Positive Dog Reinforcement Training
Positive Dog Reinforcement Training:
If you're new as dog owner or you're new to dog training, this article is for you. It covers the technical definitions, the practical aspects and the reasons for using positive reinforcement training. In addition we will see some common mistakes that people commit.
Positive reinforcement training is fun, and many people enjoy it. I hope that includes you too!
What is positive reinforcement training?
1 What is positive reinforcement training?
1.1 What kind of reward is used in this method?
1.2 What to do if your dog is not motivated by food?
1.3 6 Benefits of positive reinforcement training
1.3.1 1.-Anyone can use positive reinforcement to train their dog.
1.3.2 2.-Allows you to communicate clearly with your dog
1.3.3 3.-Works in a variety of behaviors
1.3.4 4.-The mental work can burn the excess energy of your dog
1.3.5 5.-Positive reinforcement training is fun
1.3.6 6.-Help strengthen the link between your dog and you
Positive reinforcement training is a very effective way to train both dogs and other animals. It means adding something (a prize) immediately after a behavior happens that we want it to happen. This causes the frequency of behavior to increase.
Technically speaking, the term is divided into two parts. Reinforcement means that the behavior continues or increases in frequency. (If the behavior was reduced, it is not reinforcement). And positive means something is added.
For example, if you ask the dog to sit down, when the dog sits down give him a gift (something is added). The dog is more likely to feel the next time you give him the command (the behavior was reinforced).
What kind of reward is used in this method?
For most dog training, the best reward is food. That's because all dogs like food. Besides, it's efficient because you can deliver it quickly.
The game is sometimes used as a reward also in the training of the dog. For example, a round of ball game. You may even have seen some working dogs or agility be rewarded this way.
In practice, food works best for most everyday training situations. You can deliver it much faster. That means you can do another replay right away. Also, sometimes the game will stand in the way of what you are trying to teach.
Cherishing and praising are sometimes suggested as rewards. But you have to think about it from the dog's perspective, and yes, scientists have thought so too. One study found that dogs are not interested in praise. It has to be conditioned to mean something. For example, if the "good guy" always follows a candy, then he will learn that he predicts a gift; But otherwise, nothing, it doesn't make sense.
Most dogs like petting, but the same scientists discovered that dogs prefer food as a reward. They also found that food leads to better results. The problem of efficiency is also relevant: food is faster. Then the food is the best reward to use in positive reinforcement training.
What to do if your dog is not motivated by food?
This is something that happens once in a while. It may happen that the foods you are using are not particularly motivating. For example, there are those who use croquettes, but this is not exciting enough to motivate your dog.
It is a common mistake that people commit when they are new to dog training. The idea is to use some different and more attractive treats than the commonly used food. This to arouse your dog's interest in it.
Sometimes people are reluctant to use other foods in dog training, and that's why they use croquettes. Some people fear that it may affect their relationship with their dog. They may fear that your dog will not really love them if they want to work to get food. But your dog can love you, obey you and eat at the same time.
6 Benefits of positive reinforcement training
Using a positive reinforcement to train your dog means that you are rewarding the behaviors you like and ignoring the behaviors you do not like. You can use treats, accolades or rewards (i.e. games, rides, etc.) to reward your dog's good behavior. Clicker Training For example, is a pretty effective way to use positive reinforcement. But it's also possible to use rewards without the clicker. There are a number of benefits to train your dog with positive reinforcement.
1. Anyone can use positive reinforcement to train their dog.
Positive reinforcement training allows everyone in the family to participate in the training of the dog. For example, it may be dangerous to allow a child to use training methods such as belt corrections and other forms of punishment. However, with positive reinforcement, your child will be able to train his dog the same way you do.
Working with a positive reinforcement training does not require you to speak in a strong tone of voice. Nor that you depend on your strength or that a member of your family is in potential danger. Everyone in the family can participate.
2. Allows you to communicate clearly with your dog
Positive reinforcement training allows you to communicate better with your pet. You decide what you want me to do and you let him know when you reward him when he does. When you reward your dog for doing things correctly, he is more likely to repeat those good behaviors. Punishment is not always so clear. Unless you discover your dog in the act of doing something improper, any late punishment will be misunderstood by him.
With positive reinforcement, you can avoid any confusion. Your dog quickly learns that good things happen when he does exactly what you want. You've managed to communicate clearly with your dog.
3. Works in a variety of behaviors
Using training methods such as belt corrections or other forms of punishment is not effective for all dogs. In fact, in some cases, punishment can be used to worsen a behavioral problem.
Aggressive dogs are an example of this. Very often, these dogs become even more aggressive in the face of punishment. Fearful dogs may also not respond well even to the slightest punishment. It can become even more fearful when using punishment as a training method. However, positive reinforcement training has reported a great success in training aggressive and fearful dogs.
