How To Tell If Your Dog Doesnt Understand Your Command

How To Tell If Your Dog Doesnt Understand Your Command

am 17.01.2008 11:08:37 von bs866806

I've been reading your book and I have a two fold question.

1) What things do you look for in a dog's noncompliance to a command
that would tell you whether he does not understand what you are trying
to tell him or he simply does not want to do it?

[ADAM REPLIES:] It really depends on the dog. I usually do enough
repetitions to the point where I'm pretty sure that the animal should
understand it. Then, I'll test by not actually helping him... just
give the command and a light pop. If you see that it "clicks" for the
dog, and he does the command, then repeat a few more times, just so
you know it wasn't a fluke. If he does it three times in a row, then
you can be pretty sure that he understands the exercise (at least in
that environment)... and you'll know that non-compliance is the dogs
way of thumbing (or pawing) his nose at you.

For instance, I will tell the dog not to chew on the blanket with a
"No bite". He will then stop for a moment or two, I will wait for
about 30-45 seconds then praise him, but then he will start again. I
will then snap the leash, which has the pinch collar, and again tell
him no bite. Again he stops and then starts immediately again. I then
correct him by snapping the leash harder and saying no bite more
firmly and then he will get frustrated and snap at me, not in an
effort to bite me but it seems more out of frustration he will mouth
me at times but never press down. He is a 5 month old golden retriever
and generally is very sweet so I feel like I am not always
communicating well enough to him. But I also know that he understands
"no bite" and I am certainly expressing it with a strong tone of voice
and body language. I'm not particularly interested in you helping me
with this particular example but this type of thing happens
frequently, though generally he is obedient. I'm more interested in
the abstract concept of assessing a situation and knowing how to
remedy it.

[ADAM:] This example you've given is different than teaching an
exercise, like I mention above. The example you've given falls under
the category of "avoidance" training. You should not give the dog a
warning without a correction for a behavior that he should never do.
Also, in this situation it's very clear that you're not communicating
to him. It's not that he doesn't understand, but rather that again,
he's thumbing his nose at you. He doesn't care what you say. Since
you've been working with the dog, you know from experience where his
sensitivity level is. So, the first time he chews, you need to say
"No!" and then give a correction. The correction should be as strong
as the third correction you were building up to before. If the dog
snaps back at you, this is his way of saying, "Bug off... I'm the
alpha dog, and I'M the one who gives the correction." You're playing
the broom stick game. At this point, you need to give a much firmer
correction and should see the dog display submissive body language as
a way of submitting and showing you that you're the top dog. If you
watch two dogs scuffle over a new toy you'll see the same behavior.
Once you set him straight, you won't need to correct him so hard the
next time.

1a) Given the former question, how do I know when I am over correcting
him and should either redirect him to a different exercise, let him
play, or just leave him alone?

[ADAM:] With a 5 months old dog... you'll know. It will be abundantly
obvious. Also, when doing avoidance training, overcorrecting (while
not necessary) is not as much of a concern as when doing obedience
exercises. Why? Because you don't care so much if the dog has a good
attitude or a bad attitude towards not chewing on your couch. You just
don't want him to do it any more. If the correction is motivational,
or if it's overly motivational, in either case he'll drop the
behavior. It's only if the correction is less than motivational that
the dog will continue to do the behavior, or if you're missing one of
the other two keys to behavior modification that I talk about in the
book. Timing and consistency.

To expand...I know what I want to the dog to do. I know the dog knows
how to do it. But I run him through the drill and he won't respond. So
how many times do I correct him and give him the opportunity to "make
the right choice" before I should stop working on that drill and have
him do something else?

[ADAM:] That depends. You should only work the dog on a new exercise
for 10 or 15 minutes. Sometimes less. If you're 100% sure that the dog
knows how to do it, then you're dealing with a dog who is actually
calling the shots. You need to make him do it. If you're truly working
out dominance issues with your dog, I will not quit until I've made
the dog do it. If you let the dog win and not complete the exercise,
then the dog learns that next time, all he needs to do is hold out
long enough and you'll eventually give in. If I'm rehabilitating a
stubborn dog like this... I'll be out there for as long as it takes.
Sometimes 45 minutes to an hour if need be. The issue isn't so much
doing the exercise, but rather demonstrating to the dog that I'm more
stubborn than he is, and that I always win. Why?

Because I'm the Alpha dog.

That's all for now, folks!
Adam
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