tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4901844543243405919.post374579176852574522..comments2024-03-08T22:33:35.306-08:00Comments on Exercise Finished: Corrections, Part Itervnmalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16059486741282674657noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4901844543243405919.post-42915761277720864152011-07-21T14:07:17.573-07:002011-07-21T14:07:17.573-07:00Dang, it's not a second command? LOL I better ...Dang, it's not a second command? LOL I better get out of that habit! ;)Cynthiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00610994972457978141noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4901844543243405919.post-86355411016941847122011-07-19T20:02:24.377-07:002011-07-19T20:02:24.377-07:00These posts keep getting better and better.
Speak...These posts keep getting better and better.<br /><br />Speaking of semantics, I appreciate your use of the word "motivators" in stead of "positive based". There are so many trainers that use "positive" training methods that are really only using cookies or toys. I accidentally used that term once with someone and he CORRECTED me saying "the dog is being positive" meaning that the dog had a positive attitude during the training session. This came from one of the best trainers I know - he almost never uses cookies or toys in training (or remote collars or chains/pinches), and he has the happiest, most well trained and social dogs I know. AND he works primarily with shelters dogs on the E list. <br /><br />I think that was one of the best lessons I've learned so far that the dog's attitude towards the training is the key - assuming that you aren't being abusive with your training methods. As trainers, we strive to find the right motivators for our dogs, and I appreciate all this information about US being the biggest motivators in training. There are so many times throughout my day that where I only use "good boy" and it is good enough for my dog in those cases. I'm excited to incorporate some of that into more *formal* training sessions - emphasis on formal as most of our training is done on our hikes and in play.Running With Dogshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15041644923541605027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4901844543243405919.post-43986798220387461352011-07-19T13:42:10.259-07:002011-07-19T13:42:10.259-07:00Interesting points about language and the understa...Interesting points about language and the understanding (or mis-understanding) it brings to training. Words can have a lot of baggage and they color our own perception of what we are doing.<br /><br />Phoenix works on a buckle collar very similar to his "every day" collar. I don't do much with "traditional" collar corrections (i.e., pop and jerk), so rarely use a choker. Training on a pinch (which I have done occasionally but not often) seems to be counter productive if he's only responding to the collar and when it's gone, so is the behavior.<br /><br />I do try to work some bits of exercises into daily life - especially asking him to do signals at random around the house and yard on the spur of the moment. I have to be careful when doing this because if he DOESN'T comply, I have to stop and enforce it - so not to be undertaken casually if there's no time to back things up. But a good way to help him understand a signal or command means the same thing, all the time, no matter where.tervnmalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16059486741282674657noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4901844543243405919.post-21058860456521802642011-07-19T12:52:44.650-07:002011-07-19T12:52:44.650-07:00I have two nit-picks about semantics that I think ...I have two nit-picks about semantics that I think cause a lot of gap between R+ trainers and, well, everyone else. :)<br /><br />"He still gets cookies!" Getting treats outside of training doesn't mean anything. Dogs that don't get treats outside of training aren't abused, neglected, sad dogs. Dogs that never get treats, in training or out, probably don't really care. This is not something that I think really bothers them. Would they take them if offered? Probably. They're dogs, they're opportunistic scavengers. But saying that your dog still gets treats, just not for training doesn't change my feelings about how you train your dog. Just something I've heard from more than one correction trainer that bugs me.<br /><br />"A CORRECTION IS NOT PUNISHMENT! IT IS INFORMATION!" This, I think, is the big one. First of all, the first Operant Conditioners really should have chosen a less emotionally loaded word. Because there isn't anything terribly awful about punishment. Punishment decreases behavior. If you have a dog that is tipping over garbage cans, and you do something and later the dog stops tipping over garbage cans, you have punished tipping over garbage cans (well, maybe you extinguished it, but go with me here). You could have done that through lighting the dog up every time he got near one, or you could have done it by putting him in a crate for three minutes every time he went near one. So if a correction is designed to keep a dog from making that mistake again, it IS punishment. It is not necessarily abuse, but it is decreasing the frequency of some kind of behavior. <br /><br />In general, I would like to see people on both sides of the fence stop freaking out so much about that word. If everyone would at least start by giving other dog trainers the benefit of the doubt that they probably don't hate dogs and get satisfaction by abusing them in the name of training, we might be able to have more meaningful discussions about the art and science of dog training.<br /><br />These aren't really gripes about YOU, I do want to say again how informative and interesting I've found this series, and I am rooting for both of you to find a solution!<br /><br />But now I do have two questions specific to your situation. :)<br /><br />What kind of collar is Phoenix wearing? Is it a training/showing specific collar or an all-the-time-always collar?<br /><br />I know some of the higher level exercises require quite a bit of set up, but have you ever asked him to perform obedience commands in daily life? IE "Fetch" the pen I dropped, "heel" across the street, "Jump" that log not this one?Raeganhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04993187206192547252noreply@blogger.com