Clearly defined goals key to proper training
I have a seven-month-old Labrador that gently mouths at people’s hands when they come in the door or when on walks. We have placed a toy basket by the door. He gets a toy before I open the door. During walks I treat him for sitting while being petted. While this works, is there something else I should be doing to deter the mouthing behaviour?
Food and toys are great training tools, however, there is a profound difference between using them to distract versus using them to train towards a goal.
Unconditionally offering toys before guests enter will keep many dogs occupied, preventing them from mouthing at guests. However, this strategy is similar to giving a child a video game at a restaurant. The game can keep children occupied and silent, but it fails to teach table manners.
In contrast, training starts with a goal. Good goals are clearly defined, achievable and measurable. They allow owners to plan a training road map. Planning for success also helps avoid training roadblocks.
One option is to teach a dog to lie on a mat — away from the door. The dog should stay on their mat until released. When the dog is released to go visit, the dog should learn to interact without placing their mouth on any person. The sit becomes less important. Standing or lying down is equally acceptable.
Defining a goal this way makes it apparent that the dog needs to learn to reliably go to their mat. Then the dog has to learn to stay there. Next, the dog needs to do this skill when someone comes to the door.
After being released, the dog should learn to interact with people, waiting for longer periods before treats are given while abstaining from nuisance behaviours.
Plans such as this highlight that offering toys at the door may be sabotaging training efforts. Dogs that expect rewards at the door are going to charge towards it. Staying on the mat makes more sense.
If owners want to aspire to a higher bar, where the dog learns manners, start with a plan that takes the animal beyond kindergarten. Work with a trainer who helps create a road map of achievable steps. My dog won’t obey commands in the real world. She ignores steak in favour of strangers and squirrels. How can I reward good behaviour if real life distractions are more powerful than meat?
Many people think that they need to train in real-life situations to overcome real-life distractions. This is counterproductive. It would be like teaching a kid to play hockey in a competitive game. It’s too difficult.
Instead, build initial skills and teach in a quiet, distraction free zone. Work to create value in the skill. A dog needs to do more than understand that sit means sit. They need to be motivated to do it. Build enthusiasm so that obedience becomes something the dog loves.
Once the dog starts to quickly and enthusiastically respond, add distractions. Add easy temptations first. It allows the dog to be successful. Try training around toys, food and people the dog knows. Progress toward harder distractions. Before working near squirrels, see if the dog can ignore a moving remote control car.
By teaching a dog to love obedience, that obedience has the ability to stand up in the real world. The dog has already learned ignore many distractions. Skills have a strong and robust history of being reinforced. The real world of squirrels and strangers becomes one small additional but achievable training step. Yvette Van Veen is an animal behaviour consultant and Canada’s first tested and certified PCT-A. Write her at advice@awesomedogs.ca.