Some people don’t realize just how critical socialization is until the dog is older and fearful of the world.  It’s more than just playing with your neighbor’s dog and meeting your grandkids.  Way more.  And FYI, it’s way more than just people and dogs.  This big bright wonderful world is full of all sorts of things that are not people and dogs.  There are other animals, sights, sounds, movement, and then how do you interact with various things in various environments?  Socialization is getting used to new experiences.  Proper socialization is reinforcing a puppy for interacting with a huge variety of new things, in new situations, in new environments, to create “new things are not bad things.”

You see, dogs (just like most animals) have an innate cautious response to “the unknown” probably as a survival instinct.  Basically, if you don’t know what it is, you’re naturally cautious, because you’re not sure if it is a good thing or a bad thing.  And if you don’t know if “the unknown” is friend or foe, you’d better go slow with any introduction.  This is where you’d see a puppy creep up and sneak sniff something or someone, in hopes that somehow he remains invisible to the sniffee.

However, what do we humans do?  We lean over the puppy, look directly at him, talk directly to him, reach directly for him… (you can see where this is going).  Or if it’s an inanimate object like some strange yard decoration, I’ve seen well intentioned owners dragging their puppy over to it all the while spouting “Oh, it’s OK! See?” as if the puppy would suddenly under English, or feel better with our blabbing while getting up close and personal to the creepy rainbowed colored snail reading a newspaper on a mushroom.  Why not let the puppy look at it from across the yard, and reward him walking up to it all on his own?

Not only is exposure to new things (with a positive outcome) important, interacting with the real world is just as important.  Does the puppy know how to go over, under, through, between, around, or into something?  Have you ever seen a puppy when you’re first crate training?  Or asking him to get into your car?  Or unwrapping the leash around a tree?  Talk about clueless!  However, we just assume it’s no big deal.  Probably because it’s been so long since we were babies and had to figure things out ourselves.

Sounds are another thing that the real world can dish out.  If a puppy is home all day with nothing but classical music on, something like a smoke detector can seriously startle him.  Professionals know that whenever an animal is intensely startled, there is a greater chance for future fear responses to the same trigger.  So conditioning early that strange sounds can be rewarding can prevent a noise sensitive dog later in life.

Lastly there is handling.  Not all socialization is the puppy interacting with the world.  Sometimes it’s the world interacting with the puppy.  So things like “Gotch” (a collar grab), picking up each paw, or gentle restraint is important to practice.  Usually these things are seldom used if at all, but when they are done to the dog, it’s normally an emergency situation or medical care.  Me personally, I’d much rather have a dog who’s practiced being handled and is stress free (or at least less stressed) during a veterinary exam.  Or if heaven forbid he’s ever lost, a friendly stranger could grab his collar, and it’s no big deal.

So remember, it’s more than just, “but he plays with my neighbor’s dog.”  Go to a puppy class!

Canine Life and Social Skills is starting to take off.  It’s a new three part program from the APDT, which far exceeds most I’ve ever seen.  It has obedience, manners, and real life training such as waiting to get out of your car.  The objectives are to promote positive training methodology, strengthen the dog & owner relationship, encourage ongoing training, value real life skills, educate about dog behavior, and to promote the value of dog trainers & dog training.

C.L.A.S.S., through its evaluation, curriculum, and training resources, advocates the use of reward-based training. Positive, reward-based training minimizes the use of punishment and is fun for you and your dog! C.L.A.S.S. promotes relationship-based training, training in which the communication is two-way and the mutual trust is strong. It is training that is instructive, telling the dog, without anger or force, what we would like the dog to do.

There is also a shelter program that hopes to increase adoptions and decrease owner surrenders through this training program.

One of the goals of the C.L.A.S.S. program was to develop an assessment that is particularly beneficial to the needs of shelter dogs. To this end, any municipal shelter or registered 501(c)(3) shelter or rescue group may register their shelter for free and all dogs in your care may be tested in the program with fees waived. If you have a staff person who will be doing C.L.A.S.S. evaluations only on shelter dogs up for adoption, their evaluator registration fee is reduced from $40 to $25.

