

A game for dogs that like to hunt

Hunting is your dog’s favorite hobby? Instead of spoiling the fun, go cooperative hunting!

If you need to recall your dog from a chase, the Double Recall will help him to return to you.

Your dog likes orienting towards sounds? Then he will love the “Blind Search“!

Der Beitrag The Stalking Game erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.

Part 2 – Isometrics in Husbandry – The Dog to the Brush!

annika — Sun, 17 Mar 2019 12:20:00 +0000

The Dog to the Brush!

Part 2 - Isometrics in Husbandry

An idea travelling from Germany to Scotland an beyond

In summer 2018, I was able to spend three months with Claire Staines from Lothlorien Dog Services as a part of the European exchange programme Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs. The programme is all about the exchange of ideas and best practices between host and new entrepreneur, looking at these ideas with a fresh eye and adapting them to suit local requirements.

The German dog trainer and behaviourist Ute Blaschke-Berthold transferred the Isometrics from human physiotherapy to behavioral work with dogs. Her idea was influenced by Kayce Cover’s protocol for body targets.

The Isometrics travelled in my tool box from Germany to Scotland and Claire creatively developed them to suit her client’s needs.

Isometric Exercises - putting your dog under pressure

In the Isometric Exercises, you use the palm of your hand to build pressure on a group of your dog’s muscles and use the effect that your dog in turn must also build up pressure to stay in balance. Through the tension of the muscles and the subsequent relaxation, the muscles are gently trained.

In part 1 Isometric Exercises – putting your dog under pressure you can find the protocol.

The dog to the brush!

Mac is a deaf border collie who doesn’t like to be touched and groomed. Brushing makes him nervous. By using Isometric Exercises, Claire teaches him to go to his guardian Jill, who is holding the brush, rather than the brush going towards him. This gives him choice, control over what is happening and the possibility to stop whenever he feels uneasy. By using isometrics instead of “normal” target training, Mac learned to apply the pressure on the brush by himself, which is needed for effective grooming.

Step 1: Bar open - bar closed

In a first step, Jill works on changing the association, that Mac has with the brush by playing the game: “Bar open – bar closed” Whenever the brush is presented to Mac, the bar is open, which means, that Mac receives a yummy treat whenever he looks at the brush. As soon as the brush disappears, the bar is closed and there are no more yummy treats. Soon Mac starts to eagerly anticipate the brush to appear.

Step 2: Adding Isometrics

In a second step, Jill teaches Mac to target her hand, using the protocol of the Isometric Exercises as described in Part 1. Then she adds the brush as a target and slowly builds up the stroking movement. By the end of the session, Mac is proud of his voluntary fluff pile from the no force and no bribery brushing session. He did tell Jill he had had enough by not coming back in so that’s all for today, but the two did manage one bum cheek though.

Der Beitrag Part 2 – Isometrics in Husbandry – The Dog to the Brush! erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.

Part 1 – Isometric Exercises – Putting your dog under pressure

annika — Wed, 06 Mar 2019 12:23:04 +0000

Isometric Exercises

Putting your dog under pressure

Part 1 - The basic idea

Older dogs still want and need physical and mental excercise to stay fit and active. Mac is 11 years old and one of the participants of the Senior Dog classes at Lothlorien Dog Services. To gently strengthen Mac’s muscles, Claire Staines teaches him and his guardian Fiona Isometric Exercises. In the Isometric Exercises, you use the palm of your hand to build pressure on a group of your dog’s muscles and use the effect that your dog in turn must also build up pressure to stay in balance. Through the tension of the muscles and the subsequent relaxation, the muscles are gently trained.

The German dog trainer and behaviourist Ute Blaschke-Berthold transferred the Isometrics from human physiotherapy to behavioral work with dogs. Her idea was influenced by Kayce Cover’s protocol for body targets. The initial idea was to achieve relaxation in the dog through activity but she quickly realized that you can do a lot more with Isometrics.

Who benefits from Isometric Exercises?

Older dogs to maintain muscles
Dogs recovering from sickness or injury to buid up muscles
Dogs who don’t like to be touched
Dogs who have difficulties to relax
Younger dogs and puppies that need to develop body awareness

How does it work?

Each touch is done consciously and is announced by an info cue, so that the dog is prepared for the touch and can make a choice. Does he want to be touched or not. This is an important point for dogs that have problems with being touched. If your dog shows any signs of discomfort, you went too fast.

The Protocol

You need: An info cue (such as “Touch” or “Iso”), marker signal or clicker, high value treats

Prepatory exercise for dogs who don't like to be touched

Procedure:

Say your info cue “touch”, wait half a second
Move your hand towards your dog’s shoulder without yet touching it. Take care that your hand only gets as close as your dog feels comfortable with
Give your marker signal and a treat.
Slowly remove your hand
Repeat this several times until you can actually touch your dog without him showing signs of discomfort.

