Working with dogs that have extreme trust and fear issues can be difficult. Often, the training methods that we are familiar with are simply too much for these dogs, and it is necessary for us to look outside the box for another way to relate to very timid dogs.

The lure-reward method is a gentle and popular way of teaching behaviors. For this, you hold a treat to the dog’s nose and move your hand so that the dog moves his body into the correct position, and you release the treat when he gets it right. This is a very simple and effective method and makes for easy training success.

However, with some dogs, even this mild method of training just too scary. My Chihuahua, Fox is one such dog. If we try to use a lure with Fox, she becomes so stressed that she just shuts down. With Fox, we needed to find a much gentler, hands-off approach if we wanted to get anywhere with her. The errorless learning approach that we used with Fox is excellent for very fearful dogs and helps to build trust and confidence.

Errorless Learning

I started by introducing Fox to a behavior marker (I used a clicker, but there are other options) that would indicate to her when she offered the correct behavior and earned a reward. Then, I sat down with Fox, a clicker, and treats, and waited. The plan was to click and reward any behavior Fox offered that I liked.

The first behavior that Fox offered was a spin. Fox has always been a circler, so I simply clicked and treated when she circled, then waited for her to offer that behavior again. Before long, Fox understood that she could make clicks happen by spinning and began offering that behavior like mad. We were ready to add a cue.

I said “spin” and waited for Fox to circle, and click-treated when she did. We practiced this several times. If Fox circled before I said “spin”, she didn’t earn a click-treat. If she waited for the cue, she earned a reward. Before long, Fox understood the cued behavior, and we were ready to learn something new.

At the next session, I didn’t give Fox the “spin” cue, and didn’t click her for circling. Instead, I waited for Fox to offer a different behavior. She sat and I clicked that. Following the same procedure we used for “spin”, we soon had “sit” on cue. Then “lay”, “bow”, and “ears up” (for perking her ears). These behaviors were always chosen by Fox. She had complete creative control during our training sessions.

One of the biggest differences to this method of training is that it is dog-directed. When Fox and I sit down for a training session, I never know what we are going to learn until Fox shows me. I don’t come in with an exercise in mind, as we do with lure-reward. I simply come with an open mind and click what Fox offers.

This method of learning is errorless on the dog’s part. Fox never hears “eh-eh” or gets it wrong. Fox offers behaviors and I choose to click the ones I like. If she offers a behavior that I don’t like, I simply don’t click it. She has learned that I don’t want behaviors that I don’t click and never offers them more than once or twice; she simply moves on and tries something else.

This is tremendously important for building confidence in a damaged, fearful, or sensitive dog. With Fox, if I attempted to correct her behavior, even with a quiet “eh-eh”, this would be so traumatic to her that she would shut down and the learning would be over. By allowing her the freedom to experiment without judgment, I am establishing a trust with her. By rewarding her for behaviors that she chooses to offer, I am helping to teach her an internal locus of control (“what I do has an effect on my environment; I can affect what happens to me”) and therefore building self-confidence.

By allowing Fox the freedom to choose, and a safe way to interact, she has blossomed. When Fox first started learning, she was soft and hesitant in trying new behaviors. Today when a training session begins, Fox is eager to offer new behaviors that she thinks I might like. This confidence has carried over into her everyday actions and relationships with people. Fox has learned the skills to approach a new situation, rather than revert to her old behavior of cower and shut down.

When we are working with timid dogs, building trust and confidence are of utmost importance to their training and well-being. By using errorless learning, we can accomplish this while helping the dog to develop new skills and behaviors at the same time.

The post Training Dogs With Trust and Fear Issues appeared first on Tails of Success.

There is a lot of misinformation out there about playing the game of Tug with your dog. Dire warnings and arbitrary rules abound:

– If you play tug with your dog he will become aggressive.

– You must retain possession of the toy at the end of the game, or the dog will think he won.

– If you let the dog win at tug, he will think you are weak and become dominant.

Fortunately, these statements are simply untrue. There is no evidence backing any of these ideas, and plenty of evidence to the contrary. Tug is about having fun and getting exercise. It is also a great opportunity to teach your dog important skills like cooperation and impulse control…and you can even let him win.

