|
What is Positive Reinforcement Training All About?
Classes at the San Diego Humane Society and SPCA are designed to give you step-by-step instruction on how to get the most out of clicker training! Our training philosophy is based on the behavioral science concepts of positive reinforcement. Animals (including people) learn fastest and retain the most information when taught through positive reinforcement. Stated simply, positive reinforcement training means that the dog gets something he likes when he does what YOU consider to be a desirable behavior. Dogs will repeat behaviors which were positively reinforced - even after you cut down the frequency of the treats or other good reinforcers. In fact, your dog will learn to try even harder in hopes of earning your approval. You can use this concept both to train your dog to do something as well as train your dog to stop doing an inappropriate behavior.
Training your dog using these methods creates a happy, accommodating dog who is responsive and attentive to your cues. You will avoid many of the typical battles for dominance and control that occur when starting a training program. Positive training methods are non-confrontational and will help develop your relationship with your dog, not harm it.
Comparison to "Traditional" Dog Training Methods
Concentrating almost entirely on positive reinforcement techniques is relatively new in the last 5-10 years in the dog training field, but reinforcement methods have been used successfully for many years to train "wild" animals, particularly marine mammals like killer whales, walruses, dolphins, etc.
For these animals, a leash and a choke chain aren't much help, and you certainly can't physically "put" them into the position you are trying to teach! Instead, trainers motivate the animals and shape their behavior by using only positive reinforcement techniques -- often to astounding results. Keep in mind, also, that these results have to be duplicated day in and day out. Sea World can charge over $30.00 per visit only because they can guarantee that their animals are going to perform as expected - every time. It is not unreasonable, with practice, to expect your dog's responses to be similarly reliable.
The traditional school of thought on dog training relies on physical correction, or punishment, to let the dog know what you don't like. The dog is given the opportunity to fail and then corrected for doing the wrong thing. Success is dependent upon employing precise timing and technique to deliver the correction/punishment. One problem with this method is that there is very little room for error. Correcting too forcefully or too softly can lead to leadership problems, and imprecise timing can promote anxiety and confusion in your dog as he wonders what he did wrong this time. In our experience, most pet owners don't want to have to jerk their dog or have to physically dominate him or her -- they just want a nice dog that's fun to have around.
Positive reinforcement techniques concentrate on teaching your dog the behaviors you want from him and encouraging him to repeat those behaviors to the exclusion of the behaviors you don't want. The beauty of this method is that your dog will learn to love your leadership and will actually WANT to please you -- all without having to yell at him, smack him, jerk him on a training collar or banish him to another room. You will not be caught describing your dog as "stubborn" or "at that difficult age" or "willful" or any of the other terms used when traditional training methods aren't working. Instead, he will truly be a member of your family.
How Exactly Does All This Work?
For our training classes here at the San Diego Humane Society and SPCA, we use clicker training to teach many of the basic exercises and behaviors. Clicker training can sometimes seem magical in how quickly and effectively it works, but its roots are in basic scientific learning theory. In short, the clicker is a small (about 2" by 1") plastic mechanical device that makes a distinctive "click" sound when pressed by your thumb. That's all the clicker itself does -- the rest is up to you!
The click is a sound that your dog has never heard before so it will stand out to him or her. First, we show the dog that this new sound means that he is going to get a treat or something else of high value to the dog. Then, we show the dog that he has to "do something" to make us click (and follow with the treat). Once the dog makes the connection that it's HIS behavior that's driving the consequence of whether or not we click, he is ready to learn some of the things YOU want him to learn.
By being attentive to the dog's behavior and selective in when we click, we can mold or "shape" the dog's behavior to whatever level of precision we are interested in. Things your dog does that lead to clicks and treats are much more likely to be repeated in the future. As these behaviors get reinforced by more clicks and treats, they become habits, or automatic responses, if you will. By giving these behaviors names, we can then call for them on cue.
Specific examples can be found on the links page and will also be added to the articles section of this site. The best way to understand clicker training is to try it! The only caveat is to make sure that you are doing it correctly by taking a little time to read up on the method or to work with an experienced clicker trainer.
|
Gaines Campus: 5500 Gaines St., San Diego, CA 92110 | (619) 299-7012
North Campus: 2905 San Luis Rey Rd., Oceanside, CA 92058 | (760) 757-4357