Step No. 1

In step No. 1 you touch your dog’s shoulder
The procedure:

Give your dog his info cue, wait half a second
Move your hand towards the shoulder of your dog and gently place it on his shoulder muscles
Mark and give him his treat. The hand remains on your dog’s shoulder
Wait until your dog has eaten and slowly pull your hand back
Repeat this a few times. If your dog recoils, you’ve gone too fast.

Step No. 2

In the second step you apply slight pressure on your dog’ shoulder.
The procedure:

Give your dog his info cue, wait half a second
Put your hand on the shoulder of your dog and gently apply pressure
Mark and give him his treat as long as the hand still puts pressure on his shoulder
Wait until your dog has eaten and slowly pull back your hand
Repeat this a few times. Your dog should not dodge the touch.

Step No. 3

In the third step, your dog should apply back pressure.
The procedure:

Give your dog his info cue, wait half a second
Put your hand on your dog’s shoulder and apply gentle pressure
Wait until your dog leans against it and applies counter pressure
Mark and give him his treat as long as he is still applying counter-pressure
Wait until your dog has eaten and slowly withdraw your hand

When retracting your hand, make sure that your dog does not lose his balance and falls over. If your dog is very reluctant to counter pressure, mark and reward even the slightest back pressure. You can do Isometric Exercises on all your dog’s muscle groups, e.g. on the inside and outside of the hips, on the inside and outside of the shoulders, on the neck etc. Make sure that you always train both sides.

If your dog is very excited outside, you can also do the isometric exercises outdoors. Start in a distraction-free environment. By tensing and relaxing his muscles and focusing on specific areas of his body, his mind will also relax.

In summer 2018, I was able to spend three months with Lothlorien Dog Services as a part of the European exchange programme Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs. The programme is all about the exchange of best practices and new methods between host and new entrepreneur, looking at these ideas with a fresh eye and adapting them to suit local requirements.

The Isometrics travelled in my tool box from Germany to Scotland and Claire creatively developed them to suit her client’s needs.

Part 2 will be about these adaptations of the Isometrics.

Der Beitrag Part 1 – Isometric Exercises – Putting your dog under pressure erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.

Disaster Alert! – Teaching your dog an early warning cue

annika — Sun, 16 Dec 2018 12:37:08 +0000

Disaster Alert! - Teaching your dog an early warning cue for unexpected noises

Part 1 - In Germany

You’re out walking your dog and see some kids at the bus stop about to set off some firecrackers. You know that a loud bang will happen right away and that your dog will be scared. Wouldn’t it be great if you could send him a warning: “Watch out, it’s going to be loud, but you don’t have to be scared. Everything will be fine.” And wouldn’t it be fantastic if, instead of running away in panic, your dog would even turn to you after an unforeseen bang? With the Disaster Alert for Dogs, you can kill three birds with one stone: You have the opportunity to inform your dog about an imminent danger, through training you will achieve that your dog will reorient himself to you if something unforeseen happens and at the same time your dog gets used to very different sounds and thus noise anxiety is prevented.

Disaster Alert for Dogs – The Protocol

Step 1 – Noises are yummy!

You need a bunch of keys, an assistant and lots of very good treats.

Start by having the assistant drop the keychain to the ground from a very low height and at a distance from the dog. As soon as your dog orients himself to the sound, you click or give your marker signal and give your dog a very delicious treat.

Noise – dog orients towards the sound – mark and give a yummy treat

Repeat this many times until your dog automatically reorientates towards you when the assistant drops the keychain.

After a while, your assistant drops the key from higher up or closer to the dog.

PLEASE NOTE: Your dog must never be afraid of the noise during this training. When desensitizing, we always train below threshold. If your dog is over threshold, it is not possible anymore for him to get used to the noise and to learn that there will be a treat after the reorientation! In this case, it is necessary to increase distance and to lower the intensity of the noise!

Step 2 – Generalization: ALL noises are yummy!

If your dog has learned that the spooky sound is not so spooky after all and that he reorientates himself to you as soon as he hears it, then you now need a lot of different things that cause very different sounds, e.g. a pot on which you can bang with a wooden spoon, a carton box falling to the floor, a tin box with rattling nails in it, a noise-making toy, bottles and cans banging together, a paper bag that you can inflate and burst, etc.

You introduce each of these new sounds just like the keychain in step 1. That means the helper starts again with a very low noise intensity and a large distance to the dog.