There have been at least two studies done (Goodloe and Borchelt, 1998; Rooney and Bradshaw, 2003) on playing tug with dogs that have shown that there is no link between the game and an increase in aggressive behavior or dominance. In fact, both studies showed that dogs who engage in this type of play with their owners score higher on amenability (playful, approach quickly when called, lick owners frequently), and are less likely to have separation issues. They also demonstrated that there is no difference in dominance behavior in dogs after winning or losing at the game, or whether the dog or owner retains the toy at the end of the game.

Tug is a cooperative game, not a competitive game. When dogs play tug, they are having a great time playing with a friend, not vying for possession of a resource. When you tug with your dog and he wins, does he run off with the toy, congratulating himself on his superior strength? Of course not! He thinks “That was great! Let’s play again!” and immediately tries to entice you to grab the toy for another round.

Playing tug with your dog is an excellent way to keep him exercised, occupied, and even teach him important impulse control skills.

When playing tug, there are a few rules to keep in mind:

1. Teeth do not touch human flesh. Ever. The dog must know that this is not okay and learn to control his bite. If teeth touch flesh during the game, immediately drop the toy like it is on fire and walk away. The dog will quickly learn that touching flesh with teeth ends this wonderful game and take extra care about how he uses his jaws.

2. Put the game on cue. We don’t want the pup to think that every time you try to take something from his mouth it is an invitation to tug, so make sure it is clear to him when the game is on. You can do this by using a designated tug toy, or by giving a verbal cue like “Tug!” to initiate the game. If the dog tries to tug when you haven’t given the cue, simply let go as soon as he starts to pull, and pull back only after you give the cue.

It is also an excellent idea to teach your dog a strong “give” or “drop it” cue, and use this game as an opportunity to practice it (check out our article on teaching your dog to “give”). Ask your dog to “give” while playing tug. If he does, play again! If he fails to comply when you ask him to give up the toy, simply end the game by dropping the toy and walking away.

You can take advantage of the Tug Game as an opportunity to practice impulse control by asking for calm, polite behavior before you will play. If you have the toy, wait for your dog to sit calmly before you present it to him and give the cue to tug. If your dog has the toy, require him to sit calmly before you will take your end and give the cue to tug. Practicing this consistently throughout the game will help to teach your pup to go from revved up and excited to calm quickly, a valuable skill to have!

So, go nuts and have some fun playing tug and bonding with your dog! Not only is it a great time and great exercise, but it fosters a spirit of cooperation and is a great opportunity to teach your pup some important life skills. Your dog will thank you for it!

“It is highly unlikely dogs become more aggressive by playing games with their owners. Quite the contrary, in fact; game playing builds confidence and promotes friendliness. As soon as the dog learns the two of them can have fun together, he begins to focus his attention on the owner, rather than always looking to other dogs for enjoyment and amusement.

When played according to the rules, these games:

1. increase the level of control owners have over their dogs, specifically at times when the dogs are excited and worked-up and

2. motivate, build confidence and make the dog less aggressive, specifically improving and maintaining his bite inhibition.” – Dr. Ian Dunbar

“Dog owners have been admonished for decades to never play tug-of-war with their dogs because it risks increasing aggression or dominance in the dog. Played with rules, tug-of-war is a tremendous predatory energy burner and good exercise for both dog and owner. Like structured roughhousing, it serves as a good barometer of the kind of control you have over the dog, most importantly over his jaws.” – Jean Donaldson

“If anything, the best description of tug is that it is cooperative behavior. It’s not you vs. the dog, it’s you and the dog vs. the tug-of-war toy.” – Jean Donaldson

The post Is It Okay to Play Tug With My Dog? appeared first on Tails of Success.

Believe it or not, a growl is a wonderful thing. When our dogs growl, they are simply letting us know that something about the situation is making them uncomfortable. Our job is to acknowledge their feelings and then figure out why they feel that way. Once we know what is making our dog uncomfortable, we can then use gentle training to help them feel more secure in this type of situation. (consult a qualified professional if you are not sure how to proceed!)

