In this post, we’ll break down the types of training into two very broad classifications – positive and negative reinforcement training. With this, you will be able to understand which type of training dog professionals highly recommend and the arguments supporting it.
To begin, it is essential to point out to ourselves that dogs are of a separate species than ourselves and therefore, our presumptions might not exactly meet the way they act. In the most basic terms, you can think of dogs learning through trial and error; that is they will behave in a wide range of distinctive tactics and based on the outcomes of those behaviors/actions, they will choose to increase or decrease the regularity of those actions. Know it or not, your dog is learning continuously by paying attention to its surrounding and the consequences of its actions and social interactions. Your dog (in select cases, similar to us), will avoid a behavior that results in bad consequences or whatever that makes the good consequences disappear.
Don't forget that your dog is one of the most intelligent creatures in the world and it’s a safe bet that you and your dog will have a more powerful relationship when your dog sees you as a facilitator to good consequences. Give it some thought, your dog’s happiness truly does hinge on you as the owner. From the freedom to interact with other dogs at parks, taking walks around the neighborhood, or even enjoying a yummy dinner, you hold the deciding key! Hence, if you do open these doors for your dog to generate positive experiences, your dog will more likely than not to cooperate with you.
This really is the philosophy behind the process of rewarding your dog for great attitude and is regarded as positive reinforcement training. The number of things you can do to encourage good behavior are countless and consist of anything from treats and new toys to enjoying more time in the dog parks or petting your dog. Positive reinforcement training typically gets results given that in order for your dog to experience activities that he appreciates/enjoys, he needs to have to earn them by cooperating with you. Positive reinforcement training focuses on the “dos” rather than the “don’ts.”
Right now, you’re probably thinking: Have you considered punishment or what is also known as negative reinforcement? Many dog trainers would attest that punishing your dog for one thing that he/she did is never going to help your dog take action in a more favorable or satisfactory way. What’s more, punishing your dog is ABUSIVE! Furthermore, it can also strain the relationship both of you share, which as we have mentioned in our previous posts, can make training your dog much more challenging than it’s supposed to be. An Additional unfavorable result of negative reinforcement is that your dog will start expressing behaviors of submission and fear in the event that you – the punisher – are present. And when you’re not around, your dog will return to behaving the very same way he/she was disciplined for. Recall a time when you were little and your parents advised you “no” to some things; what did you end up doing?
The youthful me, for one, wouldn't have given in easily. Instead, I probably would have kept pestering my parents for the things I sought. I bring this up because I feel like plenty of us can interrelate to such conditions and subsequently realize why negative reinforcement training doesn’t (really) work. From previous experiences, I have watched people punishing (let’s not go into detail how) their dogs for digging holes in their home backyard garden which just resulted in even more hole digging in the event that there is no one present at home. Let’s be straightforward, sometimes dog owners would feel so irritated with the actions of their dogs that they have the disposition to behave out of their instinct and punish their dogs. It must be reiterated that punishing your dog, as mentioned, does no good for you and your dog. In such situations, it is better to simply leave, calm down, and then set up a positive strategy to work with your dog’s behavior.
Right before we deduce that positive reinforcement training is the way to go, let’s take a step back and really think about when negative reinforcement training can be used in a non-abusive way as a way to teach your dog. To better demonstrate this, let’s think about something that you like or enjoy; as an example, maybe you really enjoy eating seafood. Now, this might sound tremendous, but let’s say that whenever you consume too much seafood at one go, your stomach won’t feel that great afterwards. Occasionally though, you can’t refrain from the craving to stuff yourself with seafood and as a consequence, you experience a diarrhea. Does this make you “bad”? I believe most people would consent that the reply is undeniably not.
Now, use a comparable event to your dog. Perhaps your dog really likes digging holes and even though he is well-trained, there could be times where he really wants to dig holes in your backyard. Likewise, this does not mean your dog is a “bad” dog. At instances such as these, times where your dog demonstrates a particular difficult action, one thing that can be done is making use of negative reinforcements so that you can divert your dog’s behavior to something that is appropriate to you. Returning to the same example, whenever you see your dog starting to dig holes in your garden, you could say something like “Eh, Jasper (your dog’s name), come here.” This helps keep your dog’s behavior in restraint and reminds your dog that the action that he is trying to attempt is a no go. Once again, the point here is not to threaten your dog, but rather, to guide your dog towards other things that he appreciates which can be earned through good behavior (positive reinforcement). Disturbing the behaviors of your dog will not only influence your dog to avoid such behaviors in the foreseeable future, but by doing so in a non-abusive way, you will not induce anxiety into your dog.
So in a few words, positive reinforcement training is definitely the way to go; despite the fact that at times, dog owners need to mix it up by including some kinds of non-abusive negative reinforcement training.
If you’re a dog owner, what about you? What is or has been working for you?
For more information on dog training, german shepherd training, and more useful tips for dog owners, head on over to www.germanshepherdtrainingacademy.com for more! Did I mention that they also have some great infographics that you can share? Check them out!
