I frequently hear how important it is to let dogs run off their energy and get to sniff and explore the world. Exercise is great but the problem can be that the more a dog tunes into his environment, the less that dog tunes into his owner. My challenge to you is to balance out your exercise routine with your dog with some foundational training. You want your dog to think you are the best thing in the world. Often, dogs are pulling to get to the next place faster than the last and they want to sniff and explore as they please. Our dogs end up almost binging on their environment and we are simply the ones holding the leash, not an actual part of their experience at all.
I’ve outlined some skills that all dogs should have training to develop. Some dogs need more training with certain skills than others based on their personality. I have separated and explained several categories of skills that dogs learn when we train with our dogs. Then, I’ve outlined a list of behaviors that you can teach or work on with your dogs and then listed the skill that those behaviors focus on. This will help you to hone in on things that your dog would most benefit from based on his personality.
Exercise is very important, but it is only half of the equation. Training creates a partnership with your dog and helps your dog to interact with you despite distractions and to share the environment with the person they adore most. Happy training!
Skills to develop
Confidence: (Decisiveness) Having confidence allows a dog to adapt to new situations; helps control fear; and improves a dog’s ability to negotiate in social situations. Confidence is a foundational skill upon which most other skills are built.
Focus and relevance: (Concentration and being closely connected to what is being done). Specifically, we are speaking of a dog’s ability to focus on the most relevant information in the environment. When building these skills, we are looking for the dog to find the handler and/or the task as the most relevant thing in his environment.
When a balanced dog decides where to focus on his own, his focus often migrates between foreground and background interests. Some dogs have a difficult time with focus and relevance because they are hypervigilant on things in the background. These dogs often have a more reactive nervous system and are constantly scanning the environment for “what ifs.” Dogs with a more reactive nervous system tend toward more anxiety and behavioral excesses. On the other side are dogs with a more adaptive nervous system. These dogs are better able to maintain focus on the relevant person or activity. These adaptive dogs tend to be more balanced in their “behavioral quantity.”
Body control: (To be aware of and have control over one’s body in relation to the environment and other objects in the environment). Body control incorporates spatial awareness, navigational skills, muscle memory and fine motor skills. Body control activities have been proven to have a therapeutic use for hyper-active or over- stimulated dogs. Such dogs may become more settled with the help of balance, controlled physical exercise and compelling the dog’s body to slow down or stop moving. This is not a restraint exercise, rather an acceptance exercise that taps into a dog’s proprioceptive learning. This in turn will slow the body’s release of adrenaline because the body will not need it. Controlled, purposeful and slower exercise is preferred to more explosive exercise such as running and jumping. Having body awareness and body control improves balance, coordination, movement and focus.
Conflict resolution: (The ability to facilitate a peaceful ending of conflict). A dog’s inherent conflict resolution style depends on several factors: how that dog displays emotion; how he communicates intention; and whether he can resolve conflict through alternative behaviors. Healthy conflict resolution skills focus on adaptive behaviors needed in order to resolve conflict.
Dogs with reactive nervous systems who have a high need to control situations tend toward poorer conflict resolution because they have a lower frustration threshold. These dogs often get “stuck” in a behavior and persist in that loop. This is also referred to as a stereotypy which is a persistent repetition of a behavior for no particular reason with no resolved outcome.
Generally, the sequence unfolds like this: experience something that causes conflict, be unable to resolve that conflict, become frustrated, either begin a loop behavior such as barking or become angry and then reach an aggression threshold.
Conflict resolution is an important skill for any dog but especially for dogs that have a reactive nervous system; high need to control; low frustration threshold; an inclination toward stereotypies or loop behaviors; and dogs with behavioral excesses.
Problem solving: (A mental process that involves discovering, analyzing and solving problems). Problem solving goes hand and hand with conflict resolution. The difference is that conflict resolution involves resolving "differences" or conflict and problem solving is basically a puzzle that needs solving. Problems can quickly become conflicts if it triggers the emotion of frustration.
With problem solving the goal is to overcome obstacles and find a solution that best resolves the issue. Strong problem-solving skills often go hand in hand with cleverness as the dogs must be willing to and think to try different things to solve a problem they encounter. This skill should be taught with caution as it can cause unexpected “problems” in a home environment. Clever dogs can be more difficult to accept household limitations. Those limitations can become problem solving games such as jumping over gates and fences; foraging through trash, cabinets or the refrigerator; opening doors, climbing for things they want, etc.
Problem solving as a skill is beneficial for all dogs but especially for dogs with a reactive nervous system, a high need to control and a low frustration threshold. A cautionary note: This skill may be better reserved for less confident dogs or more fearful dogs who are more likely to have behavioral deficits. Adding behaviors to the repertoire of a dog who is more reserved and shy increases their confidence. Adding behaviors to the repertoire of a dog with excessive behaviors may cause problems. Dogs with behavioral excesses have a difficult time prioritizing behavior and making a choice of one behavior over another. They tend toward a display of many behaviors at once. We should not exacerbate the conflict with behavioral excess dogs by asking them to make choices among such a conglomerate of behaviors. They will struggle to make the choice you want over the choice they want.