Practice in different places with different sounds. The goal is for your dog to turn to you without thinking at each unexpected noise. You can now use this tool outside and in case of emergency, for example if you are on a walk and suddenly a firecracker is set off somewhere. As soon as your dog hears the noise, you mark and give him a very good treat.

Step 3 – The info cue: Disaster Alert for dogs

Now it’s time to introduce a cue that announces to your dog that a sudden noise is about to happen.

Just before your assistant drops something, you say “Disaster Alert!”, so your dog learns that something will happen when he hears that informational cue and reorientates himself to you.

“Disaster Alert!” – noise – marker – dog reorientates towards you – super yummy treat

Are you out and about with your dog and see that a sudden noise is about to happen, for example a firecracker is set off, you can now warn your dog with “Disaster Alert!”.

Of course, you can use this info cue in various situations if you see something that you know will frighten your dog.

Der Beitrag Disaster Alert! – Teaching your dog an early warning cue erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.

Orienting towards sounds

annika — Sun, 09 Dec 2018 12:47:40 +0000

Orienting towards sounds

The Games Dog People Play - in Germany

Hunt for sounds together with your dog by teaching him to have his eyes shut

Hunting makes dogs happy!

Predation is a behavior chain consisting of several sequences that are intrinsically reinforcing for your dog and merge into each other: orientate, search, eye-stalk, chase, grab, kill and eat.

Orientation - The first sequence of Hunting Behaviour

The first part of the behavioral chain is orienting towards a stimulus. Your dog sees, smells or hears something that attracts his attention and he tries to locate where that stimulus is. Often we miss this first sequence of hunting behaviour and react much too late, when the dog runs off. In the process, we would have had the time to prevent our dog from hunting by offering him an alternative behaviour. If we specifically give our dog the opportunity to live out this first sequence of predation through Cooperative Hunting, we train ourselves to recognize orientation behaviour in our dog and we will be able to keep our dog from uncontrolled predation. Moreover, the intrinsic need of our dog will be met and he will not be constantly in search of acoustic stimuli.

"Blind Search" - a Hunting Game

In the game “Blind Search”, your dog learns to orient himself towards the sound of a falling treat and then to search “blindly” for it. To be successful, your dog must use both his ears and his nose. Too often, search tasks can’t really count as nosework because our dog sees from the beginning where the object of desire is hidden or thrown. However, covering your dog’s eyes is a trick that must be taught slowly and cautiously.

"Eyes shut" - A Test of Courage and a Vote of Confidence

As for us humans, visual perception is the most important sense for our dogs as well. If a dog voluntarily allows a human to cover his eyes, it is a great vote of confidence and a real test of courage! With this trick, you teach your dog that an unpleasant, aversive action, such as having his eyes covered, finally can lead to a positive consequence, like a treat search.

Informational Cue "Eyes Shut" - The Protocol

The important thing is that you do not simply overpower the dog, but instead announce the covering of the eyes beforehand. Nanook’s informational cue is “eyes shut”. Then I give him a second to adjust to what’s coming before I hold my hand up.

In the next step, it’s important NOT to put your hand on the dog, but to lure the dog into your hand with a treat. Give him the treat and then take your hand away from his eyes.

If you’ve repeated this so often that your dog knows what it’s all about, you can skip the treats and wait to see if your dog moves towards your hand by himself. You mark and reward this movement as long as the eyes are still covered. When your dog has eaten his treat, you take the hand away.

Info cue: “Eyes shut” – wait 1 second – hand moves to eye level of the dog (NOT towards the dog!) – dog moves his face towards the hand – eyes are covered – mark and treat – hand releases the eyes

If your dog reliably presses his eyes into your palm, then you can extend the time by delaying the marker signal.

A wonderful way to increase duration as taught by my Scottish colleague Claire Staines from Lothlorien Dog Services, is the method 300 Peck.

Now it’s time for the actual game: give your dog his info cue that you’re about to cover his eyes, throw a treat into fallen leaves or dry grass so that he has to orientate himself towards the sound of the fallen treat and let him search for it.

It's just a Game!

Many dogs find it creepy to have their eyes covered. In the video you can see that Nanook isn’t 100% comfortable with the the training of “Eyes shut”. Especially as soon as I leave out the treat, he’s showing signs of avoidance, like for example ears pinned back, panting, blinking or tongue flick. He does not really enjoy putting his eyes into my palm and needs some prompting to persuade him. Only in connection with the search game he is showing a joyful body language again. Having his eyes covered costs Nanook impulse control, so I only play the Blind Search occasionally. The “Blind Search” should always be enjoyed by both you and your dog, so if your dog really doesn’t like it, then do not force him! After all, this is just a game! Zum gemeinsamen Spiel gehören immer zwei und wenn dein Hund Meideverhalten zeigt und keinen Spaß an diesem Trick hat, dann zwinge ihn nicht dazu! Schließlich ist dies nur ein Spiel!

