One of the most valuable and fun games to play is all about food, and it's all about choices. Do you ever drop food when you're cooking, and then start saying no automatically or even hurry to race your dog to it? Are you concerned that one of these days, some medication is going to be dropped and you're not going to be fast enough? Then maybe it's time to learn about choices.
Teaching your dog to "leave it" can be a long and arduous process, full of negative "no!" and dragging the dog away from a tasty tidbit. And what's more frustrating than working hard only to slip up once and the dog beats you to the goody? Then you have to start all over again! What if I told you that instead of teaching your dog that getting to the food first is bad, you can teach your dog that paying attention around food is more FUN than trying to steal it?
Your biggest priority during this game is to see the DOG make the choice to leave the food...(No leash prompts or luring food.)
Put food on the ground, making sure the dog knows it's there. If you need to, you can toss it away so they don't grab it when you set it on the ground! The dog must be on a leash when you start this game.
1. Make noises!
Your first goal is to be far enough away that the dog is immediately interested in you when you make strange noises and call to them. If you can count to 5 seconds before you can convince your dog to go with you, then you're too close to the food. DON"T SHOW THEM TOYS OR FOOD! Why? Because they're making a choice, they are not being lured. Check out my post on Choice vs Lure to understand more!
2. Run away!
Move quickly away from the food with excitement. Far enough that the dog isn't looking over his shoulder to see where the food is!
3. Party time!
Reward like crazy, praising and petting. By all means, do give a bonus of a round of tug o war. Add a treat on the end as an after thought. This helps create value for playing and interacting with you rather than teaching them to only behave for the promise of food!
Now it's time to slowly move closer and closer to the food. Make sure they still choose to turn to you immediately when you call to them. Repeat the 3 steps each time. This is called "Layering". We are layering the choices they have made, slowly making it harder while at the same time creating a history and habit of choosing you. Now why does that matter? When they choose you, that moment a dopamine release occurs making them feel happy - They are connecting that feeling to focusing on you! Your value is increasing every time they choose you....and decreasing every time they fail. So staying far enough away is vital to your success.
4. Proof it!
Step 4, you need a helper! Now, you will move close to the food, still upholding the rule that 5 seconds to focus is Too Long! Every time they choose you by giving you eye contact, reward with food. If they go for the food on the ground, have your helper cover it with their foot! After a few successes of them focusing on you, do the 3 steps - Make Noises, Run Away, and Party time!
Don't rush to step 4. If the 3 step isn't valuable to your dog, he will fail miserably!!! Take the time to make yourself irresistible...it's worth it.Take the time for play after every correct choice. Remember that even when they don't get the food, if they go after it they still made that choice. Your value decreases EVERY time they choose the food.
The shorter sessions are actually more beneficial than the long ones...even if your dog can focus for a longer time. Remember to keep sessions short and fun!
Saturday, March 21, 2015
Monday, February 23, 2015
The Pivot - Applying C.O.R.E. to Individual Behaviors
Tonight I prepared to train my dogs a fun new trick. Armed with a clicker and cookies, I brought out the taped up phone book to teach my pups how to pivot. The goal was to have a dog who could pivot independently, even away from my body eventually. A wonderful start to a training night - knowing what my goal was. It was also the first step towards the "C" in C.O.R.E.
Connecting with Lyric started with simply knowing what I wanted - that way, I could tell her clearly what I desired. Using the clicker at precise moments and delivering treats purposefully helped us stay "on the same page" about what we were trying to accomplish. That's really what "connected" is all about - having the same purpose in mind which starts with clear communication.
With Rusty, missing this step caused us 10 minutes of frustration. After working with Lyric, I honestly should have had a clue. But when I started with him, I forgot what my goal was. My clicks were in the wrong places, and the treats were lazily delivered more as a lure than as a reward. I just wanted him to get it right after wonderful success with Lyric. I had to back up, and make sure that he understood what I wanted. So rather than jumping into the pivot, I should have started with rewarding him for standing with his front feet on the phone book target. How did I know we weren't "connected"? He was dancing around, offering all sorts of behaviors, was not focused, and wasn't consistently working towards the goal of pivoting.
"Observant" could be my dogs' middle name...especially when dinner is involved! With their part of the team on board, I brought out my own observation skills to compliment them.
With Lyric, it was about observing her confidence through how she approached the trick. With her tail high and mouth in a wide smile, I knew that I was offering rewards close enough together to keep her enthusiasm high. As soon as her tail dropped, even just a notch, I immediately knew that we needed to make the criteria just a bit easier to keep her happy go lucky!
Observing Rusty's body came in handy today as I watched the way his spine moved as he circled his perch. Understanding how dogs' bodies move has been so important and valuable in all of my training. As I watched him bend his body to move his hind feet, I noticed that the position of his head was the ONLY problem that prevented him from spinning comfortably around the phone book! Simply changing the position of the reward completely changed the outcome of our session, giving us the success we desired.
Reliability was also a defining factor of our session for both dogs.
As I worked with Lyric, I had a definite process in mind and I understood what the next step in our shaping process was suppose to look like. I reliably rewarded the next behavior, and was consistent in not rewarding any behavior that would not be a part of the end result. She tried only a few other behaviors on the phone book because I consistently rewarded the foundation of this behavior - I rewarded her standing with both front feet on the phone book, rather than her pawing it or touching it with her nose. By having definite reactions on which behavior was better, it eliminated any guessing that could have slowed down our process.