A dog whose growls are heeded and understood is a dog who never has to bite. When we listen to our dog telling us that he is uncomfortable and respect those feelings by removing him from the situation, it never has to go any further than a growl. This dog will understand that if is uncomfortable, he can simply let his human know and they will make it better.

Don’t get caught up in “I can’t let him get away with that” mentality. Think it through and finish the sentence. “I can’t let him get away with…” Feeling stressed or scared? Communicating his unease in a nonviolent manner?

In that moment, move away. End the encounter. Let your dog know that you heard him and respect his feelings. Then, LATER, when emotions are settled, we can go back and use training to help the dog feel safe in the situation that initially elicited the growl. (a qualified, peaceful professional trainer can show you exactly how to do this.)

If a dog growls and is ignored, or worse, punished for it, all he learns is that growling is a useless or dangerous behavior, not to be repeated. He is still just as uncomfortable with the situation. The next time the dog encounters this same type of situation, he is unlikely to growl again to let his humans know that he is feeling uneasy, since that only got him punished in the past. Instead, this dog is much more likely to escalate his behavior in order to get his point across. “Growling didn’t work to change the situation, perhaps snapping or biting will…”

So the next time your dog growls remember, it is good news! He is politely letting you know that he is feeling uneasy. Take note of what is going on and what is making your dog uncomfortable. Either remedy or remove him from the situation, and then get to work on a training program designed to help your dog overcome those nervous feelings.

The post The Gift of Growling appeared first on Tails of Success.

When our dogs refuse to comply with our cues, it’s easy to place the blame, labeling the dog as stubborn, stupid, or even dominant. However, perhaps it’s time that we take some responsibility at the other end of the leash. Let’s take a look at some other reasons our dogs may not comply with our cues.

1. The dog doesn’t understand the cue – Perhaps we haven’t spent enough time teaching the dog what the cue means and generalizing it to a variety of situations. This especially applies when using verbal cues. Dogs are more much adept at picking up body language and hand signals than verbal cues.

2. The dog is physically unable to comply – Are we asking for a sit from a dog with painful joints? A down from a short haired breed on a cold or rough surface? Take a look at the environment and see if there is external reason the dog may not be listening.

3. The dog literally does not hear us – If the dog is hyper-focused on something, they may actually be unable to hear our cues. Ever been so engrossed in a book or movie that you failed to hear the telephone ring? The same thing can happen with our dogs when they spot a squirrel or another dog nearby.

4. Our bodies are saying something different than our mouths – For example, yelling at the dog to “come” in a stressed out voice with tense and straining body language. We may be saying “come”, but our bodies are saying “stay away!” Given a choice, the dog will believe our bodies every time.

This is just a jumping off point to get us thinking. The next time we ask our dogs for a behavior and they don’t comply, perhaps we might take a look at what else is going on and see if we can determine why before deciding that the dog is simply stubborn. What are some other reasons our dogs may not comply with our cues?

The post Stubborn Dog? appeared first on Tails of Success.

The “Big 3” are three concepts that are so important that they apply to every dog, every situation. Before we can begin a successful behavior modification plan, it is crucial to understand and implement all aspects of the Big 3: Exercise, Nutrition, and “Say Please”.

#1- Exercise

Dogs were originally bred for a purpose. Each breed was given a specific job to do and certain traits necessary to do those jobs were selected for through careful breeding. In almost every case, high energy was among the chosen traits. After all, these dogs were expected to work long hours and needed to have the stamina to do their job effectively. Today, we keep dogs as family pets rather than as workers. We expect our dogs to hang out at home during the day, quiet and well-behaved. When we get home from work, we will give them a quick walk or a few minutes of play, and then time to settle in for the evening.

This is simply not enough for our dogs. They have all this energy built into them, and if we don’t provide them with good, constructive ways to use up that energy, they are going to invent their own, often destructive, ways to use it. This is where many problem behaviors, such as inappropriate barking, chewing, and digging, begin to crop up. We have all heard the expression “A tired dog is a good dog” and there is much truth to that. If your dog is exhausted from a great work out, he is not filled with excess energy just waiting to come out in inappropriate ways.

