FE101: Relationship Building Through Play

Reinforcement Strategies

How we reinforce a behavior is just as important as how often we reinforce a behavior.

Reward Placement: 

Action behaviors

Action behaviors such as weaves and go outs where the dog is moving away from you, ideally are rewarded away from you. The easiest way to do that is to throw the reward onto the dog's path.

Action behaviors where the dog is moving towards us and we want the dog to stay out at a distance, ideally we reward behind the dog because most dogs are motivated to come towards the handler and because we want to build value for being at a distance from the handler.

Action behaviors where we want to build value for coming to us (loose leash walking, recalls or in agility to reward dogs who likes to stay out at a distance), we will want the reward to happen at the handler or behind the handler. We can reward by throwing the reward behind us or at our feet or between our legs to build more enthusiasm. To build more thoughtfulness, we can hand the reward to the dog.

Precision behaviors

For behaviors where we want precision such as heeling, fronts, 2 feet on an item, etc, ideally, we want to reward in a way that builds more value to what we want or off-sets the dog's normal tendency in order to build more precision. For example, my dogs are more likely to forge in heeling. To offset this, when I reward, the treat is transferred from my right hand to my left hand behind my back and then delivered to the dog either at or slightly behind heel position. For dogs who tend to lag, then we will want the reward to happen ahead of heel position by tossing the reward ahead of the dog. For dogs who heel too wide, we want the reward to be placed really close to us.

For fronts, it is really important that the reward is stored either at the center of our bodies (treats in your mouth), on both sides of your body (treat in both hands, one treat delivered from both hands at the same time) or behind you (send the dog through your legs for the reward). Storing the rewards in your right pocket and delivering them slightly to the right of center will result over time in the dog fronting slightly to the right of center.

It is okay to lure the dog to the ideal location to receive their reward.

Stationary behaviors

Ideally, we want to reward stationary behaviors in position to help build duration and prevent extra movement from the dog during the behavior. If we want to build more enthusiasm for the behavior, then we can reward out of position by having the dog chase or catch the treat.  In general, it is more exciting to chase a reward than it is to receive a reward in position.

Abundance of Rewards: 

We can use the number of rewards that we give to the dog as a reinforcement strategy to shape our dog's behavior closer to the criteria that we ultimately desire. If I give my dog one reward for moving to heel position and setting up a tiny bit crooked and I give 3 rewards for moving to heel position and setting up precisely, then through this shaping process, my dog will start to set up more precisely. 

Rewarding abundantly is also a great way to build value to that location and building duration for the behavior. 

Reward Type: 

The type of reward that we are using plays a role in the emotional state that we are building with the behavior. If we are practicing go outs and I'm using a thrown toy to reward the dog, then that is going to create a different emotional state than if I was using food if the dog was equally motivated for both.  

Exercise #3: What reinforcement strategies are you planning on using for the behaviors that you've chosen to work on

There are lots of ways to reward the dog and how we reward can help us a lot. Great reinforcement strategies can reinforce shifts in criteria that we want to build more precision or duration. Great reinforcement strategies can also off set an emotional response that we don't want (conflict, over-excitement, not enough excitement, etc.).

How do you typically reinforce your dog for heeling? How about for stays?

Turns and Pivots for Heeling Enthusiasm and Precision

Let’s take a look at our turns and pivots for heeling! Oftentimes, our dogs disconnect and lose attention during left, right and about turns. We can build a solid reinforcement history for our turns to help our dogs maintain their position and enthusiasm for heeling.  

We can also use our reinforcement strategies to reward precision. In this video, Talent is being rewarded with one treat for coming to heel position. She is getting one treat, followed by some personal play and another reward for moving precisely into position. It’s a great idea to reward repeatedly in position as well.

Exercise #4: Let’s see how your dog is doing with pivots and turns- left, right and right about turns.