With Rusty, I had to be conscientious about clearly rewarding the correct behavior. Even one miss placed click can start him down the wrong path. We had so many behaviors happening so close together as he offered one after another. I had to make him pause often to slow him down so that I could click at the appropriate time. Sometimes we have to make adjustments in our training not only for our dogs, but for ourselves. I had to make it easier for myself to be correct! By setting the standard, I corrected our course making it easier for him to decipher which behavior I wanted.
Energized is the fun part! With food, a clicker, and a happy tone, my dogs were ready to have some fun. Controlling that energy can sometimes be hard, but if you have "C.O.R." already in place, the "E." falls in line fairly well.
Lyric had no trouble bringing an energetic outlook to training today. Often times she deals with having low confidence, so I was pleased to see her working with such enthusiasm. Keeping the other fundamentals in place gave her the confidence she needed to train freely and happily.
Rusty struggles to keep his energy under control. He was bouncing around, trying so many things, anxious to please. I had to continually remind myself to be happy and relaxed to help him relax himself! Rewarding easy behaviors also helped him focus in. Keeping the criteria not too difficult kept the anxiety at bay.
C.O.R.E. can be applied to every behavior - when there's a problem, one of these fundamentals is missing. I will admit - sometimes it's easier at times than others. It's also easier with some dogs than others at times. For Lyric and I, we started with this foundation in place fairly early in her training. It was as she was growing in puppyhood that I formed the vision of C.O.R.E. With Rusty, it's not always as easy. Him and I have trained so many ways. But using C.O.R.E. to find the missing links made all the difference in our training tonight! It may take more effort at times, but it's worth it. So I keep at it...
Connecting with Lyric started with simply knowing what I wanted - that way, I could tell her clearly what I desired. Using the clicker at precise moments and delivering treats purposefully helped us stay "on the same page" about what we were trying to accomplish. That's really what "connected" is all about - having the same purpose in mind which starts with clear communication.
With Rusty, missing this step caused us 10 minutes of frustration. After working with Lyric, I honestly should have had a clue. But when I started with him, I forgot what my goal was. My clicks were in the wrong places, and the treats were lazily delivered more as a lure than as a reward. I just wanted him to get it right after wonderful success with Lyric. I had to back up, and make sure that he understood what I wanted. So rather than jumping into the pivot, I should have started with rewarding him for standing with his front feet on the phone book target. How did I know we weren't "connected"? He was dancing around, offering all sorts of behaviors, was not focused, and wasn't consistently working towards the goal of pivoting.
"Observant" could be my dogs' middle name...especially when dinner is involved! With their part of the team on board, I brought out my own observation skills to compliment them.
With Lyric, it was about observing her confidence through how she approached the trick. With her tail high and mouth in a wide smile, I knew that I was offering rewards close enough together to keep her enthusiasm high. As soon as her tail dropped, even just a notch, I immediately knew that we needed to make the criteria just a bit easier to keep her happy go lucky!
Observing Rusty's body came in handy today as I watched the way his spine moved as he circled his perch. Understanding how dogs' bodies move has been so important and valuable in all of my training. As I watched him bend his body to move his hind feet, I noticed that the position of his head was the ONLY problem that prevented him from spinning comfortably around the phone book! Simply changing the position of the reward completely changed the outcome of our session, giving us the success we desired.
Reliability was also a defining factor of our session for both dogs.
As I worked with Lyric, I had a definite process in mind and I understood what the next step in our shaping process was suppose to look like. I reliably rewarded the next behavior, and was consistent in not rewarding any behavior that would not be a part of the end result. She tried only a few other behaviors on the phone book because I consistently rewarded the foundation of this behavior - I rewarded her standing with both front feet on the phone book, rather than her pawing it or touching it with her nose. By having definite reactions on which behavior was better, it eliminated any guessing that could have slowed down our process.
With Rusty, I had to be conscientious about clearly rewarding the correct behavior. Even one miss placed click can start him down the wrong path. We had so many behaviors happening so close together as he offered one after another. I had to make him pause often to slow him down so that I could click at the appropriate time. Sometimes we have to make adjustments in our training not only for our dogs, but for ourselves. I had to make it easier for myself to be correct! By setting the standard, I corrected our course making it easier for him to decipher which behavior I wanted.
Energized is the fun part! With food, a clicker, and a happy tone, my dogs were ready to have some fun. Controlling that energy can sometimes be hard, but if you have "C.O.R." already in place, the "E." falls in line fairly well.
Lyric had no trouble bringing an energetic outlook to training today. Often times she deals with having low confidence, so I was pleased to see her working with such enthusiasm. Keeping the other fundamentals in place gave her the confidence she needed to train freely and happily.
Rusty struggles to keep his energy under control. He was bouncing around, trying so many things, anxious to please. I had to continually remind myself to be happy and relaxed to help him relax himself! Rewarding easy behaviors also helped him focus in. Keeping the criteria not too difficult kept the anxiety at bay.
C.O.R.E. can be applied to every behavior - when there's a problem, one of these fundamentals is missing. I will admit - sometimes it's easier at times than others. It's also easier with some dogs than others at times. For Lyric and I, we started with this foundation in place fairly early in her training. It was as she was growing in puppyhood that I formed the vision of C.O.R.E. With Rusty, it's not always as easy. Him and I have trained so many ways. But using C.O.R.E. to find the missing links made all the difference in our training tonight! It may take more effort at times, but it's worth it. So I keep at it...
Applying C.O.R.E. one behavior at a time!
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