Cooperative Hunting makes you both a team!

Through Cooperative Hunting you have the opportunity to work your dog physically and mentally on his daily walks in a way that meets his canine needs. If your dog is allowed to excercise individual sequences of predation in a save environment, then he no longer has the strong need for solo hunting adventures and he can be better controlled in critical situations.
Through the joint activity that is highly rewarding and satisfying for your dog, he also links all the positive feelings with you. Instead of being the annoying factor that spoils the fun, you’re now the one who enables him to succeed in hunting. This has a positive effect on your relationship.

Der Beitrag Orienting towards sounds erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.

Calm the Beans – Teaching Leash Frustration

annika — Sun, 02 Dec 2018 12:37:44 +0000

Calm the Beans

The Games Dog People Play - In Scotland

Your dog is losing it when he is not allowed to greet another dog on leash? With the game "Calm the Beans" he learns that throwing a tantrum is not the best way to get what he wants.

When Jagger wants to say hello to another dog on leash or when he wants to sniff out an interesting spot, he simply pulls the leash with his entire body weight and guardian Lorna has no chance to hold him back. If this strategy does not lead to the desired success, Jagger starts to bark and lunge in frustration.
Jagger has come to the “Focus for Fido” class of my mentor Claire Staines from Lothlorien Dog Services to learn to express his wishes in a more polite manner. He should learn to ask his guardian Lorna instead of barking and lunging in frustration.
Claire teaches Jagger a game called “Calm the Beans” which shows the dog that a tantrum on the leash is not necessarily the best way to get what you want.

"Calm the Beans" - The Protocol

Throw a treat so your dog can see it but can’t reach it. Keep the leash tight but don’t pull your dog back. Now you have to wait patiently until your dog comes up with the idea of reorienting himself towards you or at least stops pulling. This is the moment you click or give your marker signal. As a reward, your dog can have the treat on the ground. Practice this until your dog quickly reorientates towards you after you have thrown the treat. Then you can use the game in other situations: Does your dog want to sniff at a lamppost? Instead of letting him pull you along, stop and wait until he has reoriented himself towards you. Mark and send him to the lamppost as a reward. Your dog is dying to say hello to another dog, wait for him to reorient himself towards you and send him to the other dog as a reward.

What can go wrong?

Your dog is so focused on the treat on the ground that he is not able to reorient himself towards you. In this case, you already mark every slight improvement towards calm behaviour, i.e. when your dog stops pulling on the leash or stands four feet on the ground for a split second instead of barking and lunging.

Why does the game indeed "Calm the Beans"?

The reward used in the game “Calm the Beans” is a so-called primary reinforcer, which means, it is exactly what the dog wants at that moment. Primary reinforcers are the most powerful reinforcers available to us to reward behavior. Claire uses the Premack Principle: A behavior that is likely to occur (eating the treat on the ground, sniffing at the lamppost or greeting the other dog) effectively reinforces a behavior that is not very likely to occur (reorientation toward the human). In order to use the Premack principle effectively in very different situations, you can write a list of primary reinforcers, i.e. things in your dog’s environment that your dog loves and for which it is worthwhile for him to perform a behavior that you ask him to do in these situations.

Do NOT play "Calm the Beans" with reactive dogs!

The game “Calm the Beans” is suitable for dogs who are easily frustrated by the limited freedom of movement on the leash. It is NOT suitable for dogs with a fear or aggression issues! How do you diagnose whether your dog is barking and lunging at the sight of another dog out of frustration or out of fear or aggression? If your dog has no problem with other dogs off leash, if he loves to play and gets along well with other dogs, but throws a tantrum on the leash if he is not allowed to greet other dogs, it is most likely a case of leash frustration, not leash aggression. To be sure, ask a positive dog trainer for advice. At the end of the course Jagger learned that he has the opportunity to politely communicate with Lorna to get what he wants and that he doesn’t have to bark and lunge frustratedly. By repeating the game and rewarding with different primary reinforcers from the environment according to the Premack Principle, Jagger will continue to learn that focus on his guardian Lorna will pay off. Note: Always use a harness when playing “Calm the Beans”.

Claire Staines' "Calm the Beans" tutorial

Der Beitrag Calm the Beans – Teaching Leash Frustration erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.

What’s the Name of the Game?

annika — Fri, 12 Oct 2018 11:09:00 +0000

What's the Name of the Game?