Once a dog has passed the initial B.A. level of the C.L.A.S.S. program, they may be listed on the C.L.A.S.S. web site in our “C.L.A.S.S. Dogs for Adoption” section.

I suppose what I’m most excited about is this isn’t just another obedience class.  Far too often I hear “my dog needs obedience training” when the client really needs a manners or reactivity  issue solved.  And quite honestly I’ve *never* seen a dog lose his home because, “well… Fido just wouldn’t heel straight” or “Sparky didn’t have a fast down” or even “Fluffy only preformed ‘sit’ when I held a treat.”  The main reason dogs under three years old are euthanized is because of behavior problems. And these “behavior problems” do not mean he wasn’t the rock star at obedience tasks. These behavior problems are usually no manners, anxiety, fear, or aggression.  (Miller DM, Stats SR, Partlo BS, et al. Factors associated with the decision to surrender a pet to an animal shelter. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1996;209:738- 742)  I’ve seen a lot of anxiety & reactivity cases where earlier training might have completely prevented it.  It’s a shame really, people don’t seem to realize the value and importance of good behavior training until there is a serious problem.  Which brings me back to the C.L.A.S.S. program.  Take a look at the three progressive levels.

The BA level:

• Wait at the door
• Come & getting leashed up
• Loose leash walking and attention
• Meet & greet
• Leave it
• Wait for food bowl
• Stay
• Settle
• Give & take
• Bonus, trick (roll over, spin, fetch, speak, or paw)

The MA level:

• Wait in the car
• Pass by other dogs
• Wait at the door
• Come & leashing up
• Sit, Down, & Stand
• Handling
• Loose leash walking & leave it
• Stay
• Bonus, targeting
• Bonus, trick

The PhD level:

• Loose leash walking
• Back up
• Stay
• Come & leashing up
• Meet & greet
• Attention
• Table manners
• Do you really know sit?
• Bonus, extra “Do you really know sit?”
• Bonus, targeting unfamiliar person

I personally like the “do you really know sit?” part because it promotes generalization of behaviors.  All too often we only practice training with our dogs in front of us in the kitchen holding a treat.  Then we go on vacation, visit a friend, or take a trip to the vet and the dog has no clue what sit means in those different situations and environments.  An over simplification of generalization is, it’s training for real life in various places.  Here are the possible variations to choose from:  1. Student sitting on hands in a chair 2. Student with back to the dog 3. Student with hands on head 4. Student walking around 5. Student standing 10 feet away 6. Student clapping hands 7. Student shaking hands with another person 8. Student with hand in front of their mouth 9. Student sitting on ground 10. Student bending at waist toward toes 11. Sit on recall (student has dog wait while student walks 35 feet away; student calls dog to come and when dog is halfway to student, student cues sit) 12. Student standing on a chair 13. Student holding one knee to chest 14. Student hopping on one foot 15. Student swinging arms 16. Student lying on the ground 17. Student jogging in place 18. Student doing jumping jacks 19. Student doing squats 20. Student doing leg lunges 21. Student doing push ups 22. Student doing sit ups 23. Student standing on hands 24. Student doing calf raises 25. Student doing a back bend

If you’d like more information you can download their student handbook HERE.