Impulse control: (Resisting an urge or temptation or controlling the desire for immediate gratification). Dogs that can accept delayed gratification have a higher threshold for frustration. These dogs are more able to maintain a calm demeanor and think through if/then scenarios more clearly. A clear benefit to impulse control is with command compliance. Lower likelihood behaviors such as coming when called and leaving desired things when commanded will be more successful. This is an excellent skill set for dogs with behavioral excesses; dogs who have a lower frustration threshold, and dogs with a reactive nervous system.
Training activities for the specific skills:
Distraction come - have food in your hands when he is doing something he loves to do (play with another dog, investigating something, chewing on a toy, etc.). Get your hands right in front of your dog and lure him back away from the “thing” with an excited come command and clapping hands. (Major skills worked: confidence, focus and relevance, conflict resolution, impulse control).
Follow and sit (or down) in front for 10 seconds - have food in your pocket and excitedly call your dog to follow you around making all sorts of turns. End the following with a sit right in front of you and praise for 10 seconds after which you can give a treat from your pocket. (Major skills worked: confidence, focus and relevance, impulse control).
Decoy eye contact - have food or a toy in your hand and move it around head level but away from your body with a fully extended arm. Your dog will look at it and maybe even stare at it. Just wait until he looks away from the item and looks at you, then praise and he can have the treat or toy. Be sure to decoy on the right side, left side and even belly-button level. (Major skills worked: focus and relevance, impulse control).
Leave it with a return to you - this is a compulsion exercise. With a leash on but only holding the end loop, slide or roll a large treat forward and a distance out of the range of the leash. Before he gets to the end of the leash, say "leave it." Don’t use a reprimanding voice. Use an “insistent” commanding voice. Your dog will likely reach the end of the leash at this point. If he hasn’t turned back to you, simply take one step back at a time slowly creating some compelled distance while commanding again and again. The moment your dog eases up on the leash and flips his head back toward you, praise him and welcome him with open arms and a treat. If he stops and orients back toward the treat, simply maintain the leash and step back again a little at a time while re-commanding. Again, praise when he disengages and give the treat you have. (We then throw down a couple more treats, so the dog is occupied while we get the “decoy” treat). The dog should never get the decoy treat. (Major skills worked: focus and relevance, impulse control).
Focused and guided exploration - this is an evolving game where the dogs takes your guidance and prompts to find things. We place a treat in four to five different areas. Then go get your dog and ask him to “find it.” You should proceed to one of the places and call your dog with you and point out where it is. Then praise and off to the next area to find the next one. A problem-solving variation is where they look for one smelly treat that is hidden and difficult to get to. They must use their own problem-solving skills (with your help when needed) to search out and get the smelly treat.
This game does not teach them to hyper-focus on their environment hoping to find things. It creates a partnership where you and your dog are working together to find things he likes. The value is that he is tuning in to you at the exclusion of everything else in the world to find the hidden treasures. You become the most important thing. It is a wonderful off leash exercise to do once they know how to play the game. If it isn’t too hot, it is best to do it outside, like in your backyard at first. Remember, you are competing with things that are generally way cooler than we are any day of the week. (Bird poop, other dog smells, insects, leaves, barking dogs, other animals like lizards, etc. Major skills worked: confidence, focus and relevance, problem solving).
Hand targeting game – here is a YouTube video so you can see: http://youtu.be/GdoUYyP9eWs
When your dog finds this predictable and shows no reluctance to you touching his nose, hold your palm out as if you are going to touch his nose but stop about an inch to a half-inch in front of his nose and wait to see if he will touch your palm with his nose. If he does, say "yes" and then praise and give him a treat from your other hand. If he does not, go back to step one for several more repetitions until your dog will touch your palm with his nose when you stop an inch to a half-inch in front of his nose.
When he is regularly touching his nose to the palm of your hand and you say "yes" then praise and give him a treat with your opposite hand you are ready to add the command "touch" to the sequence. Say the command first then put your hand out. Do not say the command at the same time you put your hand out or the two blend together and the command will be ignored. The sequence is: say "touch", put your palm out, the dog touches your palm, you say "yes" then praise and give a treat from your other hand. (Major skills worked: confidence, focus and relevance).
Sam Freeman, CPDT-KSA, is the president and owner of Pet Behavior Solutions and Edu-Care for Dogs. She is the creator of the Core Behavior Assessment, which is the behavior evaluation program used by many animal shelters and animal control agencies in Arizona. Freeman is certified through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers and has completed specialized education and training in psychology, learning theory, ethology, family counseling, behavior modification techniques, aggression, canine and feline behavior issues, and grief counseling.
