A frequent complaint from clients about their dog is:
"But he KNOWS better..."
While I am always diplomatic in these situations and even sympathetic, the truth is that this type of thinking sets dogs up for failure. We not only expect our dogs to be better than dogs; we expect them to be better than humans!
Here is a short list of things that I have done even though, "I know better..."
Roll a stop sign
Bite my nails
Scream at my dog
Pee in a parking lot or public park
Eat cookie dough with raw egg in it
Go to the beach without sunscreen
Drink beer, wine & champagne in the same evening
Use my cell phone while driving
What I would love to say to my clients (if I didn't think it would seem rude, or hurt their feelings) is: "So, what!"
Lets say your dog does KNOW BETTER. Knowing is still just a small part of the equation. There are other/more important factors. Even without morals behavior is mitigated by:
Motivators: Motivation is HUGE. Even a very moral person might steal or lie if they were starving or under threat. Motivation is at the core of debates on torture because if sufficiently motivated you can drastically alter a beings "normal" behavior.
Consequences: The severity of a consequence, or the absence of any consequences CAN matter...but you can't control what is learned.. I got a $300 ticket for not wearing my seatbelt on a 1/4 mile drive to the corner store. Now I always wear my seat belt in small towns. I say CAN matter because despite fairly serious hangovers from partying too hard at weddings I continue to drink too much with old friends and I pay the price the next day.
Experience: There are technically consequences for driving and talking on a cell phone, but my experiences with this have been good. I have not had an accident, nor have I been ticketed... yet!
Setting: Could you explain to an alien from mars why peeing by a tree when camping is OK, but to do so in a public park could result in arrest for public indecency?
So the next time you find yourself thinking: "She knows better..."
Remind yourself, KNOWING just means that you CAN do something;
it has very little to do with the action you take.
This is true for humans; this is true for dogs.
AND, this is why creating good habits with your dog is far, far more important that teaching them to understand your rules, logic and/or potential consequences for not following them.
Clickers are not just for dog training!
You can use clickers to train cats, rats and birds too. There is even something called Chicken Camp where trainers learn to improve their timing and clicker training skills. Zoos use clickers to train animals to lift lips and limbs, open mouths, bend down and perform other behaviors that make routine health checks less stressful for the animals and the keepers. Over the years, I have come to love training with clickers.
Perhaps you've wondered, "Could my dog be clicker trained?"
Any dog can be trained with a clicker. If you decide to try clicker training you won't need to use the clicker forever, or even all the time. Clickers and verbal praise can be used simultaneously to mark desired behaviors and/or variations in performance. They are most often used by trainers to teach dogs new things. Eventually the clicker is faded out, or shifted as new behaviors are taught.
WHAT IS A CLICKER?
Clickers (shown above) are small, hand-held tools that make a CLICK-noise when pressed with the thumb. Clickers are used when new behaviors are being learned or when known behaviors are being applied in new situations. Clickers MARK behaviors that are currently being rewarded. Verbal Markers can also be used to teach behaviors, but the crisp, clean sound of a clicker is preferable when trying to mark precise moments of a dog's actions. A clicker is like a high quality, professional camera that can take a photo showing drops of water falling from a glass. Whereas my phone-camera might only show a fuzzy blur of water. When used correctly, clickers make for crystal clear communication.
A. Standard, Box Clicker (Cheap & clear, easy to hear sound)
B. Karen Pryor's iClick (Raised button is easy to push with a gloved hand)
C. Triple Crown Clicker (Contours to hand and is comfortable to hold)
DO I NEED SPECIAL TRAINING TO USE A CLICKER?
A clicker is a tool; it can be used correctly, used incorrectly and abused. As with most tools, the product depends on the user. For example, if I was given watercolors, a brush and instructions to paint a portrait of your dog, you would get a picture of a dog, but you might not be impressed. Ask my mother, an artist, and you'd get a technically correct product with added style and artistic flair -a painting you could frame. Hands-on instruction and coaching from someone who has trained with clickers will give you an advantage, but what you really need is practice. The best thing to do is start using the clicker for simple behaviors.
Stay tuned... >>HOW WILL MY DOG KNOW WHAT THE CLICK MEANS?
Would your dog behave better if there was less STUFF?
A lot of dogs behave better when they have STUFF taken away. It sounds silly when you put it this way, but sometimes the hardcore, science-heavy behavior lingo makes me feel nerdy.
The Facts: Removing sensory stimuli can create better behavior in dogs. In training a desensitized version of a situation is a critical step in conditioning and/or reconditioning perceptions and responses. Exposing a dog to gradual increments of the full picture allows the trainer to counter-condition the stimulus and change behavior.
