Hello, and welcome to The Dog Trainer’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Teaching and Caring for Your Pet. I’m your host, Jolanta Benal. Last week, I explained the Premack principle--how you can use a behavior your dog loves to do as a reward for his doing something you want. This week, how to apply the principle to a couple of annoying behaviors and replace them with something easier to live with.
Get Your Dog to Stop Barking and Jumping During Fetch
Many people play fetch with their dogs. And many of those dogs bring back the ball and then fling themselves into the air and bark until their person throws it for them. From the dog’s point of view, jumping and barking are a way to demand that ball – a successful way.
This behavior usually isn’t dangerous, unless we’re talking about a big dog body-slamming you. If your dog is loud and bouncy about wanting the ball, and that doesn’t bother you, fine--The Dog Trainer will not demand that you change it. But self-control in exciting situations is a valuable skill for a dog. And if the bounce-and-bark does get on your nerves, a little patience and the wisdom of Dr. Premack will help change it.
Teach Your Dog That Barking Won’t Make You Throw the Ball
When you’re playing fetch, it’s highly likely that your dog will chase the ball. Sitting, standing quietly, and lying down are all unlikely behaviors in this context, especially since bouncing and barking have worked well thus far. As of now, though, bouncing and barking will no longer succeed. Instead, when your dog brings the ball back, you will take one of the following tacks.
Wait for Your Dog To Try Something Else …
Tactic one: just stand there and wait. Bark bark bark, bounce bounce bounce, bark bark bark, bounce bounce bounce. Sooner or later, your dog on springs has to take a break to catch his breath or rest his legs or just experience bafflement--why aren’t you throwing the damn ball? That is your golden moment: the less likely behavior, standing or sitting quietly, has occurred. Reward it. Instantly throw that ball so your dog can engage in the much more likely behavior of ball chasing. Repeat, repeat, repeat. Over time, your dog will arrive at a quiet sit or stand faster and faster, and eventually he’ll give up the bark-and-bounce altogether. Remember, when people speak of “magic” in training, what they mean is “patience and repetition.”
… Or Ask Him to Sit
Tactic two: give your dog the cue to sit. I mention “sit” because it’s the cue most dogs know best, but of course if your dog knows “down” or “stand” best, you can go with that instead. Take this give-a-cue approach if frustration makes your dog too frantic and he needs a hint, or if you don’t trust yourself to patiently wait out the bark-and-bounce and you’re pretty sure your dog will respond to your cue. Same rule as for the wait-it-out approach--the instant your dog’s tushy hits the ground, throw that ball. And practice, practice, practice.
Troubleshooting
Giving a cue can be faster initially. Sooner or later, though, if you don’t want to have to say “Sit” every time your dog returns the ball in every game of fetch, you will need to wait quietly till the lightbulb goes on over his head and he sits without being asked. Also, remember the possibility that your excited dog can’t take in your cue; you may have to wait him out even if it’s hard for you. Finally, a few dogs will begin to mouth or bodyslam or even growl when a tried-and-true behavior no longer works for them. If that describes your dog, hire a good reward-based trainer to help you teach him better frustration tolerance and self-control.
Get Your Dog to Stop Lunging After Squirrels During Walks
Squirrels elicit another common annoying dog behavior. You’re walking your dog down the street, minding your own business, when a squirrel appears at the base of a tree 20 feet away and WHAM, your dog hits the end of the leash, taking your arm with her and instantly doubling its length.
Be Prepared for Squirrels
Dr. Premack can help. First, you will need to watch closely for squirrels as you walk your dog. No spacing out. Second, as you walk, give your dog only a couple of feet of leash to play with. The more leash he has, the more momentum he can build up, painfully jerking his neck and your shoulder. A double-handed grip on the leash may help. Keep your center of gravity low and stable.
Make Sure Lunging Gets Your Dog Nowhere
If you can spot a squirrel before your dog does, great, but realistically you’re doing well if you can manage simultaneity here. Your dog may freeze for a moment; more likely, he lunges. Because you’ve prepared by giving him only a little bit of leash and keeping your center of gravity low, you remain in place and he doesn’t get far. Now he’s straining toward the squirrel but not getting closer. Your job is to settle in and stand there. Say nothing and do nothing except hold your ground. There will come a moment when your dog shifts his weight backward, or sits, or looks at you. In that moment, the leash will no longer be tight. While still giving your dog just a couple of feet of leash, immediately take a step toward the squirrel.
Move Forward Only When the Leash Is Loose
Almost certainly, your dog will again hit the end of the leash. Again, stand and wait for the moment when he does anything other than strain forward, and in that moment take a step toward the squirrel. The lesson for your dog is that he can get closer to the squirrel as long as he keeps the leash loose, but if he lunges, all forward motion stops. Approaching the squirrel--a likely behavior--rewards and strengthens the less likely behavior of keeping the leash loose.
Reward with a Last-Second Rush
Urban and suburban squirrels, in my experience, are pretty dog savvy; they know just how far up a tree they need to climb in order to stay out of reach. For this reason, I feel comfortable rewarding my dog for a slow, measured approach by letting him charge the tree once he’s within leash range so I don’t get yanked. He gets the exciting rush, I get to keep my arm intact, and the squirrel usually seems unimpressed.
Practice, Practice, Practice
Expect to practice a good long time before you get a dog who reliably walks toward squirrels instead of taking off like a rocket after them. Feral dogs are generally scavengers, not skilled predators, but prey chasing has deep roots in dogs’ evolutionary past. In my opinion, we do better to accommodate the behavior in a realistic, safe way than to try to eliminate it altogether. It’s usually easy to teach dogs a nonpredatory response to animal housemates, who are familiar individuals; fast-moving furries in the great outdoors are another matter. In a future podcast I’ll discuss how to teach your dog to come when called, even when that means giving up the chase. For now, just remember that the things your dog is just dying to do are often your best leverage for getting what you want, too.
Come find me on Facebook – search on The Dog Trainer. Or you can call me at 206-600-5661, or email dogtrainer@quickanddirtytips.com. Thanks for listening. Goodbye!
