When Dogs Train Humans

Some people believe their dogs are “manipulative” or mercenary, saying “She’ll only do it when I have treats.” But timing is everything, and pulling out treats at the wrong time means you probably won’t get a response *without* showing the food first. 

Dogs who have to see or hear “the money” in order to respond to a cue have learned to wait for it. It’s not Come or Sit or whatever that’s working, it’s the sight or sound of the cookie bag (or jar). 

If you ask your dog to do something and get no response, do you then

— reach for the bag of treats, 
— shake the bag, or
— hold out a treat?

Some dogs will wait for you to do all of that before responding. This is one way dogs and humans train each other all the time! They learn to wait, and we learn that showing the food gets a quick response. 

What’s wrong with that? Well, luring is great for jumpstarting a new behavior, but it doesn’t make a cue—any verbal cue—meaningful to your dog if you keep on luring. 

If you want your verbal cues to work, you will want to get out the treat only after the behavior happens. Or if we’re shaping, it will come after the first move in that direction, at first: like bending the elbows when teaching a Down. 

Now the dog understands that his own behavior has a good consequence. When I do this, I get that. 

Good consequences are what drive good behavior, making it more likely in the future. The cue is what signals the opportunity for reinforcement—after the behavior.

Here’s the first of three scenarios where changing your timing will improve your dog’s behavior. 

Not Coming When You Call?

Instead of getting out a treat, look for a good behavior to mark (with a click or YES). If your dog already associates that marker with a treat, he will automatically come to you to get it. (Be sure to have some treats within reach whenever you use a marker.) 

After calling your dog (just once!), wait for him to do something that indicates thinking about coming: looking or turning towards you, or taking a step in your direction. 

Then you can quickly shape the full recall by waiting for direct eye contact and a few steps in your direction. Shaping builds behavior, one step at a time. Mark that, and pretty soon he will be coming faster, all the way. That’s when your hand goes into the bag! 

Now your dog understands that food doesn’t appear unless and until he actually comes to you. Now you’re using a reinforcer instead of a lure. Reinforcers make behavior stronger.

Pro Tips: 

* Practice lots of indoor recalls before expecting Come to work outside. Make it into a game by hiding before you call.

* If you’re working outside, use higher-value treats because you’re competing with lots of distractions. 

* Go closer to your dog before calling and/or use your hand target (if already trained).

* Happy talk or clapping often helps.

* Reinforce with anything your dog loves every time he comes to you, even when you didn’t call.

Picky eating and stopping on walks will be addressed in my next post, coming soon.

Copyright Lisa Benshoff 2021