If there's one common denominator in achieving solid dog training skills it has to be consistency.
Whenever I fall short in my training sessions it almost always due to a lack of consistency. Being consistent is not always convenient and I'd challenge any trainer who brags that they are always consistent. It's near impossible to click at exactly the correct moment or issue the same hand signal every time.
It has to be the single most difficult discipline to master. I now have the courage to admit when I've failed in my training by moving too quickly before the dog has ingrained the behaviour or when I've not clicked consistently enough to reinforce the action.
I've recently being dealing with a couple who have a very handsome young working collie named Floyd. Floyd is a real star and he's always up for learning new activities and he's intelligent to a fault.
Floyd's owners asked my advice on stopping him barking at strangers when they walk passed the garden.
I walked into the garden armed with my clicker and some treats. The moment he made a run for the fence, I stopped him and said "It's OK" , and gave him a treat. Soon my son was walking passed the fence with my young bitch Lu and Floyd was sitting quietly at my side. I instructed the owners to nip the barking in the bud and offer a tasty alternative to barking the place down and upsetting all in sundry. A few days past and Floyd was beginning to go back to his old tricks. This was down to inconsistency on the owner's behalf. Floyd had been allowed to bark a few times without being corrected thus reinforcing the barking behaviour and weakening the passive behaviour.
This is a classic case of inconsistency causing confusion in a young dog. When the dog becomes confused he will always revert to the most reinforced behaviour, in Floyd's case, barking his nut's off.
My advice to any trainer is to prepare your training session in advance. Set yourself exercises and objectives. The objective may not be attainable in a single session. Is this turns out to be the case, learn from your mistake and revise your objective accordingly for the next session.
I think it's a good idea to have a note of the exercises your going to train. Advance through the session at the dog's pace keeping it fun and exciting and always finish on a good note. Never make the mistake of running out of treats or getting into a brawl on the way home. Take a detour if necessary but always finish with a happy atmosphere.This is so important. It is so easy to spoil a good training session with a few moments carelessness on the way home.
As far as convenience goes, well it's just too bad. You may have to make that extra lap round the training area to reinforce the heel or perhaps you'll have to turn and walk in a different direction so not to create a situation that results in a show of aggression. All I'll say is that being consistent is very seldom convenient and if you want to achieve solid results , you'll have to be prepared to put yourself out now and again.
In summary, organise your training in advance, keep a note of your progress and concentrate on being consistent.
Whenever I fall short in my training sessions it almost always due to a lack of consistency. Being consistent is not always convenient and I'd challenge any trainer who brags that they are always consistent. It's near impossible to click at exactly the correct moment or issue the same hand signal every time.
It has to be the single most difficult discipline to master. I now have the courage to admit when I've failed in my training by moving too quickly before the dog has ingrained the behaviour or when I've not clicked consistently enough to reinforce the action.
I've recently being dealing with a couple who have a very handsome young working collie named Floyd. Floyd is a real star and he's always up for learning new activities and he's intelligent to a fault.
Floyd's owners asked my advice on stopping him barking at strangers when they walk passed the garden.
I walked into the garden armed with my clicker and some treats. The moment he made a run for the fence, I stopped him and said "It's OK" , and gave him a treat. Soon my son was walking passed the fence with my young bitch Lu and Floyd was sitting quietly at my side. I instructed the owners to nip the barking in the bud and offer a tasty alternative to barking the place down and upsetting all in sundry. A few days past and Floyd was beginning to go back to his old tricks. This was down to inconsistency on the owner's behalf. Floyd had been allowed to bark a few times without being corrected thus reinforcing the barking behaviour and weakening the passive behaviour.
This is a classic case of inconsistency causing confusion in a young dog. When the dog becomes confused he will always revert to the most reinforced behaviour, in Floyd's case, barking his nut's off.
My advice to any trainer is to prepare your training session in advance. Set yourself exercises and objectives. The objective may not be attainable in a single session. Is this turns out to be the case, learn from your mistake and revise your objective accordingly for the next session.
I think it's a good idea to have a note of the exercises your going to train. Advance through the session at the dog's pace keeping it fun and exciting and always finish on a good note. Never make the mistake of running out of treats or getting into a brawl on the way home. Take a detour if necessary but always finish with a happy atmosphere.This is so important. It is so easy to spoil a good training session with a few moments carelessness on the way home.
As far as convenience goes, well it's just too bad. You may have to make that extra lap round the training area to reinforce the heel or perhaps you'll have to turn and walk in a different direction so not to create a situation that results in a show of aggression. All I'll say is that being consistent is very seldom convenient and if you want to achieve solid results , you'll have to be prepared to put yourself out now and again.
In summary, organise your training in advance, keep a note of your progress and concentrate on being consistent.
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