Do you use only positive reinforcement training that involves no corrections and corrections whatsover? Or do you believe in corrections? Why/why not?
So to sum it up:
1. What different methods of training are there?
2. What method do you use and why?
3. Do you think your method of training is successful?
4. What method do you think is inaffective?
5. And.. what do you think of "treat dispenser" trainers? (if you know what I mean)
Stars would be appreciated.
Have a good night everyone. :)
Dog Training - How to Train Your Dog to Come to You & Prevent Dangerous Situations
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There are 3 categories of dog trainers: This is taken from Leerburg's site and explains it better than I could.
Three basic categories of dog trainers which I place on a sliding scale.
The first category on the left is the group of people who beg or bribe and lure their dogs to do something by offering a food or toy reward. Don't get me wrong, I use food and toys in training, but I also use distractions and corrections. The people in this first category use neither.
The problem with this group is that the dogs often choose to not do what's asked because they don't think the reward is not high enough in value to them. These dogs end up being pushy, dominant and often antisocial aggressive animals. These are the dogs that are turned into animal shelters as being unmanageable when in fact they act the way they do as a result of ineffective dog training.
At the other end of the scale, on the right side, is the second category of dog trainers. These are trainers who intimidate or force their dogs to do what they want (the William Koehler trainers). I call them the old school “yank and crank” trainers.
They put a choke collar on a dog and force it to do everything. Most professional dog trainers use these methods because for them "time is money" and they can get a dog trained much quicker by forcing the dog to perform. The bottom line is with enough force a dog can be trained to do almost anything.
The problem with yank and crank trainers is the dogs seldom like their handlers. In fact softer dogs are often afraid of their handlers. These are the dogs that tuck their tails or lay on the ground when asked to do something. These are dogs that look nervous when they are near their owners. That's because they never know when the hammer is going to fall.
The third category of dog trainer is the where I strive to be. Category three dog trainers want to be in the middle of the other two categories. They balance in the middle but are always prepared to move one way or the other depending on what's going on in their dog training at a given moment or point in time.
The third group uses motivational methods (food, toys or praise) to take a dog through a learning phase. The most effective motivational method is called training with markers (read my article on this) This is where the dog actually learns the meaning of a command – for example it learns the meaning of the word “COME.”
Once the dog understands the meaning of the command the trainer then adds distractions to the program. A good example of this is a dog that has learned the meaning of the word "DOWN" but now must learn that "DOWN" means stay down until the handler gives a "RELEASE COMMAND". This means the dog must stay down even if the owner or someone else tosses a ball in front of the dogs feet or drops a hot dog 4 feet from where he is lying.
If a dog is disobedient under distraction or does not follow directions this third category of dog trainers teaches a dog that there will be correction for being disobedient. The key here is that corrections are never given unless the owner 100% knows the dog understands what is being asked of him but refuses to follow the command.
Time To Find Out More About Appropriate And Efficient Dog Training
- 1. I'm sure there are a few training methods out there, but the common denominator would be either reinforcement/reward the positive behavior or correction for unwanted behavior.
2. I've used the combination of both. When the puppy is young and just beginning to learn, I've used treats and praise to some degree. Now that he's older he IS getting corrected for unwanted behavior and for not performing a command on the first try. I've read Koehler and a couple of other books and if you understand dogs and their actions, it makes complete sense. Dogs do NOT live to please their owners, in contrast to what a lot of people believe. My dog will perform a command because he's either (a) expecting praise or (b) avoiding a correction. Not because he loves me so much, blah..blah....that's all crap.
2. Yes a combination of both methods is successful, you have to be consistent, patient and understand what works best with your dog.
3. Clicker training...ONLY...in my opinion, is a waste of time.
5. As for treat dispensers, you get a dog that does what he wants when he wants! That's not training.... - Clicker training is a method used to train dogs (and many other animals, including the marine mammals you see in shows) that is based on marking the correct behavior, and reinforcing it. Reinforcements are things like treats, playing tug or fetch, access to another dog or other coveted item, etc. Treats are the most commonly used reinforcer, and the easiest to talk about and start with, but by no means the only reinforcers used.
In clicker training, once the dog has learned the behavior, it is put on cue (command) and generalized to other situations. Once the dog knows the behavior, the clicker is not used anymore, alhtough the dog may continue to get reinforcement of some kind, on either a continuous or variable schedule. Reinforcement might be a quiet "good girl", a treat, permission to get in the car, putting a leash on, all sorts of things. One of the things clicker training does is help you realize where reinforcement is occuring anyway, and how it can help you rather than hurt you.
Clicker training is used for all sorts of training, from general life skills, to competitive obedience, agility, etc, to training working dogs for all sorts of jobs. It was used to train dolphins to do open ocean work for hours away from their handlers (they used a whistle instead of a clicker when working with underwater animals, same technique.), birds and cats to do spy work. and is used in many zoos and similar facilities to facilitate husbandry and vet care, such as teaching an otter to pee in a cup, or a dolphin to allow a tube to be inserted into his stomach. The majority of animal shows you see, from Parrot Jungle, to Dolphin's Cove, to your local zoo, use clicker training because it is reliable, humane, safe for the keepers, and has been successful across hundreds of species.
Another huge advantage for some people is that it engages the dogs mind in a way that a dog who is fearful of corrections doesn't. A friend of mine is a bilateral amputee (of her legs) and had an accident when driving alone on a deserted road with her Papillon service dog (clicker trained) and her cell phone was locked in the trunk. She did have a clicker handy, and on the spot was able to train her dog to open the trunk, get into her bag, and retrieve her cell phone.
It seems to make sense that you can't get reliability without corrections- but it isn't true. Because we live with our dogs there are more possibilities for them to misbehave, mainly because we don't often set the dogs up for success, so corrections do come into play, mainly as negative punishment (the removal of something desirable). But in the main, we focus on teaching dogs what to do, rather than what not to do, and slice behavior finely so that the dog can learn it easily. Corrections are needed when we start making the slices less fine (lumping) so the dog is wrong- that's our fault for not taking the time to make it understandable to the dog. The better I become as a trainer, the fewer corrections I end up giving.
There are probably many people here who would consider me a treat dispenser, and I'll probably get some TDs (in the spirit of clicker training, I don't give TDs!) but one of my favorite expression is "positive is not permissive."
Another advantage is that it works on a wide variety of dog personalities, because the basic principles are universal. The application may vary- you will need very different reinforcers for a high drive Belgian learning bitework than a Beagle learning a reliable recall. How you slice or break up the behavior will also vary.
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