4. The mental work can burn the excess energy of your dog
Boredom is an important factor in many of the common behavioral problems. Training is a great way to help keep boredom at bay. You may be surprised at how much energy your dog will burn simply with some short sessions of positive training to his day.
5. Positive reinforcement training is fun
If you keep the training sessions short and optimistic, positive reinforcement training can be fun for you and your dog. Once the dogs recognize that the training gives them a lot of good things. Many dogs begin to watch training sessions as play time.
Your dog will soon show those good behaviors in the hope of getting their rewards. And you'll probably get a smile out of her enthusiasm for learning.
6. Help strengthen the link between your dog and you
For most of us, our dogs are our friends and companions. They become part of our family. Positive reinforcement training methods can help reinforce the bond we have with them. While other methods can teach your dog how to behave, positive reinforcement will help guide you while maintaining your confidence and strengthening your relationship.
Put yourself in your dog's place. Think about how you feel at work. Chances are you feel much better with your boss if he rewards you if he punishes you. And you're probably willing to work harder for the boss who also praises you.
The same is true for your dog. It is much more likely that your dog will enjoy your company if it hopes to be rewarded instead of fearing punishment. Therefore, spending time with positive reinforcement training methods will surely strengthen your bond with your dog.
Positive reinforcement training is the most effective and loving way to teach your dog how to behave. This form of training is part of the operant conditioning developed by the psychologist Burrhus Frederic Skinner.
It is a type of associative learning that has to do with the development of new behaviors according to their consequences, and not with the association between stimuli and behaviors as occurs in classical conditioning.
Through operant conditioning, the subject is more likely to repeat the forms of conduct that carry positive consequences and, on the other hand, less likely to repeat those that carry negative consequences. Taking this as a basis, we can point out that the key to positive reinforcement is that the dog learns to think and not to obey for fear of being punished.
That's why it should be used at the right time. You must reward your dog immediately after the action you want to reward. If you take too long, it is possible that your can does not associate prize with action.
For example; If you are working with the order "sitting" and you reward it when you are up, it will not be clear to your pet the reason for the reward you are giving. If the animal does not properly comply with the order given, or has a bad behavior, the best option is to ignore it. Remember that, moreover, nothing will serve a reprimand if you do not find the animal "red-handed."
Constancy is also an essential issue. Surely you must repeat several times an action until your dog ends up associating with obtaining a prize. So you also have to apply patience as a rule. In addition, you must maintain consistency, as are all members of the family. Orders for the animal must always be the same.
Among the options you can use to reward your pet, and feel encouraged, you can include:
If you're new as dog owner or you're new to dog training, this article is for you. It covers the technical definitions, the practical aspects and the reasons for using positive reinforcement training. In addition we will see some common mistakes that people commit.
Positive reinforcement training is fun, and many people enjoy it. I hope that includes you too!
What is positive reinforcement training?
1 What is positive reinforcement training?
1.1 What kind of reward is used in this method?
1.2 What to do if your dog is not motivated by food?
1.3 6 Benefits of positive reinforcement training
1.3.1 1.-Anyone can use positive reinforcement to train their dog.
1.3.2 2.-Allows you to communicate clearly with your dog
1.3.3 3.-Works in a variety of behaviors
1.3.4 4.-The mental work can burn the excess energy of your dog
1.3.5 5.-Positive reinforcement training is fun
1.3.6 6.-Help strengthen the link between your dog and you
Positive reinforcement training is a very effective way to train both dogs and other animals. It means adding something (a prize) immediately after a behavior happens that we want it to happen. This causes the frequency of behavior to increase.
Technically speaking, the term is divided into two parts. Reinforcement means that the behavior continues or increases in frequency. (If the behavior was reduced, it is not reinforcement). And positive means something is added.
For example, if you ask the dog to sit down, when the dog sits down give him a gift (something is added). The dog is more likely to feel the next time you give him the command (the behavior was reinforced).
What kind of reward is used in this method?
For most dog training, the best reward is food. That's because all dogs like food. Besides, it's efficient because you can deliver it quickly.
The game is sometimes used as a reward also in the training of the dog. For example, a round of ball game. You may even have seen some working dogs or agility be rewarded this way.
In practice, food works best for most everyday training situations. You can deliver it much faster. That means you can do another replay right away. Also, sometimes the game will stand in the way of what you are trying to teach.
Cherishing and praising are sometimes suggested as rewards. But you have to think about it from the dog's perspective, and yes, scientists have thought so too. One study found that dogs are not interested in praise. It has to be conditioned to mean something. For example, if the "good guy" always follows a candy, then he will learn that he predicts a gift; But otherwise, nothing, it doesn't make sense.
Most dogs like petting, but the same scientists discovered that dogs prefer food as a reward. They also found that food leads to better results. The problem of efficiency is also relevant: food is faster. Then the food is the best reward to use in positive reinforcement training.
What to do if your dog is not motivated by food?
