What Does That Mean…? Wednesday
Desensitize & Counter Condition
Desensitizing means to introduce your dog to a new stimulus (sight, sound, experience) in such a way that it becomes a positive association.
Letting your puppy eat treats out of your hand or enjoy a lick mat while brushing their coat or playing with their feet is a great way to help them get used to the different aspects of being at the groomer.
Counter conditioning is the process of turning a negative stimulus into a neutral or positive stimulus.
Many dogs bark at unfamiliar things along the fence. People, other animals, delivery trucks, etc are all very common triggers for dogs. You can take a trigger and change the association that your dog is making with it by pairing it with something positive and exciting.
Food has the power to change something scary into something neutral or fun! Get some extra tasty and smelly treats and go make some new, positive associations!
Featured Dog Friday!
Murphy! 🥰
Murphy is a very sweet, lovable boy but he is pretty nervous after being in the shelter for awhile.
Bonding with Murphy can take some time but when he trusts you, he wants nothing more than to be near you and receive your love!
We’ve been working with Murphy on confidence building and getting used to movement so that he will be more comfortable in a home after six years in the shelter setting.
We recommend a calm, quiet home for Murphy to relax and learn to trust and love his new parents.
Murphy is available for foster or adoption at Friends of Strays, Inc. - Princeton, IL and we would love to see him go to a good home!
Please reach out to Friends of Strays to set up a meet and greet with sweet Murphy!
What Does That Mean…? Wednesday
Triggers and Thresholds
Triggers are things that will elicit a reaction from a dog.
Birds, squirrels, and rabbits may trigger your dog into a reaction if they have a high prey drive. They may bark or attempt to chase these animals when they see them.
Unfamiliar things like bikes, cars, and holiday decorations can also startle dogs into reacting.
Other dogs and people are the most common triggers with reactive dogs.
Thresholds are a measurement that tells us if and/or when the dog may react.
There is a distance threshold of how close we can be to a trigger before the dog reacts.
There is also a time threshold of how long they can be exposed to a trigger before they react.
The first step in training a reactive dog is identifying their triggers and testing their thresholds.
If you need help with a reactive dog, please reach out to us to schedule training sessions and learn about our Reactive Dog Protocol.
Featured Dog Friday
Atlas!
We have been working with Atlas for a few weeks and have seen him transform from anxious and noisy to a calmer, sweet boy with better manners.
Atlas is available for adoption at Friends of Strays, Inc. - Princeton, IL.
Training Tip Tuesday
Avoid Frustration
If our dogs aren’t understanding what we’re asking of them it can be frustrating for all of us.
If your dog is showing signs of frustration, it means what we’re asking is too hard or they just don’t understand what they are supposed to do.
Take it back a step and give them opportunities to succeed by asking them for cues they already know and then working the new ones back in when they are feeling more relaxed and engaged!
What Does That Mean? Wednesday
Socialization
This is a big buzzword in the dog community and is often misinterpreted. Socialization looks different for every dog!
Doggie daycare and dog parks are not the only ways to socialize your dog and depending on your dog, this might not be the best option for them.
Play dates with age and size appropriate play partners are an excellent option for dogs who just want to play a little bit every now and then.
Taking walks with other dogs is also a great option and an opportunity for you to train your dog on their leash manners.
A quick walk through a pet friendly store to meet new people and explore new smells can be a fun activity as well.
Training classes can help with exposure to new dogs in a structured setting with knowledgeable staff.
Dog parks can be fun for some dogs but it is extremely important that you, as an owner, understand your own dog as well as dog body language, behavior, and play styles before exposing your dog to a potentially overwhelming experience.
Doggie daycare is a popular service but large play groups might not be the ideal scenario for your dog. Failing a temperament test for doggie daycare does not mean that your dog doesn’t like other dogs, it just means they don’t want to hang out with 10-15 dogs for extended periods of time, and that’s okay!
Some dogs just don’t like other dogs or don’t feel the need to play with them and there is nothing wrong with that either.
It’s your responsibility as a dog owner to understand your dog’s wants, needs, and behaviors in order to decide what socialization options might work best for them.
If you’re not sure what the best options might be for your dog, you can reach out to a local trainer or doggie daycare and they can advise you after a meet and greet or temperament test.
