Are you a Cesar Millan Fan? I hope not!

Finally more and more are realizing that Cesar's methods are not the most ideal methods to train dogs with. Finally...people are taking action. Below is the pdf of the letter from the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior to Merial who is considering promoting Cesar's and his methods in a Heartgard and Frontline campaign:

(copy and paste the following in your browser)

http://www.avsabonline.org/avsabonline/images/stories/Current_Events/merialletter6-10.pdf

They even have references to speak about the results of Cesar's training. "We would also be happy to provide you with additional peer-reviewed references indicating that the training methods televised on “The Dog Whisperer”often lead to increased aggression and human injury. " I think viewers forget this is ALSO a television show where editing is used aggressively.

I hope that you continue to use positive reinforcement with your dogs.....

Come on now! and GET Pawsitive! :)

The pioneer of clicker training

Karen Pryor has a new book out! I definitely recommend you read it. Check out her recent showing on ABC to hear and see a nice quick overview of just what it means to click!
link:


http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=7850537

She just needs a little more time to train the newscaster on the rules of the click--- click/treat click/treat ... :)

Recalls?

It's been a bit since I've posted- busy with trying to buy a house, being pregnant and well- then there's work! :)

But how about recalls!? We all want our dogs to come running to us when we call them, right? But what's most important is that the "come" cue is RELIABLE when we LEAST expect we are going to NEED our pup to come running to us!! (ie: someone left the front door open-oops! and there went the doggie!)

SO what does this mean?? This means- try to practice getting the dog to WANT to run to you as exercises in themselves...versus waiting until that someone leaves that front door open and you simply "HOPE" and "PRAY" that Kona will come back running at the first call or whistle! As you get your dog to WANT to run in your direction you toss in the cue of "come!" while he's in motion.... wa-la! you are naming the behavior!

Today I was with Gunner- a 13 week old Golden Retreiver... Playing the games of running back and forth between two people and reinforcing that puppy when he arrives at your feet with something delicious really left an impression in cute Gunner's mind. Boy will he want to do THAT again! - look how it ended!! So often in the past the result of getting to the owner ended in some sort of unpleasantry for the dog- So when you practice getting your dog to run back and forth to you from another object or playing hide and seek with them make sure that you get that tail to wag!! Make it fun! Reward!! Get excited! (But not too excited it sends your pup over the top- you'll know your dog and how much enthusiasm you can give). If you play the recall games in the house and in the back yard over and over again...... your chances of getting that dog to run to you when you finally ask him to will be much more reliable!! Also, neither part will be frustrated. :)

The VALUE of a reinforcer!

Too many people get stuck using ONE type of reinforcer to reward their dog with- it results often times in frustration, no progress and what you *think* is a dog who isn't a "good" dog! Think again! and try something different!! Remember dogs just offer behaviors- it's as simple as that! They are neither good nor bad......just desireable or undesireable.... and if we have a reinforcer they are interested in those desireable ones will be MUCH easier to reinforce and reward and move up on the pup's list of "behaviors" or things to do!

Just yesterday we stepped outside the front door with Gracie- a 5 month old GORGEOUS blue-gray pitbull pup I am working with. I had a small jar of beef n gravy baby food in my hand.... and boy was she a different dog! Her attention on me was constant.... her owners recognized the difference the value of a treat makes combined withthe level of distraction in a particular given environment! YAY! Trying to give her a treat she was used to day in and day out - didn't work. EVEN if it worked in the house! The distractions outside were too great for her to care about THAT same ole' "ho hum" treat!

So ..... try something NEW each week.... and when you think you've found a GREAT high value treat to reinforce with- FIND ANOTHER! :) :)

Happy Clicking!
PS- don't forget a reinforcer doesn't just have to be food! It can be their favorite toy! Or Ball!

idea for a real great reinforcer?

If you took your pup off leash in the house and let her run over to her favorite thing-toy/treat/bed etc- what would it be?? Use this as a real reinforcer next time you train!

You won't have to carry treats with you forever as you train- but you may soon find out as you continue on with training that you WANT to! :) It's just like being prepared with all the "stuff" you have for your children when you go somewhere- ie: bottles, snacks, wipes, diapers etc! :)

Clicker training works on horses too!

It was my horse Chrissy's birthday yesterday so I went out to celebrate her 19th year! :) I finally was able to do a quick solo video of the "settle" I taught her with positive reinforcement training. The more you work on it the more consistent and reliable the behavior will be! With this video you'll notice I name the "shake" at the end once she gets up. I began working on this a bit ago but at this point I'm just capturing it because I know she will do it!! Stay tuned for a more Reliable "shake" behavior alone! :) enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyu6slBQQvQ


The birthday girl!

GET PAWSITIVE!

My official business name is : Get Pawsitive!! Since I focus on positive reinforcement training I thought why not make a statement! :) Of course everyone loves to use the pun on "paw"....... keep your eyes out for more cool stuff!!

Off to train.....
Sarah