Dogs as Good Citizens: Understanding how to apply learning theory for effective and humane dog training
We love our dogs!
It’s not surprising then that an estimated third of all New Zealand households include a dog. Yet we also know that not everyone may share the same sentiment. In New Zealand, there are certain rules and regulations that govern the ownership and management of dogs. These are outlined in the Dog Control Act 1996 that sets out the legal obligations of dog owners, including their care, control and owner responsibilities for damage caused by their dog and the need for the dog to be microchipped and registered with the local Council every year. Of course, Companion Animals New Zealand also suggests that responsible animal guardians should register their pets’ microchip numbers and details on the NZCAR to help ensure that your pet has a greater chance of getting home to you if it strays or is lost, or in the event of a natural disaster. See https://www.animalregister.co.nz/ for more information.
Being an Asset rather than a Liability
Tolerance for our pets by others in our community requires that they be trained and contained so that they do not become a public problem. Being a good animal citizen is essential, and since the dog doesn’t know the rules, it’s up to the responsible owner to ensure that they provide their dog with the correct socialization and good training to ensure they are an asset rather than a liability. This is something that we will be addressing with the help of international experts at the Companion Animals New Zealand ‘Animals as Good Citizens’ Workshop that follows the CANZ conference in Hamilton on March 12/13th 2024. See https://www.companionanimals.nz/conference
The human-animal bond is considered to be over 12 thousand years old and was probably originally based on a mutually beneficial relationship. The dog was one of the first animals to be domesticated – transitioning from being tolerated as a scavenger around the early human settlements to being valued as a human companion, in a relatively short time. Yet despite the length of the relationship, it is often the case that the care and training of our dogs can be misguided (although well intentioned), falling short in terms of their welfare needs. If we are to address this, and do the best for our animals, responsible animal guardians need to understand more about the ‘nature’ of the species that they have welcomed into their homes.
Effective Training is one area where there is much room for improvement. Even with the correct use of positive reinforcement methods (often called reward–based training), there are often problems, such as: with the timing of the reward, the clarity of the signals and other factors that can cause problems for the dog in making the correct associations. A breakdown in training success can lead to frustration for both dog and human – and sadly this often leads to inappropriate use of aversive training and handling techniques and even the use of inhumane methods to force the animal to perform (or not) the behaviour.
A way to overcome this is for dog owners is to understand more about how animals learn most effectively, how they are motivated and how they are different from us. Dogs are dogs – people are people – which means that what matters to them is different to what’s important for most of us. Dogs have evolved from ancestors who were predators, social pack animals and with senses far superior to humans.
Making the time to understand them and the way they perceive the world, can not only help us to train in a more canine-centred way but also to appreciate the amazing animals that they are.
Step 1 - Understanding Canine Ethology (the science of animal behaviour)
The Domestic dog (Canis familiaris) is one of 38 different species in the canine family (Canidae) distributed about the world. Others include; wolves, coyotes, foxes, jackals and dingoes. Through domestication dogs have been selected for different traits/temperaments/shapes/sizes and yet they still share much of their behavioural tendencies in common with other members of the canine family. Unfortunately, in the domestic setting, behavioural problems arise because of a fundamental lack of understanding of what normal dog behaviour is, and the variability of behaviour with respect to breed and individual differences. Developing a better understanding of behaviour and the way in which the dog has evolved can help owners to appreciate the underlying motivations for certain behaviours (such as why some dogs chase, guard or howl) and so deal with them more effectively.
Interestingly, whilst wolves and dogs may share a common ancestor, dogs are not wolves. One difference is that adult dogs have been selected (probably inadvertently by humans breeding dogs with more appealing features) for a more juvenile-like appearance in comparison to adult wolves. This retention of puppy features, even into maturity, is known as paedomorphosis. The alteration of physical appearance as a result of domestication and selective breeding is considered to lead to reduced visual signalling capabilities of the domestic dog in comparison to the wolf. Examples of this include the brachycephalic dog who due to their shorter noses have reduced ability to express different facial expressions, or dogs bred with permanently erect ears or those with a very short tails, who cannot make full use of these parts of their body for communication.
Dogs are a social species, they live in a modified pack system and they have evolved effective communication mechanisms to engage in and maintain such social relationships. This is why humans and dogs have developed such a long association with each other- both humans and dogs develop social relationships, hierarchies, and social rules. Our history of living with dogs, and the similarities in our social behaviour should mean that training dogs is almost second nature. However, this is clearly not always the case. The number of dogs being ‘given up’ to dog shelters due to what is described as unmanageable and undesirable behaviour is testament to this – as are the newspaper articles regarding dog attacks and the number of people who seek help from their vets, or dog trainers and animal behaviour experts each day.
Step 2 – Understanding learning theory and how this relates to training your dog
So, what is animal training and how can we improve our ability to shape the behaviour of our dogs to meet societies’ requirements of them and ensure they are Good Animal Citizens?
‘Training’ can be defined as the intentional modification of the frequency and/or intensity of specific behavioural responses. Such modification is achieved through different means: the shaping of a response where the specific behaviour is positively reinforced in a step-wise fashion towards a specific end point and the suppression of undesirable responses. Successful and humane training relies upon the trainer having a good understanding of the application of learning theory, dog behaviour and a clear understanding of the goals and the limitations of the training approach being used.