1. Pour cold apple juice on the carpet in several places and walk around barefoot in the dark.
2. Wear a sock to work that has had the toes shredded by a blender.
3. Immediately upon waking, stand outside in the rain saying,”Be a good puppy, go potty now – hurry up – come on, lets go!”
4. Cover all your best suits with dog hair.  Dark suits must use white hair, and light suits must use dark hair.  Also float some hair in your first cup of coffee in the morning.
5. Play “catch” with a wet tennis ball.
6. Run out in the snow in your bare feet to close the gate.
7. Tip over a basket of clean laundry, scatter clothing all over the floor.
8. Right before you have company over, leave your underwear on the living room floor after cutting several holes in the crotch area.  (Because that’s where the puppy will leave it when finished chewing on it anyway.)
9. Jump out of your chair shortly before the end of your favorite TV program and run to the door shouting, “No!  No!  Do that OUTSIDE!”  Miss the end of the program.
10. Put chocolate pudding on the carpet in the morning, and don’t try to clean it up until you return from work that evening.
11. Gouge the leg of the dinning room table several times with a screwdriver.  It’s going to get chewed on anyway.
12. Rip out various pages of your new textbook and attack the cover with a hole punch. At least once a week, pour lemonade on the cover of a different textbook or tear out another few pages. Try to study from your damaged book while repeatedly squeaking a toy hotdog. Remind yourself to keep all your stuff out of reach of your puppy.
13. Take a warm and cuddly blanket out of the dryer and immediately wrap it around yourself. This is the feeling you will get when your puppy falls asleep on your lap.

This has gone around the internet for a while, and the author still remains unknown.  It is funny and realistic, while shedding light on the day to day messes a puppy can create.  Planning and practice by fostering a dog, or pet sitting a friend’s dog will help prepare you for success.  Enrolling in a good puppy class can also help with socialization and house training.  When a dog lives for 10+ years, training for a few months is a drop in the bucket.

But seriously, I hear it all the time.  “Well I told him NO.”  How much info is in “NO” anyway?  Is there anything at all, even remotely, driving your dog into the direction of behavior you want?  Why so anti-yes?  Why not tell the dog what to do instead?

It really is a choice.  Saying, “NO” to temporarily stop a behavior with little to no learning, or telling the dog to do something he knows and reinforcing that behavior instead.  One way (if done over and over again, over time) will damage the relationship between man and his best friend.  The other will strengthen the relationship.   Personally, I’d rather not have a dog who wants to take his ball and go find a new home.

Here’s an example.  If there’s a smelly sock on the floor, and your dog is about to investigate it, you could say, “NO.”  However, you could also say: leave it, sit, down, come, roll over, give me a paw, target, where’s your ball, want to go for a walk, let’s go bye-bye in the car, back up, spin, watch me, sit pretty, bow, heel……   and on and on.  (As well as pick up your freakin socks).  So, I suppose the sarcastic “down side” is the dog in question actually has to know a few behaviors first.  It’s not cool to spout out, “finish” if you’ve never taught it.  However, personally I think saying, “NO” is just as much as a “read my mind and what I want” as well.

Just say, “NO” to being anti-yes!  Don’t tell your dog to “don’t.”

I have heard all this rubbish on how balanced training is more humane, and sorry to pop the bubble, but IT’S NOT!  Newsflash: just because you use treats, doesn’t make you a positive trainer.  And even though I can’t stand traditional training methods, they are more humane than the so called “balanced” training methods.  Why?  Why do I think that?

The style of traditional training teaches the dog to avoid something (generally a leash pop).  It also squashes a dog’s willingness to attempt to try new behaviors, but that’s another post.  So if you’re a dog, you know you need to do as little as possible and avoid the punishment you don’t like.  Fair enough, because it’s clear.  Bottom line, dog tries to avoid something.

In the more modern positive style, the dog learns to keep trying until he figures out what we want, to get something he wants.  There’s no fear of “that’s wrong” because attempting to problem solve isn’t punished.  In basic terms, the dog is trying to get something.  Fair enough as well.  Bottom line, dog tries to get something.

Now, enter “balanced” training.  There’s potential for both punishment and reinforcement.  This is confusing as hell.  This is mentally screwballing the learner.  Should he try?  There could be a pay off or a punishment.  Think of this scenario.  You’re out in Vegas trying to learn a new game.  You don’t know the rules or how to play.  You just get plunked down at a random card table.  You could win big money, or the dealer can come out and shave your head.  Would you play?