Why it makes sense to tell your dog what his reward is going to be by using an info-cue.

In Cooperative Hunting you don’t want to interrupt or stop your dog’s hunting behaviour. But how do you achieve that your dog stops and controls himself more often and longer at the triggering stimulus instead of rushing after the game? By naming rewards and announcing them to your dog, you can functionally enhance your dog’s NOT-hunting with hunting.

What reward follows after you have clicked or given your marker? In almost all cases, the dog is rewarded with food. Food is great as a reinforcer, because it is easy for us to carry and most dogs love to eat.

However, it can lead to problems if your dog is only rewarded with food. If your dog has learned that the marker signal is always followed by a treat, he will make a choice: Is a cookie really what I want at the moment?

Imagine your dog is about to chase a rabbit. You give your marker signal for him still standing and watching the rabbit and now your dog weighs: Should I really call off the hunt and get my dry cookie, or isn’t it much more fun to chase after the rabbit?

Link the marker signal to numerous primary reinforcers

In order to avoid this predictability, it is important that you link the marker signal not only to food, but also to many different primary reinforcers.

A primary reinforcer is everything that makes your dog happy and what he would like to have in this moment: food, play, digging, sniffing, social contact, swimming, off-leash time, etc.

Examples for primary reinforcers could be:

Recall your dog, mark and send him for a swim as a reward,
Let your dog do a nose touch and send him to his dog buddy as a reward.
Ask your dog to keep a loose leash and then as a reward remove the leash.

Give your reward a name!

From all these environmental reinforcers you can now choose some that your dog will love. These super rewards now get a name.

One of Nanook’s favorite rewards is “bowling”. If I give Nanook the info cue “Bowling”, then he knows that I will roll a treat over the floor and that he can rush, grab, and eat this treat.

With the bowling reward, numerous sequences from hunting behaviour are covered, that meet the dog’s intrinsic needs.

The Protocol for Info Cues

Like any cue, the info cue is first built up in a low-distraction environment. It is important that the info cue is given first. So I say loud and clear “bowling”. Only then do I reach into my treat bag, take out the treat and roll it over the floor.

Info cue “Bowling!” -> wait 1 second -> reach into the bag -> roll treat
As with every classical conditioning, you connect emotions and expectations in the dog with the cue. If he hears the word in the future, this word alone triggers the emotions in him that are connected with the acutal reward (chasing).

Once the dog has learned what the word means, you can use it outside as a reward for desired behavior.

The Info Cue as a reinforcer

Your dog sees a rabbit. Instead of giving your marker signal, you now say the info cue “Bowling!“ Your dog now knows what reward awaits him and ideally knows where that reward awaits him (behind him and away from the stimulus). He knows: “Ah, ok, if I now turn away from the rabbit, then I may still chase cookies back there with my human.” Now it will be much easier for him to turn away from the rabbit and return to you.

What is your dog able to do at this particular moment?

Reward info cues are an offer to your dog. They tell him for example: I’m going to roll a cookie back here. If you want and if you can, come join me and chase the cookie.

If your dog is not able to take advantage of this offer, then it was probably not the right reward at that moment. Try out a little: What is your dog able to do right now? What does he really want in this particular situation?

Reinforcers have to be functional

Reward info cues should be as functional as possible. This means that they should come as close as possible to the behaviour your dog actually wants to show. If your dog likes to chase, bowling is an excellent substitute.

If your dog would like to dismantle prey, you can wrap up his reward in a paper bag, which you throw in the opposite direction after the info cue “Shredding”, so that he can grab, dismantle and eat it.

If your dog likes to watch game with his eyes, reward him with the stalking game.

Static and dynamic reward Info Cues

To reward your dog according to his needs, you should name both calm and dynamic reward info cues.

Nanook’s static reward info cues are:

“Cookie” – a treat is delivered directly to his mouth
“Stalk” – I play the stalking game with him
“watch movie” – Nanook is allowed to follow the game with his eyes, four feet on the floor

Nanook’s dynamic reward info cues are:

“Catch” – I throw a treat that he can catch in the air
“Bowling” – I toss a treat across the floor for him to chase
“Go sniff” – treats are tossed on the floor or I show him an interesting place to sniff
“Dig” – I show him a mouse hole or sand pitch
“Shred it” – I throw him a paper bag or toilet roll with treats inside

Managing your dog’s level of excitement

With the help of static and dynamic reward info cues you can influence your dog’s level of excitement.

If your dog is watching a rabbit and is not able to turn around to you when you offer him to bowl because he is simply too excited, first give him some biscuits directly into his mouth with the info cue “cookie”. If he can accept them, you already have one foot in the door. Now try again to ask him to bowl.