It is extremely important that we get our dogs out there to burn off that energy as much as possible. Daily walks are a great start, but for most breeds it is only a start. Jogging, roller-blading, or bicycling with our dogs is a great idea. We should set aside extra time to play games like ‘fetch’ and ‘tug’ with our dog. We can teach our dogs to jump for a Frisbee. In addition to giving our dogs additional exercise, playing games and working out together is a great way to strengthen our bond with our canine companions. Taking our dog to Doggie Daycare or setting up a neighborhood playgroup is another wonderful idea. There is no exercise as good as playing with other dogs! There are many ways to help our dogs get more physical exercise, we just need to be creative!

There is absolutely no substitute for physical exercise, but that being said, mental exercise is a great addition to physical exercise to prevent boredom-based problem behavior from cropping up. Mental exercise means making sure that our dogs are using their minds in constructive ways as much as possible. There are many great ways that we can implement this.

Interactive toys are a wonderful way to stimulate our dogs’ minds. There are several such toys on the market today and more being introduced regularly. A few of my favorites include the Everlasting Treat Ball, Twist’n’Treat, Kong Wobbler, and Buster Cube (any brand of treat-dispensing ball will do; fill it with your dog’s breakfast and a few treats, and let him roll the ball around as his kibble is dispensed bit by bit.) The Kong, also know as the “puppy pacifier” is one of the best interactive toys on the market and something every dog should own. Hand your dog a fully stuffed Kong and he is completely occupied for at least 20 minutes as he chews and bangs the toy around, trying to get all the goodies out. (Kong recipes abound on the internet!) These are just a few of the interactive toys out there. Remember when you are shopping to choose toys that require your dog to think and do things to them.

We can also play games with our dogs for some extra mental stimulation. Teach your dog to “find it” by hiding small piles off kibble and some treats around the house. Then, have him hunt for his breakfast as you get ready for work in the morning. Play “hide-and-seek”, practice obedience cues, learn new tricks… be creative! Your only limits are your dog’s physical capabilities and your own imagination!

#2 – Nutrition

What we eat is literally the foundation of what we are. The proteins that make up our cells come from the nutrients that we ingest. If we exist on a diet of poor quality nutrients in a low digestibility form, we will not be able to operate at peak performance. Think about how you feel after grabbing a junk food meal at a fast-food place versus how you feel after eating a nice, home-cooked meal made with quality meats and fresh fruits and veggies. Now, imagine eating that exact same fast-food meal day in and day out for the rest of your life. Kind of makes you feel sick to your stomach, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, this is just how many of our dogs live as we (often unwittingly) feed them low quality kibble at every meal. Now, for most of us, making our dogs delicious, nutritious home cooked meals everyday is simply not feasible. We need to rely on the convenience of kibble. This is fine, but it is important that we do our homework and make sure that we are choosing a quality kibble that is made with high quality, highly digestible nutrients. We need to take some time to educate ourselves on how to read a dog food label and evaluate what we see. Unfortunately, we cannot simply choose a brand based on the advice of television commercials (heavily advertised brands are spending their money on advertising rather than ingredients. Often, the most familiar brand names are among the lowest quality foods.) or even many veterinarians (vets have so much to learn in school that nutrition is often a topic that only gets cursory coverage. Most vet schools require that students take only an introductory nutrition course, and often it is sponsored by a big-name pet food company.).

So, we must learn to evaluate pet foods for ourselves. Begin by reading my handout on “How to Choose a Quality Pet Food” and check out websites such as Dogfoodproject.com and Dogfoodadvisor.com. Talk to the staff at independent pet stores that specialize in healthy pet food. Then, choose 2-4 quality dog foods and rotate among them every 6 months or so. Your dog will begin to feel much better and healthier, and it will show!

# 3 – The “Say Please” Program

Establishing leadership over our dogs doesn’t require force or “domination”, or that we engage in silly rituals like eating a snack in front of our dogs before feeding them. It can be as simple as gently communicating to our dogs that we, the humans, control the resources and our dogs must do as we ask in order to receive access to them.

