What is Drive Capping?
There’s a very interesting discussion going on amongst a few friends of mine on social media about the whats and hows of drive capping in relation to working dogs. One of those folks made a post the other day about leaking drive when capping your dog and another friend made a response about preferring not to allow such behaviors particularly during the giving of warning announcements.
While both are giving very good information I wanted to touch on the how when it comes to not allowing dogs to leak drive. Whether we are talking about the quadrants of operant conditioning or a particular subject such as drive capping there is always going to be a ton of gray area. There is gray space in the definition of training techniques; there is grey space in the application of said techniques; and there is even more gray area because all of that is entirely dependent on the trainer’s skill and timing and the overall constitution of the individual dog.
So without getting too far into the weeds, I wanted to talk about the basics. I’m going to be using my personal dog Beans as an example. In the above video there are three clips.
In the first two clips I am using good communication and timing between me and my decoy in conjunction with the positive reward quadrant of the operant conditioning matrix. In plain English: my dog is not going to get anything from the decoy unless I am getting perfect compliance. Because I’m not adding any conflict I’m going to maximize the efficacy of our training time and improve overall clarity of task for the dog without shutting him down. I will repeat this process and slowly build up the amount of time that I can cap the dog without losing control.
In the third clip, only once the dog fully understands what I am asking him to do, I am adding positive punishment to extinguish the leaking behavior. Notice when the dog receives the correction there is zero confusion or conflict that could result in the
Pho 🍲 pt. 2 #pho #scratchcooking
Pho 🍲 pt. 1 #pho #homemade #scratchcooking
Saturdays at Casa del Lobos 🐖 🐺 🐕 ❤️ #pug #malinois #germanshepherd
More content from the decoy certification course hosted by Lake County SO and Central Florida K-9. #workingdog #policek9 #germanshepherd #malinois #dutchshepherd
Fostering a strong bond with our dogs is rooted in respect, even during nail care! 🐾💖 Gently trimming their nails is a shared act of trust and care. Take it slow, respect their comfort, and reward their patience. It’s a small yet significant part of building a loving relationship—one pawdicure at a time! 🐶✨
#RespectfulRelationships #DogNailCare #dogrtraining #malinois
Mack pt 6. Full story of his aggression rehabilitation on our YouTube channel-link in our bio. #dogtraining #anatolianshepherddog #aggressionrehabilitation
Mack pt 5. Full story on our YouTube channel-link in our bio.
Mack pt 4. Full story on our YouTube channel—link in our bio.
Mack’s Aggression Rehab pt 3. Full story on our YouTube channel—link in our bio.
Mack pt 2. Full story on our YouTube channel — link in our bio.
Watch the full story of Mack on our YouTube channel. Link in our bio. #dogtraining #aggressionrehab #nobaddogs
Check out the full version on our YouTube channel. Link in our bio.
Why we use place cots. #dogtraining #doglife #dogsofinstagram
The value of Place 🐕❤️ #dogtraining #dogsofstpete #doglife
How to properly cut a dog’s nails.
.
.
.
Any age, any breed, any issue, any goal. How can we help you and your dog live your best lives?
.
.
.
We have locations serving Florida (St. Pete/Tampa, Orlando, Ocala, and Gainesville) as well as Virginia Beach, Virginia 🚐 🐕 🐩
.
.
.
Call/Text/Email/DM us to schedule your free facility tour and consultation with a trainer today👇
.
.
.
💻: www.WOLFHAUSK9.com
☎️: 352-388-1421
📧: [email protected]
How to properly cut a dog’s nails.
.
.
.
Any age, any breed, any issue, any goal. How can we help you and your dog live your best lives?
.
.
.
We have locations serving Florida (St. Pete/Tampa, Orlando, Ocala, and Gainesville) as well as Virginia Beach, Virginia 🚐 🐕 🐩
.
.
.
Call/Text/Email/DM us to schedule your free facility tour and consultation with a trainer today👇
.
.
.
💻: www.WOLFHAUSK9.com
☎️: 352-388-1421
📧: [email protected]
Any age, any breed, any issue, any goal. How can we help you and your dog live your best lives?
.
.
.
We have locations serving Florida (St. Pete/Tampa, Orlando, Ocala, and Gainesville) as well as Virginia Beach, Virginia 🚐 🐕 🐩
.
.
.
Call/Text/Email/DM us to schedule your free facility tour and consultation with a trainer today👇
.
.
.
💻: www.WOLFHAUSK9.com
☎️: 352-388-1421
📧: [email protected]
New Summer Special. We are offering a $500 discount on our Private Lesson Programs. This applies to both in person and virtual lessons as well as on and off leash obedience. Send us a message to learn more!