A real life dog example just happened to one of our recent clients.  We were (get this) the fourth trainer to help him.  The last one just about killed the cue “bed” where the dog would go to his bed.  I mean, you even said, “bed” and the dog’s body language would shut down!  And balanced training is to blame.  The previous trainer would say, “bed” and then leash pop the dog (basically drag the dog) over to his bed, then treat.  Um… ok…  Here’s the dog’s point of view:

• standing doing nothing, hear “bed” get leash jerked
• standing doing nothing, get treat

The dog didn’t associate it was standing on the bed.  The dog had no idea why he was being punished.  And consequently by conditioning, the balanced trainer managed to kill the word, “bed” while he was at it.

I don’t think balanced training is fair to the learner.  And I think mixing punishment only causes anxiety and frustration.  No wonder dogs road rage during this method, and shut down.

It’s only a reinforcement if the subject/student/learner/receiver thinks it is reinforcing.

So, even though I enjoyed having a whole week off, everyone who reads this blog was frustrated there wasn’t a new post.  So, what was “rewarding” for me, was NOT “rewarding” to everyone else.  Now… think of something else we do with out dogs that this description would fit.  Need help?  I can think of several!

• Dressing a dog up in clothes or a costume
• Hugging a dog
• Going for a walk around something the dog hates
• Taking our boot away as a chew toy

Now, out of these I can even see how something can turn into an unpleasant experience for both trainer and trainee if the dog voices his opinion well enough.  Such as going for a walk around something the dog hates, or taking something away the dog wants.  Usually you’ll see some sort of protest from the dog in any way he can think of to change the known outcome.  So, if you constantly take away fun things to chew, you just might create a resource guarder.  However, if you remember to make it worth your dog’s time to have the “golden prize of chew” taken away, then he might start to learn better things happen when he gives up an item.  So, think about it.  Ever have an inadequate reward before?  Like when someone sarcastically promises you a shiny new quarter to clean the toilet?  Well whoo freakin hoo….  And I’d bet if you knew this was the usual outcome, you’d rather opt out of cleaning the toilet.  Am I right?

Think about this.  Your dog is getting a good chew on, and we take the item away and give him a pat on the head with a “good boy.”  Well whoo freakin hoo, you’ve just probably given your dog a shiny new quarter.  Don’t expect Drop It to improve anytime soon.  And in fact, it was punishment to have the chewie taken away.  No different than getting the car keys taken away for breathing too loud.

Now let’s think about a different example.  You own a dog who doesn’t like loud delivery trucks or other dogs.  Would you choose to walk your dog down a major street loaded with dog owners?  That would be what we professionals call, “dumb.”  The probability of a loud truck is high, and the chance of seeing another dog is also pretty high.  Why?  Why do that?  By walking your dog around something he doesn’t like, it can make the dislike greater.  So (scenario) you see another dog and just keep walking toward him.  But you are saying, “it’s ok, you’re a good boy.”  You’re just given your dog a shiny new quarter.

No matter what you’re trying to train, you need to remember to change the consequence of the behavior to something reinforcing in order to increase it.  In plain English that means: something pleasant needs to happen to get the dog to repeat the behavior you want.  It really is as simple as that.  Give the dog something he wants to get more of “that” behavior.  The challenge comes in knowing what your dog wants and when.

Most people think of reinforcers as having varying importance, “puppy price tags,” or value – in a pyramid style diagram.  It honestly reminds me of those old food pyramids trying to diagram what is the most important food to eat.  For example, food treats might be at the top level, then the next level is favorite toys, then the next level is a good belly rub, etc.  This thinking can get you into trouble, quickly.  There is no such thing as a set in stone value system your dog will always want.  And even if there were, and you used the cream of the crop all the time, it will actually kill the value of it.  It’s not special if it’s used all the time.  A better mindset is to think of reinforcers in a pizza diagram.  Each random slice is a different reinforcer you pull out at will.  Honestly, in a sense reinforcers are all equal, because they are desired at different times, in different situations, by different dogs, in different environments.  The kicker is they are not all equal at the same time, in the same situation, with all dogs, in all environments.  For example: A hungry dog would probably want food treats more than a dog who just ate and is full.  A dog who has “the crazies” probably wants to play more than anything.  A dog who bolted out the door and went for a five mile run probably doesn’t want a five mile walk when their caught.  Etc.  I know dogs who are exceptionally needy and need a lot of attention and petting.  But when the neighbor’s dog is out, he could give a rat’s rump about belly rubs.  People are the same way.  If you love pizza because it’s your favorite food, and you eat it for a week straight you probably would want a break from it.  Now I know there’s a select few of you reading this that are the exception, however, after a while even you would grow tired of pizza.  And then there’s the potential, if after you’re tired of pizza, but it’s still being introduced, it can actually create a bad association with it.  Ever hear a great song on the radio?  Ever hear it so much by being over played that the song gets killed?  Before long you’re actually changing the station when it comes on.  That’s my point.  Reinforcers need to be random.