We have to go to work every day in order to earn the money to pay for our food and shelter and other good things in our lives, and so too should our dogs be given a job to do in order to earn their food, shelter, and other good things. The job that we need to gives our dogs is simply to perform a simple behavior, such as “sit” in order to earn their good things.

So, we need to start having our dogs “sit” every time they are about to get something that we want. (It does not matter what behavior we have them perform, so long as they do something. “Sit” is usually an easy cue that every dog knows.) They should be sitting before we set their food dish down, open the door to go outside, put their leash on for a walk, throw their toy for them, give them treats, allow them up on the sofa… you get the idea. Basically, our dogs need to “sit” in order to earn any good things.

This wonderful program has so many benefits! It teaches our dogs that they need to listen to us to get things that they want (leadership!), that they need to exercise self-control (great for off-the wall dogs), that they have some control over their environment (great for shy or anxious dogs). It is something that should be implemented with all dogs.

Teaching “Say Please”

Let’s take feeding time as an example of how to implement the “Say Please” program. (You can begin the program using any “good thing”, they all essentially work the same way.)

First Feeding:

The first time you feed your dog, you will pour his food and, holding the dish, cue your dog to sit (it is crucial that your dog already understands the word “sit” before beginning this program!). If he does, say “Yay!” and put his dish down. If he does not, you can wait 20 seconds and then cue him again. If he sits, “Yay!” and give him his dish. If not, (or if he walks away any time), say “too bad”, put his dish up on a counter where he can’t reach it and go away for a few minutes and then come back and try again, following the same procedure.

Second Feeding:

The second meal that you practice for you will only be cuing once. Holding your dog’s full dish, ask him to sit. If he does, “Yay” and give it to him. This time if he does not sit, “too bad”, you will set the dish out of reach and go away for a few minutes before coming back to try again.

Third and all Consecutive Feedings:

At this point, you are no longer going to cue your dog. We have shown him what is expected of him, and now we need to wait for him to figure out what he is supposed to be doing. Stand and look at him while holding his food dish. If he sits, “Yay!” and put it right down. If not, just stand and wait. He may offer all sorts of different behaviors including jumping, running in circles, or barking at you. Ignore all of them and simply wait. At some point (for some dogs, this may take several minutes) he is going to sit. The instant he does, “Yay!!!” and set down his dish. Each feeding, follow the same procedure and you will find that he sits faster and faster each time as he figures out the “game.”

The reason that we stop cueing is that I have found that dogs are much more well-behaved when they are expected to understand and follow the rules, rather than simply wait to be told what to do. Dogs that are always cued will often feel that is acceptable to jump and run around like a maniac until he is told to do otherwise, while dogs that are expected to simply offer the correct behavior on their own will usually sit and wait as soon as they hear the rustle of the dog food bag.

Once our dogs have learned the rules for “Say Please”, we can start using it in all aspects of their life. Before long, our dogs will be so well-versed in the idea of the program, that they will start automatically sitting whenever they want something!

While implementing the “Big 3” in our dogs’ lives will not automatically cure their behavior problems, they are the first steps in a successful behavior modification plan. These three concepts are so important that they should be used with every dog. In fact, if we begin practicing them from the day we bring our dogs home, we can often prevent behavior problems from developing in the first place.

* With some dogs, we use a modified version of this program to teach them owner relevance and get them used to listening carefully for direction.

– Make a list of all of the cues that your dog knows.

– Instead of waiting for your dog to sit automatically to earn a resource, ask for a random cue from their list. The dog will need to successfully perform this cue to earn his good stuff.

– The cue you ask for should be different each time so that the dog does not begin to anticipate you, but waits patiently for direction.

– Do not continuously repeat your cue until the dog complies. Ask him once and if fails to comply, he loses his opportunity to “win”. Walk away, and a few minutes later, come back and try again.

– Your dog will quickly learn that he must wait patiently and listen for your instructions to earn his good stuff!

The post The Big 3: Exercise, Nutrition, & ‘Say Please’ appeared first on Tails of Success.