To begin, it is essential to point out to ourselves that dogs are of a separate species than ourselves and therefore, our presumptions might not exactly meet the way they act. In the most basic terms, you can think of dogs learning through trial and error; that is they will behave in a wide range of distinctive tactics and based on the outcomes of those behaviors/actions, they will choose to increase or decrease the regularity of those actions. Know it or not, your dog is learning continuously by paying attention to its surrounding and the consequences of its actions and social interactions. Your dog (in select cases, similar to us), will avoid a behavior that results in bad consequences or whatever that makes the good consequences disappear.
Don't forget that your dog is one of the most intelligent creatures in the world and it’s a safe bet that you and your dog will have a more powerful relationship when your dog sees you as a facilitator to good consequences. Give it some thought, your dog’s happiness truly does hinge on you as the owner. From the freedom to interact with other dogs at parks, taking walks around the neighborhood, or even enjoying a yummy dinner, you hold the deciding key! Hence, if you do open these doors for your dog to generate positive experiences, your dog will more likely than not to cooperate with you.
This really is the philosophy behind the process of rewarding your dog for great attitude and is regarded as positive reinforcement training. The number of things you can do to encourage good behavior are countless and consist of anything from treats and new toys to enjoying more time in the dog parks or petting your dog. Positive reinforcement training typically gets results given that in order for your dog to experience activities that he appreciates/enjoys, he needs to have to earn them by cooperating with you. Positive reinforcement training focuses on the “dos” rather than the “don’ts.”
Right now, you’re probably thinking: Have you considered punishment or what is also known as negative reinforcement? Many dog trainers would attest that punishing your dog for one thing that he/she did is never going to help your dog take action in a more favorable or satisfactory way. What’s more, punishing your dog is ABUSIVE! Furthermore, it can also strain the relationship both of you share, which as we have mentioned in our previous posts, can make training your dog much more challenging than it’s supposed to be. An Additional unfavorable result of negative reinforcement is that your dog will start expressing behaviors of submission and fear in the event that you – the punisher – are present. And when you’re not around, your dog will return to behaving the very same way he/she was disciplined for. Recall a time when you were little and your parents advised you “no” to some things; what did you end up doing?
The youthful me, for one, wouldn't have given in easily. Instead, I probably would have kept pestering my parents for the things I sought. I bring this up because I feel like plenty of us can interrelate to such conditions and subsequently realize why negative reinforcement training doesn’t (really) work. From previous experiences, I have watched people punishing (let’s not go into detail how) their dogs for digging holes in their home backyard garden which just resulted in even more hole digging in the event that there is no one present at home. Let’s be straightforward, sometimes dog owners would feel so irritated with the actions of their dogs that they have the disposition to behave out of their instinct and punish their dogs. It must be reiterated that punishing your dog, as mentioned, does no good for you and your dog. In such situations, it is better to simply leave, calm down, and then set up a positive strategy to work with your dog’s behavior.
Right before we deduce that positive reinforcement training is the way to go, let’s take a step back and really think about when negative reinforcement training can be used in a non-abusive way as a way to teach your dog. To better demonstrate this, let’s think about something that you like or enjoy; as an example, maybe you really enjoy eating seafood. Now, this might sound tremendous, but let’s say that whenever you consume too much seafood at one go, your stomach won’t feel that great afterwards. Occasionally though, you can’t refrain from the craving to stuff yourself with seafood and as a consequence, you experience a diarrhea. Does this make you “bad”? I believe most people would consent that the reply is undeniably not.
Now, use a comparable event to your dog. Perhaps your dog really likes digging holes and even though he is well-trained, there could be times where he really wants to dig holes in your backyard. Likewise, this does not mean your dog is a “bad” dog. At instances such as these, times where your dog demonstrates a particular difficult action, one thing that can be done is making use of negative reinforcements so that you can divert your dog’s behavior to something that is appropriate to you. Returning to the same example, whenever you see your dog starting to dig holes in your garden, you could say something like “Eh, Jasper (your dog’s name), come here.” This helps keep your dog’s behavior in restraint and reminds your dog that the action that he is trying to attempt is a no go. Once again, the point here is not to threaten your dog, but rather, to guide your dog towards other things that he appreciates which can be earned through good behavior (positive reinforcement). Disturbing the behaviors of your dog will not only influence your dog to avoid such behaviors in the foreseeable future, but by doing so in a non-abusive way, you will not induce anxiety into your dog.
So in a few words, positive reinforcement training is definitely the way to go; despite the fact that at times, dog owners need to mix it up by including some kinds of non-abusive negative reinforcement training.
If you’re a dog owner, what about you? What is or has been working for you?
For more information on dog training, german shepherd training, and more useful tips for dog owners, head on over to www.germanshepherdtrainingacademy.com for more! Did I mention that they also have some great infographics that you can share? Check them out!