Training Tip Tuesday!
Speak Less, Say More
Dogs don’t respond to every word they hear. They learn to associate certain words with certain actions through training or problem solving.
Keep your cues short and crisp to avoid confusion.
“Can you sit?”…is not nearly as effective as a clear “Sit!”
Avoid repeating your cues. Say it one time, give them 10-15 seconds to respond, and repeat if they are not understanding what you asked of them.
Pair your verbal cues with hand signals or body language to help give your dog another way to understand you. Dogs communicate with each other through body language and they learn best from us with luring and cause and effect scenarios.
Featured Dog Friday!
Luna belongs to our training apprentice, Taylor!
Luna is a year and a half old German Shepherd Husky mix that is packed full of energy and LOVES to train and learn new things.
Luna has currently mastered over 2 dozen tricks and continues to pick up anything I ask of her. Her favorite tricks to perform are Spin, Back-up, Speak, and Figure 8’s.
Lunas star quality is her amazing nose. Scent work, search, find it, and hide n seek are some of the ways I “put her to work” outside of learning new tricks. She can sniff out her tasty treats even in the hardest spots in the house!
Luna, or Looney Tunes, is an amazing dog, best friend, and work partner. We plan on learning jorning next!
What Does That Mean? Wednesday
Positive/Negative
Reinforcement/Punishment
You may see the term “positive reinforcement” thrown around a lot in dog training, let’s clear up what these words actually mean.
Reinforcement is something that increases the likelihood of a behavior.
Punishment is something that decreases the likelihood of a behavior.
Positive means to give.
Negative means to remove.
Positive reinforcement is practiced most often as we train our dog to perform new behaviors. We may give them treats, toys, or attention to increase the chances that they will perform the behavior we are asking for.
Negative reinforcement simply means to take away something that our dog does not like in order increase the chance that they will perform the expected behavior. An example of this would be applying physical pressure to a dog’s collar until they perform the action that you want. Once the action is completed, the pressure is released.
Positive punishments are things we do or give to decrease the chances of a behavior occurring. In other training styles this might be a leash correction or a shock with an electronic collar. (We do not use these methods or tools and we will never suggest that you do!)
Negative punishments are things we take away to decrease the chances of a behavior. Let’s say a dog is misbehaving by chewing on things you don’t want them to chew on. A negative punishment would be removing those things from their reach.
Time-outs or crate breaks are the best and safest options for negative punishments.
Punishment is not a bad word but there are plenty of bad forms of punishment.
When it comes to punishment techniques, ask yourself this question: Is this physically or psychologically harmful to my dog or my relationship with my dog?
If the answer is yes, don’t use it!
Hopefully this clears up some confusion surrounding these training buzzwords!
Shoutout to Soup for helping me with this training video! 🥰
Featured Dog Friday!
Lorrie
You’ve seen her, you’ve heard her, and now you get to learn more about her!
Believe it or not, Lorrie is 1/2 Golden Retriever and 1/4 Rottweiler. She is a sweet, lovable mutt with the ability to cheer up everyone in the room! She has a very calming presence and is working toward her certification to become a therapy dog.
She is a heart worm survivor and has been taking advantage of her physical freedom by practicing on the agility equipment and chasing her older brother around the house for morning zoomies!
Lorrie’s favorite tricks are Speak, Hugs, and Chin Rest!
Training Tip Tuesday is kicking off with Consistency!
Dogs, like humans, learn through repetition! It’s not enough to teach them a cue once and expect them to remember it days, weeks, or months later.
Train daily or at least weekly until they know the cue, which means they can perform it when asked, without the presence of a reinforcement or motivator.
We suggest training new behaviors 1-2 times a day, in 10-15 minute sessions, working on 1-2 skills at a time!
No matter what you are trying to train your dog to do, it is important that we always teach it the same way.
Use the same verbal cue and hand signal for the action you want performed.
Make sure everyone in the household knows these cues and uses them regularly!
Make sure everyone in the household understands the rules of the house.
If you are trying to keep your dog from begging at the table by not giving them table food but someone else is still giving them little treats from the table, your dog will not understand that they should not beg at the table!
Happy Training!