The Question: How do you make certain stimuli (situations, pictures, events) less of what they are? Distance is a wonderful variable to manipulate, as it is movement and duration of exposure. These are the typical categories that are manipulated to create tolerable situations for the dog being trained.
The Complications: Some experiences and some individuals just can't cope with "stuff" no matter how far away it is or how slowly it moves. In fact whole new problems can be created for dogs who behave badly when things are far away or move oddly (too slow, too fast, to wobbly) etc..
The Solution: For these dogs, a hood placed over the head is often remarkably helpful. I liken the use of a Calming Cap on dogs to blinders on horses. It doesn't entirely blind the animal, but it takes some of the overwhelming stimulous out of the picture.
Personal Testimony & Practical Uses: I have used these caps on dogs who ride badly in cars. Not dogs who get sick, or are fearful of car rides, but dogs that just can't seem to hold it together during the ride. Border Collies, Kelpies and other herding dogs are at the top of the list for this.
I also have used it for dogs who have never been on leash before, or were severely under-socialized and seem utterly overwhelmed when trying to soak in everything on walks. Dogs really do use their nose like we use our eyes, so even with reduced eye-sight, they are getting tons of information about where they are and what is going on around them.
Final Thought... It does look a little funny. I recommend decorating the fabric :)
Training Small dogs can be a challenge. Dogs that weigh less than 10lbs move quickly. They are also so close to the ground already that using a Food-Lure (a treat held in your hand, close to their nose) can be challenging. For medium and large dogs Food-Lures are a convenient ways to move dogs into positions like sit or down. However, with small dogs Food-Lures can sometimes cause more jumping-bean action than is conducive to training.
For really small, fast-flying dogs I prefer to sit back and relax when training. For this type of training a CLICKER is really, really handy. A clicker is a small device that makes a click-sound when the metal flap inside the small box is pressed down and released.
Clickers are used to train dogs, horses, cats, pigeonsrats and even marine mammals. Using a clicker is simple. In the beginning the animal in training needs only to learn that each click-sound will be quickly followed by a small reward (technically it must be a reinforcer) that the animal will enjoy and working for. I like using small, tasty bits of food like cheeses or meats.
The rules are simple.
1. Click what you like.
2. Click at the EXACT moment the behavior is accomplished.
3. Don't command the animal to DO anything, JUST WAIT for something -be patient!!!
4. Reward the animal after every click.
5. Train is short intervals 5-10minutes
Sometimes it is helpful to think of the clicker as a camera. At the end of the training if each CLICK was a PHOTO, and if you placed all those photos on your kitchen table you would have only photos of the behavior (sit, down, bow) that you were hoping to train.
Here are two Kinder-CLICKER lesson for fast-flying, jumpy little-dogs.
1. Click (and reward) the dog anytime they are NOT moving. Click the dog for being still in any position. Offer extra treats for clicks that marked exceptionally cute still positions (like sit or down). After 2 or 3 sessions, raise the bar and click only certain positions.
2. Click (and reward) All Cute Behaviors. This is my favorite. I will click anything cute!!! Head-tilts, play-bows, prairie-dog position, sit, down, waving. Then I pick one behavior that gets clicked and a special bonus treat (gorgonzola). I like to see how long it takes for the dog to offer only that behavior.
A Basket Muzzle can be used to prevent a dog from biting, but it is not to be used as a replacement for addressing the problem, or for contacting a certified trainer.
A light-weight basket muzzle is always the best option when the dog will be participating in an physical exercise such as walking or playing.
It is also the best choice when the dog will or may be wearing the muzzle for longer than a few minutes, or for management of a lifetime problem such as Lack of Bite Inhibition (see below).
In general a muzzle is used when there is a history of the dog's bite having caused damage such as scratches or punctures.
A muzzle may also be used with a dog who has not yet bitten, but who is showing clear warning signals that they are likely to bite such as GROWLING, SNARLING or SNAPPING (especially if the aggression is directed at people).
Dogs who show signs of aggression, but whose Bite Inhibition is not known, may also need to wear a muzzle. Because a dog who has not bitten has Unknown Bite Inhibition, it can not be determined how seriously the dog may bite.
Some dogs, especially those socialized well as puppies, will use their teeth and jaws and cause little to no damage. Other dogs, those with Poor Bite Inhibition, will leave punctures, tear the skin, or worse bite multiple times with deep punctures and tearing.
Good Bite Inhibition means that the dog causes little or no damage. It is possible for a dog to have bitten many times and have Good Bite Inhibition. It is also possible for a dog who rarely fights, or almost never bites to have Poor Bite Inhibition. Dogs who almost never fight/bite, but who have cause damage (punctures needing medical or veterinary care) should always be muzzled when around the people or dogs they may harm.
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