When I first began my career as a dog trainer, I worked for a man who was still using the old-fashioned, compulsion style of dog training. This style involves the use of equipment like prong collars or choke chains and giving the dog collar corrections for misbehavior.

My very first day on the job, I sat in with him as he gave a private lesson to a six-month old Shepard puppy with a jumping problem. He put the prong collar on the dog and told the client he was going to set the dog up to learn that jumping is wrong. Holding the end of the leash, he told the puppy’s mom to pat her chest and encourage the dog to jump up on her. The puppy jumped, the trainer pulled the leash, and the puppy screamed. The trainer, pleased with his work, told the client he had just trained her dog not to jump.

What seemed clear to me was that what he had actually taught the dog was that people, even his own mom, can’t be trusted. She had just asked him to do something that had resulted in pain when he complied. I was devastated. I wanted to train dogs because I love and respect them. How could I do a job that would require me to punish puppies for doing what their people asked them to do?

The prevalence of this style of training in Rochester shocks and saddens me. I simply cannot understand it. Why would the very people who choose to dedicate their lives to working with dogs decide to use this method when there is another way, a way that never causes a dog fear or pain in the name of education.

Positive methods of training are not new. They have been used for decades by trainers who work with wild and exotic animals, including marine mammals. Imagine putting a choke collar on a whale or a crocodile! Yet both animals have been successfully trained using positive, reward based methods. If we can gently train a crocodile to go into a cage on cue, why do we still use force to train our dogs?

One of the things about dogs that makes them so wonderful, a reason they have been invited into our homes as companion animals, is that are so adaptable and can be so easily trained. Believe it or not, our dogs actually want to do what we want them to do! They want to be good and make us happy, we just have to show them how. Our attention and affection are extremely rewarding to dogs, which is just one reason we love them so much.

In the old way of training, we would set our dogs up failure by waiting for them to make a mistake and then pulling the chain. Think about how many mistakes it is possible for a dog to make. Wouldn’t it be so much easier if instead of waiting for the dog to mess up, we simply showed him what it is we do want him to do? With positive training, this is exactly what we do. We set our dogs up for success and then reward them for doing the right thing. Just as behavior that is punished tends to decrease, behavior that is rewarded will be repeated. Before long, we will find that our dogs are consistently offering good behaviors because they know exactly what is expected of them.

Imagine again the scenario of the jumping dog. Dogs that have jumping problems are almost always seeking attention. What if instead of punishing the puppy for jumping, the client had simply taught him that anytime he came over and sat in front of her, she would lavish affection on him. Before long, the puppy would constantly be coming over and offering a sit, and a puppy who is sitting is a puppy who is not jumping. Problem solved, no force or corrections needed. This puppy would still have complete trust in his mom.

I am not arguing that the correction method of dog training does not work. Go into any obedience class trained using this style and, at first glance, you will see a roomful of well-behaved, obedient dogs. But take a second look. These dogs are not having fun. Their tails are down, they are watching their handlers, not with adoration, but for fear of missing a cue and receiving a correction. Fear-prone or sensitive dogs will be showing obvious signs of stress.

Now walk into an obedience class taught using only positive methods. At first glance, these dogs will appear to be equally well-trained and obedient. Again, take a closer look. The difference will amaze you. These dogs are actually having fun at school! Their eyes are bright, tails wagging, and there are smiles on dogs and handlers alike.

When we train our dogs using methods of correction, we are training away the very essence of what makes or dogs so wonderful. They become so worried about offering the “wrong” behavior and receiving a correction, that it becomes simpler for them just to offer no behavior at all. How sad it must be for them to live in constant fear of making a mistake.

Contrast this to dogs trained using only positive methods. Having never received a painful correction, these dogs have complete trust in their humans. They are free to be themselves and try to offer behaviors that will be praised and rewarded. It is in these animals that we can really see what being a dog is all about: unconditional love and trust, devotion, and a delightful sense of humor. These are the traits that have made dogs so endearing to us, the traits for which dogs have become beloved family members. Why we would ever want to train this away?

The post Think Positive! appeared first on Tails of Success.