Positive Conditioning

“Reactive” is a term gaining popularity in dog training circles – but what is it, exactly? In her book Clinical Behavioral Medicine for Small Animals, Applied Animal Behaviorist Karen Overall, M.A., V.M.D., Ph.D., uses the term to describe animals who respond to normal stimuli with an abnormal (higher-than-normal) level of intensity. Take a deep breath and relax. We have positive training solutions for dogs who "go off" or "lose it" in certain circumstances.

Just like a good skunking doesnt stop most dogs from going after those black-and-white critters again the next time (darn it!), there are many dogs who seem goaded into more intense bee-chasing behavior after an unfortunate encounter of the stinging kind. Conversely, there are also dogs who become literally phobic about all small, flying creatures after a stinging incident. Then there are those who develop an obsessive-compulsive behavior known as fly-snapping.

Switching to positive training? At first, it might be frustrating for you – and your dog. The benefits, however, will last a lifetime. In positive training, the goal is to help the dog do the right thing and then reward him for it, rather than punishing him for doing the wrong thing. If he makes a mistake, the behavior is ignored, or excused with an “Oops, try again!” to encourage the dog to do something else.

you are in for a lot more of the same."

Counter-conditioning involves changing your dog’s association with a scary or arousing stimulus from negative to positive. Desensitization is starting with a very low-level intensity of aversive stimulus until the dog habituates to (or changes his association with) the aversive, and then gradually increasing the strength until the dog is comfortable with the stimulus at full intensity. The easiest way to give most dogs a positive association and to help them become comfortable with a stimulus is with very high-value, really yummy treats. I like to use chicken – canned, baked, or boiled; most dogs love chicken. Here’s how the CC&D process works.

A holistic pet behavior counselor often has to be like a detective. You have to find all of the missing pieces of the puzzle and put them together to form a complete picture. Sometimes this is not easy because people are not accustomed to thinking about the whole picture in order to determine the cause of their problems. Most of the time, people focus on one detail and cannot see the forest through the trees.

In the 1950s, behavioral scientist B.F. Skinner developed a number of principles that are applicable to all living things with a central nervous system. He found that animals are likely to repeat behaviors that are enjoyable/rewarding to them, and not likely to repeat behaviors that result in something unpleasant (punishment). Neutral stimuli – things that don’t matter to the animal – don’t have an impact on behavior one way or the other. Skinner demonstrated that humans can use these simple principles to modify an animal’s behavior. Rewards are the most reliable way to deliberately increase an animal’s offered behaviors; conversely, punishment decreases those behaviors. (See “The Four Principles of Operant Conditioning,” next at end of story). We use these behavioral principles in dog training with great success.

If your dog doesn't already know the value of eye contact with humans, you can easily teach her. This is an operant conditioning/positive reinforcement exercise – your dog learns her behavior can make good stuff happen. When your dog has come to realize the value of eye contact, she will sometimes offer the behavior without being cued. Be sure to reinforce offered eye contact as well as cued eye contact. To help her be comfortable with eye contact from other humans, ask your friends to play the Watch" game with her as well."

Few dogs behave in ways that please us all day every day – especially puppies, adolescent dogs, or newly adopted adult dogs who have little experience living closely with humans. Training" is what we usually call our formal efforts to teach dogs how to behave in ways that please us more – and most frequently

or threatening his general well-being if he made the wrong move. It wasn't fear of punishment – or fear of me – or some sort of amorphous "respect" that he had for me

Dogs are one of the rare species of animals who play throughout their lifetimes; perhaps it's one of the reasons we have such strong bonds with dogs, because we too play as grown ups. Humans and canines appear to be what scientists call neotenous": as adults

Who has not watched in awe as a Border Collie at a local park sails through the air, snatches a FrisbeeTM in mid-flight and dashes back to her owner, dropping the Frisbee and waiting in eager anticipation for the next throw? Playing fetch with your dog is fun. It’s also a great way to strengthen the dog/human bond, satisfy your dog’s prey/chase instincts, and provide enough exercise to work off that excess energy that can make him a challenge to live with. A formal retrieve is also required for upper levels of obedience competition.