This is something that happens once in a while. It may happen that the foods you are using are not particularly motivating. For example, there are those who use croquettes, but this is not exciting enough to motivate your dog.
It is a common mistake that people commit when they are new to dog training. The idea is to use some different and more attractive treats than the commonly used food. This to arouse your dog's interest in it.
Sometimes people are reluctant to use other foods in dog training, and that's why they use croquettes. Some people fear that it may affect their relationship with their dog. They may fear that your dog will not really love them if they want to work to get food. But your dog can love you, obey you and eat at the same time.
6 Benefits of positive reinforcement training
Using a positive reinforcement to train your dog means that you are rewarding the behaviors you like and ignoring the behaviors you do not like. You can use treats, accolades or rewards (i.e. games, rides, etc.) to reward your dog's good behavior. Clicker Training For example, is a pretty effective way to use positive reinforcement. But it's also possible to use rewards without the clicker. There are a number of benefits to train your dog with positive reinforcement.
1. Anyone can use positive reinforcement to train their dog.
Positive reinforcement training allows everyone in the family to participate in the training of the dog. For example, it may be dangerous to allow a child to use training methods such as belt corrections and other forms of punishment. However, with positive reinforcement, your child will be able to train his dog the same way you do.
Working with a positive reinforcement training does not require you to speak in a strong tone of voice. Nor that you depend on your strength or that a member of your family is in potential danger. Everyone in the family can participate.
2. Allows you to communicate clearly with your dog
Positive reinforcement training allows you to communicate better with your pet. You decide what you want me to do and you let him know when you reward him when he does. When you reward your dog for doing things correctly, he is more likely to repeat those good behaviors. Punishment is not always so clear. Unless you discover your dog in the act of doing something improper, any late punishment will be misunderstood by him.
With positive reinforcement, you can avoid any confusion. Your dog quickly learns that good things happen when he does exactly what you want. You've managed to communicate clearly with your dog.
3. Works in a variety of behaviors
Using training methods such as belt corrections or other forms of punishment is not effective for all dogs. In fact, in some cases, punishment can be used to worsen a behavioral problem.
Aggressive dogs are an example of this. Very often, these dogs become even more aggressive in the face of punishment. Fearful dogs may also not respond well even to the slightest punishment. It can become even more fearful when using punishment as a training method. However, positive reinforcement training has reported a great success in training aggressive and fearful dogs.
4. The mental work can burn the excess energy of your dog
Boredom is an important factor in many of the common behavioral problems. Training is a great way to help keep boredom at bay. You may be surprised at how much energy your dog will burn simply with some short sessions of positive training to his day.
5. Positive reinforcement training is fun
If you keep the training sessions short and optimistic, positive reinforcement training can be fun for you and your dog. Once the dogs recognize that the training gives them a lot of good things. Many dogs begin to watch training sessions as play time.
Your dog will soon show those good behaviors in the hope of getting their rewards. And you'll probably get a smile out of her enthusiasm for learning.
6. Help strengthen the link between your dog and you
For most of us, our dogs are our friends and companions. They become part of our family. Positive reinforcement training methods can help reinforce the bond we have with them. While other methods can teach your dog how to behave, positive reinforcement will help guide you while maintaining your confidence and strengthening your relationship.
Put yourself in your dog's place. Think about how you feel at work. Chances are you feel much better with your boss if he rewards you if he punishes you. And you're probably willing to work harder for the boss who also praises you.
The same is true for your dog. It is much more likely that your dog will enjoy your company if it hopes to be rewarded instead of fearing punishment. Therefore, spending time with positive reinforcement training methods will surely strengthen your bond with your dog.
Positive reinforcement training is the most effective and loving way to teach your dog how to behave. This form of training is part of the operant conditioning developed by the psychologist Burrhus Frederic Skinner.
It is a type of associative learning that has to do with the development of new behaviors according to their consequences, and not with the association between stimuli and behaviors as occurs in classical conditioning.
Through operant conditioning, the subject is more likely to repeat the forms of conduct that carry positive consequences and, on the other hand, less likely to repeat those that carry negative consequences. Taking this as a basis, we can point out that the key to positive reinforcement is that the dog learns to think and not to obey for fear of being punished.
That's why it should be used at the right time. You must reward your dog immediately after the action you want to reward. If you take too long, it is possible that your can does not associate prize with action.
For example; If you are working with the order "sitting" and you reward it when you are up, it will not be clear to your pet the reason for the reward you are giving. If the animal does not properly comply with the order given, or has a bad behavior, the best option is to ignore it. Remember that, moreover, nothing will serve a reprimand if you do not find the animal "red-handed."
Constancy is also an essential issue. Surely you must repeat several times an action until your dog ends up associating with obtaining a prize. So you also have to apply patience as a rule. In addition, you must maintain consistency, as are all members of the family. Orders for the animal must always be the same.
Among the options you can use to reward your pet, and feel encouraged, you can include:
