Basic Principles of Positive Training
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Basic Principles of Positive Training
silvaheyes Fri Jun 27, 2008 3:39 am
BASIC PRINCIPLES OF POSITIVE TRAINING
Copyright © 2007 The Refined Canine, LLC
http://www.refinedcanine.com/positive_principles.htm
Positive Training relies on positive reinforcement to elicit desired behavior. The dog must think. The dog must learn. The dog must make the right decision. He must choose to offer the correct behavior in order to earn privileges, food or acceptance. We must make it to his benefit to offer desirable behaviors, and not to his benefit to offer inappropriate behaviors. Being a positive trainer is not the same as being a permissive trainer. The dog does not get to do whatever he wants to. He must demonstrate acceptable behavior in order to get his reward. In time, the dog will want to perform the correct behaviors.
Good management is key to being a proactive trainer. This means setting up for success, manipulating the environment so the dog cannot make errors. This means using dog crates, baby gates, puppy-proofing your house, allowing for plenty of exercise, putting away garbage, keeping food off the counters, providing stimulating toys, using gentle leadership techniques, socializing and, of course training. Proper management techniques will result in an adult dog that is well mannered, confident and trustworthy.
As trainers, there are several constants we must keep in mind. We must be clear in giving our cues, which in most cases will be words. When telling your dog what you want him to do, you must remember the words are not important to him; body posture and eye contact are what he’s paying attention to. This is why he’ll learn a behavior long before he associates it with the appropriate word. Timing is also very important. The delivery of positive reinforcement must come as close to the desired behavior as possible for your dog to learn which behavior leads to reward. You must move very SLOWLY to increase the time the dog must continue the behavior without reinforcement, moving too quickly will create confusion and is not fair training. Finally, it is important to set goals; know ahead of time what behaviors specifically you want to reward and what not to reinforce. Remember any mistake is yours, not his. Cement your foundation!
Put any behavior you want to teach into the following sequence:
1. Establish a goal, make a plan, set up for success.
2. Prevent or ignore unwanted behavior.
3. Get the behavior first.
4. Associate the word with the behavior.
5. Shift context early (place, direction, wean prompts).
6. Plan small steps to achieve the final behavior.
7. Raise criteria, raise reward.
8. Vary reinforcers and schedule of delivery.
9. Back up when necessary, cement foundation, work on the dog’s agenda.
The list of reinforcers is limitless. The more reinforcers you have, the more opportunities you have to reward your dog. Be creative, make your own list - figure out what motivates your dog and use it in training. Some reinforcers include: food, water, social interaction (with people or other dogs), exercise, toys, praise, petting, games, attention, body posture, freedom…
ADVANTAGES OF POSITIVE TRAINING
1. Positive training produces dogs who know what’s expected of them and who want to be right.
2. It produces dogs who are happy and eager to learn.
3. It produces willing dogs who are full of joy in their work.
4. It creates confident dogs, with a friendly, outgoing attitude because they never associate their owners or the environment with fear.
5. It creates fair trainers. The dog learns to obey out of respect and trust, not fear.
6. Dog & Trainer truly become a team.
7. Positive training techniques can be used for companion dogs through competition dogs.
8. It is simple and fun to use.
9. The dog becomes a member of the family, and all family members can train the dog.
10. It creates a guilt-free mindset which carries over into family & work life too.
Copyright © 2007 The Refined Canine, LLC
Copyright © 2007 The Refined Canine, LLC
http://www.refinedcanine.com/positive_principles.htm
Positive Training relies on positive reinforcement to elicit desired behavior. The dog must think. The dog must learn. The dog must make the right decision. He must choose to offer the correct behavior in order to earn privileges, food or acceptance. We must make it to his benefit to offer desirable behaviors, and not to his benefit to offer inappropriate behaviors. Being a positive trainer is not the same as being a permissive trainer. The dog does not get to do whatever he wants to. He must demonstrate acceptable behavior in order to get his reward. In time, the dog will want to perform the correct behaviors.
Good management is key to being a proactive trainer. This means setting up for success, manipulating the environment so the dog cannot make errors. This means using dog crates, baby gates, puppy-proofing your house, allowing for plenty of exercise, putting away garbage, keeping food off the counters, providing stimulating toys, using gentle leadership techniques, socializing and, of course training. Proper management techniques will result in an adult dog that is well mannered, confident and trustworthy.
As trainers, there are several constants we must keep in mind. We must be clear in giving our cues, which in most cases will be words. When telling your dog what you want him to do, you must remember the words are not important to him; body posture and eye contact are what he’s paying attention to. This is why he’ll learn a behavior long before he associates it with the appropriate word. Timing is also very important. The delivery of positive reinforcement must come as close to the desired behavior as possible for your dog to learn which behavior leads to reward. You must move very SLOWLY to increase the time the dog must continue the behavior without reinforcement, moving too quickly will create confusion and is not fair training. Finally, it is important to set goals; know ahead of time what behaviors specifically you want to reward and what not to reinforce. Remember any mistake is yours, not his. Cement your foundation!
