Positive Reinforcement Dog Training: What exactly does that mean?

• Posted on 20 January 2015
• By Dr. Jill Tack
• Posted in dog training, dog training tips, Kat Stevens-Stanley, national train your dog month, positive reinforcement
• 0

We're back this week with another guest post from esteemed dog trainer, Kat Stevens-Stanley. If you missed her first post for us, you can view it here.

Dogs: if only they came equipped with the ability to understand the English language and we could explain to them the things we wanted them to know, do, and not do. What would our relationships with each other be like then? Since ‘human’s’ best friend unfortunately doesn’t come with this programming, how do we teach them? How do they learn? What is Positive Reinforcement Dog Training and why does it matter that we use this method?

We're back this week with another guest post from esteemed dog trainer, Kat Stevens-Stanley. If you missed her first post for us, you can view it here.

Dogs: if only they came equipped with the ability to understand the English language and we could explain to them the things we wanted them to know, do, and not do. What would our relationships with each other be like then? Since ‘human’s’ best friend unfortunately doesn’t come with this programming, how do we teach them? How do they learn? What is Positive Reinforcement Dog Training and why does it matter that we use this method?

What is Positive Reinforcement?

[caption id="attachment_4811" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Image credit: doggiedrawings.net[/caption]

Positive Reinforcement (R+) is a term that means when a behavior happens, something the organism (like your dog) perceives as rewarding, follows. Behaviors that are followed by a reward, or a ‘paycheck,’ are more likely to happen again in the future, because there is potential to earn that reward again.

Here are a couple examples:

You go to your job, you work a 40-hour work week, and at the end of the week you receive a paycheck. Hopefully you liked getting your paycheck so you are likely to return to your job again the following week. Chances are if you went to work all week and no one paid you, you probably wouldn’t feel too enthusiastic about being asked to do your job further. 

You ask your dog to ‘sit.’ Your dog sits down. You pay your dog for sitting down so nicely with a piece of cheese. Next time you ask your dog to ‘sit,’ your dog wants to do it because last time he did this, it was followed by cheese.

The ‘positive’ in Positive Reinforcement means, you’ve added something to the situation. You added a reward after the behavior happened.

How to Use Positive Reinforcement with Your Dog

Through the use of Positive Reinforcement, we are able to teach our dogs any number of things, without the use of force or aversive stimulation (things the dog perceives as unpleasant). When considering your dog’s behavior, think about what you want them to do, versus what you do not want them to do. Pay your dogs for the things you like! They will want to repeat them over and over again because it earns them a paycheck.

Some examples of great dog paychecks are:

• Food
• Toss of a toy
• A belly scratch
• A roll in a stinky smell
• A food-stuffed KONG toy

Find out what types of things your dog loves, and use those things to pay your dog for jobs well done. It’s important to make sure your rewards, or paychecks, are written out for things your dog actually enjoys. If you dog isn’t very well motivated by food (yes, there are dogs out there that aren’t super excited about eating) offering your dog chicken after sitting nicely isn’t going to be a very good reinforcement. If your dog doesn’t like playing tug, offering up a rope toy as a reward for coming when called probably isn’t a very good way to get your dog to come when called next time. You can buy the most expensive dog treat on the shelf, but if it isn’t something your dog likes to eat, it won’t be a very good paycheck.

Negative Punishment

When talking about Positive Reinforcement, it’s important to make a few notes about its ‘other half,’ Negative Punishment. Sometimes when our dog is doing something undesirable, we need to take something out of the equation to get our desired result. Positive Reinforcement dog training doesn’t mean we never ‘punish’ our dogs—we just do it without the use of force, confrontation, or aversive stimulus (like a choke or electronic shock).

For example:

You walk into your house and you are greeted by your dog who is jumping all over you, excited that you’ve returned home. Instead of saying hello to your dog, you go back outside the door. Next time you enter your dog does not jump, because each time he does, you leave. You have used Negative Punishment to decrease the jumping behavior. 

Why is it important that we choose this method of training as opposed to some of the other options that are out there? Think about your dog and what you want your relationship with each other to look like. Do you want a dog who does things only to avoid being scolded or frightened? Or do you want a dog who does things because when they happen, they earn rewards and feel happy to be doing them.

Why Positive Reinforcement Training is So Important (and Effective!)

Current canine behavioral science and research has proven to us, that aversive methods in dog training can have long-term consequences. Some of those consequences can be: unpredictable behavior, negative associations, anxiety, loss of trust with human guardians, or learned helplessness (a term that describes a dog who’s mental and physical state has completely shut down). Positive Reinforcement Dog Training methods make your dog’s behavior the most reliable and enables you to have a trusted, mutual respecting relationship with your dog.

Positive Reinforcement Dog Training uses concepts that the most current science on dog brains tell us work and are scientifically proven to be the quickest methods of learning. Remember this motto, ‘What’s rewarded gets repeated!’ Pay your dog for the things you like and you will be well on your way to having a dog who’s happy to work for you.

About the Author:

Kat Stevens-Stanley is a positive reinforcement, science-based dog trainer serving the metro Detroit area. As a lifelong dog nut, Kat has been caring for pets since childhood. Kat began a journey into the minds of dogs more deeply after adopting her dog, LOLA, from the Detroit Michigan Humane Society in 2007. In 2011, Katturned her passion for dogs into a lifelong career and graduated as a certified dog trainer from Animal Behavior College. In 2013 while preparing for the first two-legged addition to join her family, Kat became a licensed educator with the Family Paws Parent Education program, a unique international community of dog trainers who specialize in supporting and educating families with babies and young children, who also share their lives with dogs. Kat enjoys membership with the Association of Professional Dog Trainers, participating in seminars, and reading up on the latest in canine behavior science. In addition to dog training, Kat has worked as a pet sitter, dog walker, dog play group supervisor, and has completed a course in canine massage. Kat currently shares her home with her two dogs, LOLA & Bandit, her husband Joe, and their toddler, Margot. For more info visit www.katstevensdogtraining.com