Are you playing games or training your dog to do unwanted behavior
Training and playing are very important pieces in the human/dog relationship. They establish trust and build a strong bond between the person and dog. We ask every dog owner we visit what commands they give and what kinds of games they are playing. Here is a list of common responses:
Commands:
Sit – rear on the ground long enough to get a treat.
Off – dog growls at you when you go to sit on the sofa
Stay-Away – Dog barking at UPS or postal worker.
Stay – your dog growls or bites if you or a guest moves
Leave it- Dog growls or snaps at you when you reach for something he has.
Heel – Often taught to visitors when they come in or go to leave your house
Look- Dog stops suddenly on walk to focus on something
Come – Dog barks at something until you arrive
Games:
Follow The Leader – your dog drags you down the street
Hi There! – Your dog jumps on everyone that walks in the door
Look Who’s There! – Dog barks at doorbell and runs to greet your guest and you follow because he can’t work the doorknob
Keep Away – You trying to keep the steak on the kitchen counter and out of your dog’s mouth.
Guess the Squish – Puddles or piles found late at night
What’s That Smell? – Hidden puddles or piles
Hide and Seek – Your dog grabs your favorite shoe and hides it for you
Chase – Similar to Hide and Seek but he taunts you with it in his mouth
Tug – Dog has your favorite shoe and you want it back but he won’t let it go
Wanna Play – Dog brings you a toy from his stash
Outside – Dog lets you know he needs to go outside. Followed by Guess the Squish or What’s That Smell
Mine- Dog growling when you get too close a toy or his food
Fetch – Dog barking at pantry where treats are stored
Open the Door – Dog barks or scratches at door to be let in
Okay, those were all written very tongue-in-cheek but how many did you recognize? Those are all real examples of how people interact with their dogs. In these instances, the dog is in control of the situation. He initiates contact, rewards behavior and gives the owners boundaries that they can or cannot cross. And, although, we can agree some of the “games” are not fun in the human world, they happen every day because dogs think differently than we do.
Dogs have a different view of the world than humans. First and foremost, your dog is a pack animal. They have inherited drives and one of those is the need for leadership. He is born with the desire to listen, interact and look to you for leadership and it is your responsibility, as a good dog owner, to give him leadership. The moment you took him into your home, you started shaping his behavior. They are “shaped” by the reinforcement we give them.
How are you shaping your dog’s behavior? Let’s look at “reinforcement”. It is an action, whether negative or positive, that strengthens a response to a stimulus. When training, we use a negative reinforcement to eliminate unwanted behavior and a positive reinforcement to get the dog to recreate a behavior. We see the positive reinforcement everywhere because it has taken over the dog training world with clickers and treats but it doesn’t end there. We send mixed signals to our dogs with some of the games we play. It’s natural, we don’t mean to reinforce bad behavior with a positive but we love our dogs and want them to love us back.
Leadership is very important for to build a strong bond with our dogs. It instinctively gives them the structure they need. The leader controls everything in the dog world. In order to shape them into the well-behaved best friend we desire, we have to be aware of what we are reinforcing and how we are doing it. If you’re at a loss, call a professional trainer to get help with any of these behaviors that might be causing you trouble.
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