The other kicker is reinforcers don’t have to be something tangible you give the dog.  It can be letting the dog do something he wants to do.  Such examples would be after your dog comes back to you at the dog park, you send him back out to play more, or let him chase the squirrel.  My parent’s dog loves to lick.  The joke is “Cassie can’t hold her licker.”  And one way to get her barking under control was to reinforce her by letting her lick you.  (Technically, for all you behavior dorks, that’s also an incompatible behavior.)  At first she had to sit, then I would let her lick me, and I’d pay some attention to her, but really, she just wanted to just lick my hands while I pet her.  I have also reinforced Cassie for being quiet by letting her bark.  Sounds counter productive, but this technique works when used properly.  (For my behavior dork friends, it’s the Premack Principle).  [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sXxtdPOC3A[/youtube]

So remember, anything that increases behavior is reinforcing!  Make life interesting and change up the goods.  Be creative and observant to see what your dog likes, when your dog likes it, and use that to get behavior you want!  Stay tuned for Reinforcement Understood Part Two next week!

5.  Put all candles above the “tail zone.”  I don’t know about you, but owning a large dog who is always happy, his tail can wag off a candle in a heart beat.  So me personally, I’d rather not light my dog on fire and burn the house down.  Add my cats into the mixture, and they also might investigate a candle.  So be smart about where you place candles.

4.  Avoid the edible buffet of toxic plants, like the Poinsettia, which is a holiday favorite.  If you get toxic plants, put them out of your pet’s reach.

3.  Decorate your home, not your dog’s intestines.  Yes, dogs swallow some of the craziest things.  No matter how well trained your dog may be, treat even Lassie like a toddler, and supervise around the house.

2.  Don’t wrap food presents and put them under the tree on the floor.  Believe it or not, your pets x-ray vision (aka, their nose) can sense food through the best of wrapping paper.  And if this does happen, I wouldn’t count on your pet unwrapping it and saving the bow for next year, he’ll probably eat that too.

1.  If you put cookies out for Santa… put them out for Santa. Not the dog.  Not the cat.  Most pets don’t need the extra calories, and substances like chocolate are poisonous.

Here is a great little video to watch, poking fun at some of these very things: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nn2h3_aH3vo&feature=youtube_gdata_player

We wish you and your pets a very happy holiday, and that you both get everything you wished for!

While I’m there, I ask every single staff member to please give a treat to my pet.  Basically, I’m showering loads of rewards in an effort to classically condition a positive association with the vet’s office.  I don’t stay too long, just a half hour or so.  And I let him explore as much of the equipment as possible.  I ask the vet if my pet can smell the stethoscope, sit on the scale a few times, etc.  I also bring a toy in hopes my pet will relax enough after the meet & greet.  It only takes about 5 – 10 minutes to meet everyone in the office, then I have up to 20 more minutes in the exam room to calm and relax my pet.  If my dog seems relaxed enough, I’ll break out a tennis ball and let him roll it around the floor.  If I have a cat, I usually use one of those kitty teasers and let him bat at it.

The next time I come back to the vet, my pet is far less stressed.  I still have every single staff member give my pet treats AFTER the exam & shots are finished.  Remember, you always want the good stuff to come last.  The consequence of getting an exam & shots is treats; not treats at this location means I’m about to give you a shot.