You can actively relax your dog after a wild chasing game with the help of a static reward info cue and avoid frustration. After the dynamic chase you announce the calmer “sniffing” and sprinkle some treats on the ground. Finally, announce „Cookie“ and give him a treat directly into his mouth.

Pimp your Dog Training – Part 1: “300 Peck” for Distance and Duration in Dog Training
Pimp your Dog Training – Part 2: Cooperative Hunting
Pimp your Dog Training – Part 3: Goldilocks and the 3 Bears

Der Beitrag What’s the Name of the Game? erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.

Goldilocks and the 3 bears

annika — Sat, 29 Sep 2018 11:14:00 +0000

Goldilocks and the 3 bears

Increasing your dog's motivation through polarized training

Pimp your Dog Training: Part 3 (Scotland)

Do you sometimes get stuck in training , so that your dog loses interest? The fairy tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears can help keep your dog’s motivation high.

Kyla gets scared when strangers get too close to her in an unfamiliar environment and she sees no way to increase the distance to them. To prepare her for an upcoming vet visit, her guardian Katie came to work with Claire Staines of Lothlorien Dog Services. Kyla is to learn with the help of the Bucket Game that she can interrupt the veterinary treatment at any time, if it gets too much. The problem: Kyla is not a fan of many repetitions in training. If she has performed a task, she does not see much purpose in repeating the training. In order to maintain Kyla’s motivation, Claire trains Kyla according to the Goldilocks principle.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

On the wooden kitchen table, there were three bowls of porridge. Goldilocks tasted the porridge from the first bowl:

„This porridge is just too hot!“ she howled.

Next, she tasted the porridge from the second bowl.

„This porridge is just too cold!“ she shivered.

So she tasted the last bowl of porridge.

„Yum, this porridge is just right,“ she said with a cheeky grin as she winked and ate it all up.

The Goldilocks Principle

I guess, you are wondering now what thie fairy tale of Goldilocks and the three bears has to do with dog training?

The Goldilocks principle says that motivation is highest, when the task is not „too hot“ , not „too cold“, but „just right“ for the learner.

Motivation is experienced when the ability of the learner and the difficulty of the task are in sync.

If the task is too difficult for the learner’s ability, frustration arises. The task is “too hot”.

If the task is too simple for the learner’s ability, boredom arises. The task is “too cold”.

If the degree of difficulty of the task and the ability of the learner are in balance, the learner experiences a kind of motivation boost.

The task is “just right”.

Why does the Goldilocks Principle work?

If the learner moves in this golden zone, where the work is challenging but feasible, he will be in a kind of flow of maximum efficiency. The ability to progress and tackle and solve problems becomes an intrinsic motivator.

This also happens in our dogs.

The Goldilocks Principle as polarized training

Kyla gets three different tasks at three stations:

Difficult: Since Kyla should gain a bit more self-confidence, Katie teaches her to touch a plastic plate with one paw. Kyla is a very cautious dog who is afraid of doing something wrong. She finds this task quite difficult. The task is almost “too hot”.

Simple: Kyla’s favorite cue is to go and stay on her mat. This behaviour has such an extremely positive reinforcement history that it is intrinsically rewarding for Kyla and no longer needs to be rewarded with a treat every single time. The task is almost “too cold”.

Medium: The Bucket Game. To prepare for the visit to the vet Kyla learns to look at a basket filled with treats. This is the signal for the veterinarian that Kyla is ready for the examination. If Kyla turns away from the bucket, the examination will be interrupted immediately. Kyla likes the Bucket Game. The task is “just right”.

Katie works with Kyla alternately at the three stations. If Kyla’s motivation decreases at one station, Katie moves with her to another. In addition to the three useful behaviours, Kyla learns self-efficacy and that she always has a choice: If you do not want to do this, then do something else. Through the motivational flow, Kyla makes progress in all three behaviours and learns that she is not forced into a frightening situation. She retains control over what happens to her and can even relax at the end of the lesson.

Pimp your Dog Training – Part 1: “300 Peck” for Distance and Duration in Dog Training

Pimp your Dog Training – Part 2: Cooperative Hunting

Pimp your Dog Training – Part 4: What’s the Name of the Game?

Der Beitrag Goldilocks and the 3 bears erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.

Cooperative Hunting

annika — Sun, 26 Aug 2018 11:21:00 +0000

Cooperative Hunting

Hunting is your dog’s favorite hobby? Instead of spoiling the fun, go hunting together!

Pimp your Dog Training: Part 2 (Germany)

Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could find a way to use the huge amount of motivation and pleasure that our dogs find in hunting for our training and to intensify our relationship with our dogs?