Put any behavior you want to teach into the following sequence:
1. Establish a goal, make a plan, set up for success.
2. Prevent or ignore unwanted behavior.
3. Get the behavior first.
4. Associate the word with the behavior.
5. Shift context early (place, direction, wean prompts).
6. Plan small steps to achieve the final behavior.
7. Raise criteria, raise reward.
8. Vary reinforcers and schedule of delivery.
9. Back up when necessary, cement foundation, work on the dog’s agenda.
The list of reinforcers is limitless. The more reinforcers you have, the more opportunities you have to reward your dog. Be creative, make your own list - figure out what motivates your dog and use it in training. Some reinforcers include: food, water, social interaction (with people or other dogs), exercise, toys, praise, petting, games, attention, body posture, freedom…
ADVANTAGES OF POSITIVE TRAINING
1. Positive training produces dogs who know what’s expected of them and who want to be right.
2. It produces dogs who are happy and eager to learn.
3. It produces willing dogs who are full of joy in their work.
4. It creates confident dogs, with a friendly, outgoing attitude because they never associate their owners or the environment with fear.
5. It creates fair trainers. The dog learns to obey out of respect and trust, not fear.
6. Dog & Trainer truly become a team.
7. Positive training techniques can be used for companion dogs through competition dogs.
8. It is simple and fun to use.
9. The dog becomes a member of the family, and all family members can train the dog.
10. It creates a guilt-free mindset which carries over into family & work life too.
Copyright © 2007 The Refined Canine, LLC
silvaheyes- Obedience Trained
- Number of posts : 90
Age : 38
Pets : 4 Boxers, 2 fish, a horse, a cat, and a goat
Registration date : 2008-06-27
Dog Training
ProperPooches Sat Aug 09, 2008 6:42 pm
Nicely put,
It is nice to see postive dog training information getting out there, are you a trainer? I am, I run my own business in SWLA and I love to meet other trainers. I am a Certified Pet Dog Trainer, an Animal Behavior College grad, an AKC, CGC evaluator and a member of the Assosiation of Pet Dog Trainers. If anyone out there has any training or behavior questions please feel free to ask
Thank you
Sally Stride
properpooches.com
It is nice to see postive dog training information getting out there, are you a trainer? I am, I run my own business in SWLA and I love to meet other trainers. I am a Certified Pet Dog Trainer, an Animal Behavior College grad, an AKC, CGC evaluator and a member of the Assosiation of Pet Dog Trainers. If anyone out there has any training or behavior questions please feel free to ask
Thank you
Sally Stride
properpooches.com
ProperPooches- Just Whelped
- Number of posts : 2
Registration date : 2008-06-08
Re: Basic Principles of Positive Training
silvaheyes Sat Aug 09, 2008 7:26 pm
ProperPooches wrote:Nicely put,
It is nice to see postive dog training information getting out there, are you a trainer? I am, I run my own business in SWLA and I love to meet other trainers. I am a Certified Pet Dog Trainer, an Animal Behavior College grad, an AKC, CGC evaluator and a member of the Assosiation of Pet Dog Trainers. If anyone out there has any training or behavior questions please feel free to ask
Thank you
Sally Stride
properpooches.com
lol, Nope.. Not a trainer.
I wish I was though.. But having 4 Boxers you learn quickly plus I love to research things that I'm interested in.
silvaheyes- Obedience Trained
- Number of posts : 90
Age : 38
Pets : 4 Boxers, 2 fish, a horse, a cat, and a goat
Registration date : 2008-06-27
Re: Basic Principles of Positive Training
Riverdog Sat Aug 09, 2008 8:57 pm
ProperPooches wrote:Nicely put,
It is nice to see postive dog training information getting out there, are you a trainer? I am, I run my own business in SWLA and I love to meet other trainers. I am a Certified Pet Dog Trainer, an Animal Behavior College grad, an AKC, CGC evaluator and a member of the Assosiation of Pet Dog Trainers. If anyone out there has any training or behavior questions please feel free to ask
Thank you
Sally Stride
properpooches.com
Sally I'm so glad to see you here! It's so nice to have a trainer on the forum!
You can put a live link to your site in the Pet Training & Behavior forum! That is your expertise! The linking rules are mostly to keep people from spamming every thread. Pet trainers can link in the Pet Training Forum!
http://properpooches.com
Nice site too! Do you also do the photography?
Southern Pet Pics is very nice too! That's a nice combination. You can train the dogs to pose for the photos!
I'd be happy if I could get my dog Doc to sit long enough for a few photos. He gets too bored. I used to have a dog Rooney that loved the camera for some reason. He got excited every time we would get the camera out and ended up nosing his way into almost every photo. I could never figure out why he would get so excited around a camera it's not like he looked at the photos!
Doc on the other hand is the most strong headed, dominate dog I have ever owned!
Riverdog- Admin
- Number of posts : 259
Age : 69
Pets : Labrador Retriever
Registration date : 2008-05-17 -
Re: Basic Principles of Positive Training
jecot12 Fri Sep 25, 2009 3:33 am
Hi,
Thanks to give information about positive training for dog.Its very useful to trained dog in positive way.
Thanks to give information about positive training for dog.Its very useful to trained dog in positive way.
jecot12- Just Whelped
- Number of posts : 1
Registration date : 2009-09-24
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