Dogs learn through making associations between their actions or inactions and the consequence these actions have for them (Associative or Operant learning). Reinforcing a particular desired response to a signal in a consistent and timely manner will mean that the dog makes a good connection between the signal or cue you use and the behavioural response you want. Its sounds simple! But the key is in
developing good timing – so that whatever method you use, you are able to reward the response you want consistently and immediately.
Of course, although the theory is simple - the devil is in the detail.
There are different types of reinforcers – you can use the release of pressure of one sort or another (such as releasing the pressure on the leash as soon as the dog slows its walk) to ‘reward’ a response (called negative reinforcement), or the addition of something pleasant such as a titbit, kind word or pat when the dog starts to perform the behaviour you want (called positive reinforcement). Rewarding a desired response either using a negative or positive reinforcer (pressure release or giving food or praise respectively) is very effective for gradually shaping a desired behaviour. Choosing the reinforcer to use will need to take into account the individual character of each dog, since some will be food motivated, but others prefer to work for toys or attention.
This can be taken a stage further where secondary positive reinforcement is used to reward a behaviour or mark the desired response – where the trainer is too far away to give the dog a titbit or release pressure. The most common use of this is seen with the use of ‘clickers’ (little plastic covered boxes with a small strip of metal inside them, which when pressed make a distinctive ‘click’ sound) in training. This is not just used in distance work but also because sometimes immediate rewards can be distracting, for example, food can sometimes lead dogs to become more interested in the treat, than what you want him or her to focus on! Clickers and similar reinforcers (certain words such as ‘good boy’ can also become meaningful in this way), work through classical conditioning, by providing the dog with a distinctive signal that has already been associated with a food reward and that can now be used to signal to the dog that it has achieved what was required (just like Pavlov’s dogs – who learned to associate a sound of a bell with a food bowl being presented to them – and started to salivate when the bell rang – in anticipation of the food coming).
There are also different types of reinforcement schedules that can be used to keep your dog motivated. Once the dog has learned the association between a cue/signal because he has been rewarded after every correct response using a continuous reinforcement schedule –some trainers will switch to a more variable schedule so that the dog maintains his or her motivation to perform the response, or even get better at it. The differential reinforcement (DR) schedule is where the dog is given different valued rewards that reflect the quality of their performance of the response, for example, the dog only gets rewarded for above-average responses, getting better rewards for better responses. These advanced training methods are quite stimulating for the dog but need to be used carefully to avoid de-training the dog or causing confusion and unnecessary frustration. We suggest that you seek further advice through a CANZ accredited trainer if you want to learn more (see Step 3).
Whilst reinforcers increase the likelihood of a behaviour being performed again, there are other methods that are used to stop an ongoing behaviour, which are delivered after the behaviour has already started. Examples of this form of ‘punishment’ training might be when you make a loud noise or deliver a ‘loud shout’ such as ‘STOP’ to disrupt an unwanted behaviour. This works by distracting the dog, and thus stopping an unwanted behaviour in its tracks. However, with no indication to the dog as to what it should be doing, i.e. what positive behaviour it should do to be rewarded, there is a strong chance the unwanted behaviour, will occur again. When this happens, it is likely the punisher will be applied more forcibly– with
the dog becoming more and more fearful of the owner and/or the situation. It’s for this reason that CANZ recommends that training that relies on punishing behaviour should be avoided. Responsible companion animal guardians should use reward-based’ or positive training methods since this provides a humane and effective approach for successfully and safely training desirable behavioural responses and modifying unwanted and problematic dog behaviours. It’s important to remember that just because something appears to work, that doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do. Judging the success of animal training and behavioural modification approaches should always be based on the results achieved through humane, ethical treatment of the animal.
Below are the suggested key elements for successful and humane dog training:
1. Know what makes a dog a dog – understand the way this species communicates, and what matters to them and make your actions meaningful to a dog.
2. Develop your basic understanding of learning theory – be prepared to apply the theory for effective training.
3. Make your own dog training plan – work out what the goals are for each training session and breakdown each goal into simple steps for shaping specific responses.
4. Be prepared to be flexible – sometimes you have to go back a step to establish a response again – before you can move forwards.
5. Be humane and understanding – don’t be tempted to do things to your dog just because you get frustrated – remember you are the responsible adult.
6. Know the individual characteristics of the dog and take these into account when training eg. some dogs are highly food motivated, some are not but they will work hard for praise or a play opportunity.
7. Be patient – remember that whilst you may know what you are trying to achieve, your job is to convey what you want to another species. Don’t over-complicate things – if you can’t work it out – then how will your dog!
8. Be prepared to ask for help from those qualified to help you. A small investment at the start may be worth its weight later!
And finally - Step 3 - Ask for Help:
You can get expert help from one of the Companion Animals New Zealand Accredited Animal Trainers and Animal Behaviourists who only use humane training methods that are based on an understanding of the way animals learn. Follow the link below for more information about who you can approach in your area https://www.companionanimals.nz/canzaccreditation