Examples

A dog that "loses it" when he sees other dogs on a walk can benefit from a combination of:

1. classical conditioning (dog approaching = amazing food)
2. operant conditioning (dog approaching = look at owner)
3. a change in owner behavior (no more leash-tightening and stress, which reinforces the dog's belief that the approaching dog is dangerous).
4. using flower essences to address the dog's emotional state (we can't train emotions, we can only train behaviors).

A dog that jumps up on people stops getting reinforced for doing it:

• Rather then trying to calm the dog by petting her or pushing her away, the person turns away (removing the attention the dog wants).
• The dog learns that "four-on-the-floor" gets the person's attention
• Sitting results in petting, praise, and treats.

Key Ideas

Dogs Do What Works. That gives you a lot of power because you control the resources: food, access to the outdoors, attention, petting, etc. If jumping up gets attention then your dog will do it. If, on the other hand, you ignore your dog when she jumps up, but pay attention to her when she doesn’t, she’ll quickly learn that keeping four-on-the-floor is the way to get what she wants. Reward the behavior you want, ignore or manage the behavior you don’t want.

Small Steps. Help your dog learn. If you rush and assume too quickly that the dog “knows” the behavior you’ll be frustrated and your dog will be confused. When asking for more from your dog increase only one criteria at a time; increase distance, time, and distractions separately. Reward all honest efforts by your dog.

Be Proactive. Focus on setting your dog up for success, not on catching them in failure. Remember, you’re the human, you can plan for your dog.

Less Is More. Short sessions are better than long ones. Working for two minutes at a time, with breaks in between, is much more effective than doing one 20 minute session. Dogs that rest after short, successful training moments learn better.

“Say please” Dogs will do something you want in order to do something they want. For example, having your dog sit before you open the door, or before you put his food bowl down, is an easy way to improve their behavior. This is a very powerful idea that all owners should make use of.

Ham It Up! Bring out your inner actor and you’ll see a difference in your dog because your intent will be clearer. Delight and disappointment shouldn’t look or sound the same. Mushy communication from you makes for mushy responses from your dog. The one thing I don’t want you to dramatize is anger.

Have Fun! As far as the dog is concerned there’s no difference between “obedience” and “tricks.” It’s all a game to them, so why not take the same attitude. If you make a mistake just let it go and try again. Be fair, be enthusiastic, and enjoy this time with your dog.

Training Methods

The Art Of Dog philosophy is to help create a trusting partnership between dog and owner. The emphasis is on rewarding desirable behavior, and takes into account a dog's natural instincts and needs. The goal is to have a dog that truly is a companion and a full member of the family. We can learn as much from dogs as they can learn from us. It is this mutual regard that is at the heart of The Art Of Dog.

I emphasize teaching people as much as teaching dogs. My goal is for every human student to become independent: to be able to apply what they learned with me when new challenges arise in the future.

The main components of my training method are:

1. Understanding dog behavior
2. Humane management solutions
3. Humane training methods for changing behavior
4. Flower essence therapy and health awareness

Understanding dog behavior
I emphasize the owner's need to understand their dog's innate behavior. If we don't understand how they're hardwired - what their needs are as dogs - we will make mistakes in how we interpret and respond to their actions.

For example, if you take your dog to dog parks it's important to understand how dogs socialize amongst themselves, because it's very different than how human's play and socialize. This same understanding of dog social behavior can be applied in the home as well, to properly interpret their interactions with family members. The leadership concepts I promote are based on this understanding, which forms the foundation of my program.

Humane management solutions
Often there are management aspects to training that need to be instituted along with teaching the dog. Issues such as housetraining, inappropriate chewing, and escaping are problems that benefit from management, especially if they happen when you’re not home. For example, if you’re dog is running away when you’re not home, you’re not there to train the dog, so you must rely on management solutions such as securing the yard that can prevent the dog from escaping. Once you’ve done that you can try to ascertain what might be causing the behavior while keeping the dog safely home.

Humane training methods for changing behavior
My goal in training dogs is to shape the their behavior using as much positive reinforcement as possible.
This doesn't mean that the dog will get everything she wants because there are no consequences. Negative consequences can be things like the loss of couch privileges, loss of attention from the owner, or the withholding of favorite treats or toys. Positive consequences are things like access to treats, favorite toys, attention, and free play. This process is illustrated in my list of key ideas.

The consequences DO NOT include applying punishment such as jerking, hitting, or electric shock - these are not part of the training methods I teach.

My favorite method to train new behaviors is called Clicker Training. This is a method that uses a small handheld tool that makes a "click" sound, which the dog learns to associate with positive reinforcement. The "click" tells the dog "Yes! That's what I want!", AND "you will get a reward for that!" (usually food). The precision of this method means that the dog is given clear information on what she needs to do to earn her reward. This method has been used for many years in the training of sea mammals for entertainment, and is now widely used in the training of dogs and other animals.

Flower essence therapy and health awareness
I use flower essence therapy in my training programs because I have found it very useful in helping dogs change their behavior. These gentle remedies can help adjust emotional difficulties that show up as behavior problems, opening the door for behavior modification techniques. I have found them invaluable for dogs that exhibit anxiety-based problems such as obsessive licking or chewing, fear, and aggression. For more information you can download a PDF on how I use these remedies.

Finally, I believe it's important to take into account the dog's health because behavior can be affected by physical issues that may seem unrelated or even invisible. Problems like food intolerances, thyroid dysfunction, and joint pain can have a negative effect on behavior, so I may recommend that this aspect be investigated.

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Some terms you might hear
when looking for a trainer:

Positive Reinforcement
The trainer GIVES the dog something immediately following a behavior, increasing the likelihood of the behavior being repeated. For example, giving a dog a treat for staying in heel position.

Negative reinforcement
The trainer TAKES AWAY something immediately following a behavior, increasing the likelihood of the behavior being repeated. For example, using a shock collar set very low to continuously shock the dog until the dog moves towards the handler (the dog is "turning off" the shock by moving to the handler).

Positive Punishment
Anything the trainer GIVES to the dog immediately following a behavior, decreasing the likelihood of the behavior being repeated. For example, giving a leash jerk when the dog pulls on the leash.

Negative Punishment
The trainer TAKES AWAY something from the dog immediately following a behavior, decreasing the likelihood of the behavior being repeated. For example, turning away (removing attention) from a dog who is jumping up on you.

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