Most conventional training programs aim to interrupt and stop the dog’s hunting behavior, either by a positive interrupter, such as the recall or by conditioned pain or fear.

Afflicting fear or pain is unethical and forbidden according to animal wellfare law in Germany.
What is more, even the interruption of hunting behavior by a positively established recall is often not really successful.
A problem common to both methods is that they work against the nature of the dog and what he actually wants at this moment: go for a hunt!

Hunting makes our dogs happy. It‘s an inner need that they have and completely surpressing it is like putting a lid on a pot with boiling water. It only increases the pressure.

Of course, you can not allow your dog to set off on uncontrolled hunting trips, but you can creatively find ways to practice predatory sequences together with your dog in a controlled and safe environment.

What is Predation?

Predation is a behavior chain consisting of several sequences that are intrinsically reinforcing for your dog and merge into each other: orientate,search, eye-stalk, chase, grab, kill and eat.

Your dog does not have to go through the complete chain to release endorphines. Individual sequences are enough to make him feel joy and satisfaction. Many dogs no longer perform the whole chain of behavior due to breeding selection. Some sequences have been bred out, others more highlighted.

It does not need to be mentioned that allowing your dog to kill is an absolute no-go. Besides that, which of the above sequences are your dog’s thing? You know your dog best. Make a list and write down his top 3.

Learning the vocabs

Now name the individual behaviors that your dog likes to perform and teach them to your dog. For example, whenever your dog is looking for a deer on the horizon, you name the behavior that your dog shows by saying the cue “Stalk”. This has two advantages:

As soon as your dog knows the cue, you can start to use the cue to reward your dog. Instead of holding him back from hunting for deer and completely interrupting what he wants to do, you can allow him to continue hunting the deer with a “Stalk”, which means, following the deer with his eyes, four feet on the ground.
Since you positively reinforce the behavior, it gets a history and becomes functional. The dog will thus show it more often and longer in the future. If you unexpectedly encounter a deer, your dog will not chase it straight away, but he will stalk a little longer and you have gained a precious moment in which you will be able to react.

Another possibility is to name the actual triggers of hunting behavior. For example, condition the sight of a deer with the word “Bambi”. Once he has learned the vocabulary, you have the opportunity to let your dog search with his eyes for the trigger. If you discover the deer first, ask him to sit and ask him: “Where’s Bambi?” He may search for the deer with his eyes and watch it.

How does Cooperative Hunting work?

Whenever your dog shows a hunting behavior sequence anyway, capture it by calmly naming the behavior and saying the cue. If your dog is standing and watching deer at a distance where he is still calm and approachable, then quietly name the behavior “stalk”. It does not matter if he sits, lies or stands.

He should, however, be under threshold and able to stay calm and composed, so that the leash is easy, because you always condition the emotion in which your dog is with the cue.
If he has linked stalking with a high state of excitement because you named the behavior when he was already lunging and barking, he will not be able to calmly observe game lateron.

If your dog voluntarily disengages from the stimulus, then you mark and reward, because this is a great achievement and worth an extra treat. Then he is allowed to continue watching.

What does Cooperative Hunting look like?
Which behaviors you want to name depends on your dog’s preferences. Here are some of Nanook’s favorite hunting cues. Stalking: Calmly watching the sheep as an environmental reinforcer.

Searching, chasing, grabbing and eating: Backtrack search for a toy that I “lost” on my way .I use a small fillable prey dummy, which I open for Nanook, so that he can eat the treats.

Orienting towards the noise of the fallen treat, searching, eating: “Blind” search for a treat. Closing your dog’s eyes must be trained first in a low distraction environment, by using an info cue.

Digging on cue as an environmental reinforcer

Searching, grabbing and eating: Free search for a prey dummy with several feints.

Searching and eating: Sausage tree scavanging.

Your dog has learned his vocab, what now?

First of all, you now have the opportunity to work your dog physically and mentally on his daily walks in a way that meets his canine needs. If your dog is allowed to cooperatively hunt regularly, then he no longer has the strong need for solo hunting adventures and he can be better controlled in critical situations.
Through the joint activity that is highly rewarding and satisfying for your dog, he also links all the positive feelings with you. Instead of being the annoying factor that spoils the fun, you’re now the one who enables him to succeed in hunting. This has a positive effect on your relationship.

