This last week was a great week with clients! There have been some great breakthroughs and fun sessions! Working with animals and their people is always fun and full of learning opportunities for everyone involved! But there are some moments that will always stick with me because of what they taught me or reminded me. As a result, I though I would share a little story in hopes that it can help you and your dog learn and develop a stronger relationship!
Rafiel the Thinker
As per my personality and my vocation, when I work with dogs, I am constantly asking myself “Why?” Why did the dog do that? Why did the dog not do this? Why did he do it that way? Why did I ask him to do it that way? And on and on. These questions became even more important when I met Rafiel the poodle. When I met Rafiel I was so interested in finding out how he processed information because he seemed to always want to take his time thinking through things. I was, and still am, happy to allow him to take things slow, but I also asked myself “why”. Why did he slow down during training sessions? After thinking through it and discussing with colleagues why animals would approach training slowly, I came to the conclusion that Rafiel simply lacked confidence. This is something that seems to have become much more common these days with “Covid Puppies”, at no fault of their parents. Quarantine threw a wrench in many dog training and socialization plans. As a result, I have worked with multiple dogs who deal with low confidence due to the Covid-19 quarantine time last year. Knowing this about dogs these days, I thought I would share what I did with Rafiel in hopes that it can help someone else who is dealing with the same issue.
Rafiel’s Options
To help Rafiel develop confidence in training, his mom and I gave him choice. His mom and I taught him to tell us when he wanted us to stop and when he wanted us to keep going. Over time, I saw him more and more willing to give more effort and engage a little faster. The protocol we followed for giving Rafiel choice in training was this: If he shifted away from the trainer (whether it was his mom or me) during training, the trainer would stop asking him for the behavior, and give him a moment to decide if he wanted to continue before trying again in a way he is more comfortable with. When he shifted towards the trainer, that person would engage in the training exercise at hand. This process eventually resulted in a moment I found so much joy in and, to this day, is one of my favorite training moments!
In the specific training session containing this fond memory, I was working with Rafiel on handling his ears (for grooming purposes). At one section in the training session, we were working on his right ear. Rafiel was doing great with his right ear (we had worked on it a bit before) so after working on his right ear for a few minutes, I repositioned him so I could work on his left ear. Well, he was much less comfortable with this ear. This resulted in him pulling away when I reached towards his ear. When he pulled away, I simply stopped what I was doing, put my hands in my lap, and waited for him to give me permission to try again. He gave me permission, but then flinched when I touched his ear. I marked and reinforced him for letting me touch his ear. The next time I repeated the exercise, Rafiel was faced with a choice; Option 1: Move fully away from me to end the session and get his jackpot; Option 2: Continue the session and work on this new thing that he was not entirely comfortable with.
Rafiel gave me permission to continue. At this point I had lowered criteria and was simply moving my hand towards his head. However, he was still a bit uncomfortable. After marking and reinforcing him for letting me touch him even though he flinched again, I sat there waiting for him to give me permission to proceed with the next repetition. In my mind I was planning on lowering criteria even more by simply moving my hand without moving it towards him. Rafiel sat there trying, once again, to decide between the two options; end the session or give me permission to continue. Or at least those were the options I thought he was processing.
Rafiel’s Choice
Though I thought Rafiel was deciding between the previously mentioned options, it turned out Rafiel had something else in mind. He quickly came up with his own third option! Option 3: switch sides and give me permission to continue on his right ear! I immediately responded by working with his right ear, which he was happy for me to do and I was so delighted to see, and reinforce, his inventive solution! He did not want to end the session, so we worked that ear a couple more times before ending the session with a small treat jackpot and a good scratch in his favorite spot.
I will always treasure that training moment as a great memory and a moment I was reminded just how important choice can be to the learner! The next time I worked with Rafiel on his left ear, he was much more receptive to it. While I cannot say for certain that the two things are connected, I can tell you that as best I can tell, the more choice we give Rafiel, the more effort and engagement he is willing to give us in return! And thanks to his mom’s hard work continuing these sessions, he has gotten much better with his left ear and more! Hard work and patience pay off!
Closing Thoughts
While giving an animal choice in their level of participation can be a scary thing to do at first, it can make a huge difference in training sessions and relationships! Especially with dogs who lack confidence. The knowledge that they can stop at any time without being punished seems to give them a bit of a confidence boost. Though Rafiel still takes his time, he is much more insistent and actively participates in his training sessions, even occasionally asking to start training again after we have ended the session! If you have a dog who lacks confidence, consider giving them choice in their level of participation and contact a positive reinforcement trainer to help you do so.
There are many things I have learned from all my clients and I hope this information can help you in your journey with your dog. If you would like more assistance, please contact me at happyats@outlook.com to find out what services I offer that can help you and your dog grow and learn together!
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