The game changer of cooperative hunting however, is that naming the individual sequences gives you unbelievably high-quality and diverse reward options for your dog that you can use to keep your dog from chasing after wildlife or after a recall. Instead of offering a dry biscuit, allow him to do what he most likes to do at that very moment, namely, hunt: let him execute sequences of hunting behavior. Instead of chasing the rabbit, allow him to stalk the rabbit with his eyes. Instead of heading off into in the bushes to track down the deer, allow him to scent the deer with his nose up in the air. Instead of running after the squirrel, let him search for the spot where the squirrel crossed the path and let him show you where it went up the tree.
If you need to recall your dog from a chase, the Double Recall will help him to return to you.

A great game to hunt together with your dog while at the same time teach him impulse control, is the 10 Treats Game.

Claire uses the principle of environmental reinforcement to teach a dog to walk on a loose leash.

Wildlife safety must be a top priority in this training! It is forbidden to chase wild animals and disturb them. Stay on the forest trails and secure your dog with a long leash on a well-fitted harness.

Der Beitrag Cooperative Hunting erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.

“300 Peck” for distance and duration in dog training

annika — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 11:28:00 +0000

"300 Peck" for distance and duration in dog training

Does your dog struggle to hold a longer duration or distance? Support him with a method that will set him up for success!

Pimp yourDog Training: Part 1 (Scotland)

Walking on a loose leash starts quite well, but after a few steps your dog starts to pull again? Are you trying to teach your dog a reliable stay on his mat, but after a few seconds his concentration is gone and he gets up again? A very simple technique to build up a very reliable distance and duration, is the training method 300 Peck.

Kanzi is now 13 weeks old and the next vaccination appointment is coming soon. In order to make Kanzi feel as comfortable as possible during her visit at the vet’s, her guardian Tracey wants to teach her a sustainable nose touch. Kanzi is going to learn to press her nose against Tracey’s palm for the duration of the examination.
The nose touch is one of Kanzi’s most favourite cues. Now Tracey is going to work on the duration that Kanzi’s nose is to stay on her palm.
My colleague Claire Staines of Lothlorien Dog Services uses the method 300 Peck for this.

300 Peck

The method 300 Peck was developed to teach pigeons in a laboratory to pick a target 300 times before receiving a reward. This may sound unbelievable at first, but do we not ask just that from our dogs? We expect them to walk along a street with us on a loose leash, to heel accurately for the duration of an obedience test, to lay down quietly while we have our mealin a restaurantor to stand calmly while we brush or examine them.
Often the beginning of these training sessions work quite well, but after a few steps or a certain period of time, the dog is no longer able to stay concentrated. With 300 peck your dog learns to keep his focus. You can use it for any training that requires either increasing duration or distance.

How does it work?

Tracey defines the training criterion. For Kanzi the criterion is: nose touches hand. Everything else does not matter. At that moment, it’s not important whether she stands or lies, does a handstand or barks.
Once Kanzis nose touches Tracey’s hand, Tracey counts loudly or quietly in her head: “One” – Does Kanzi’s nose still touch her hand, then she marks and rewards.
The next trail would be “one – two” -Does Kanzi’s nose still touch Tracey’s hand, then she marks and rewards and so on:

If Kanzi interrupts the nose touch, Tracey starts counting again.

Nose Touch – one – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – three – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – three – four – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – three – four – Kanzi turns away
Nose Touch – one – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – three – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – three – four – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – three – four – five – click + reward
Nose Touch – one- two – three – Kanzi turns away
Nose Touch – one – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – click + reward
Nose Touch – one – two – three – click + reward
etc.

Many advantages and one disadvantage

The method 300 Peck has many advantages but also one disadvantage.

Your dog learns to reliably understand the concept of duration and distance with the help of 300 Peck.
The method helps your dog stay motivated, as he can count on a success rate of over 80%, which is necessary to enable ideal learning.
You keep track of your training because all you have to do is count, and you’re not tempted to skip important steps and move through the training too fast.
If you keep a training diary, the documentation of your dog’s learning progress and the identification of training plateaus is very simple
If you count out loud, your counting acts as an intermediate bridge, making it easier for your dog to keep his focus.
300 Peck works particularly well during the first training steps towards more distance and duration. Your dog will, however, need to stay focused for an ever increasing duration or distance, which may have a demotivating effect in advanced stages of training. Therefore, it is recommended that once he has understood the concept of duration and distance, to switch to a variable reinforcement scheme, so that he never really knows, will he get his reward after only five seconds or maybe one minute.

In the video you can see Claire teaching a puppy and her guardian to build up the duration of walking on a loose leash with the help of 300 Peck.

Your dog has not yet learned to walk on a loose leash? Before going for duration and distance, teach him how to be a Loose Leader.
Find out more about using a Nose Touch or similar as a cooperation cue in husbandry and medical training and check out the Bucket Game.

Der Beitrag “300 Peck” for distance and duration in dog training erschien zuerst auf Training 4 Paws.