The eBark: Rockingham Dog Club Issue 3 April 2016 | Page 17

might one day save your dog’s
life.

Your dog’s obedience behaviours are not generalized to varying conditions .

You rely too much on
treats and not enough on
praise, esteem, and celebrity

If you teach Fluffy to “sit” in
the quiet of your family room,
that’s the only place she will
reliably sit.

Treats are a great way to initiate a behaviour or to reinforce
that behaviour intermittently
later on. But liberal use of
treats can often work against
you. There can develop in the
dog’s mind such a fixation on
food that the desired behaviour
itself becomes compromised
and focus on the owner diffused.

It’s a mistake that many owners make; failing to generalize
the new behaviour in different
areas with varying conditions
and levels of distraction will
ensure spotty obedience at best.
To generalize an behaviour,
first teach it at home with no
distractions. Then, gradually
increase distractions: turn the
television on or have another
person sit nearby. Once that’s
perfected, move out into the
yard. Then add another person
or dog. Gradually move on to
busier environments until
Fluffy will perform consistently, even on the corner of a busy
city street. Only then will the
behaviour be “proofed.”

Think of it: you’ll rarely see
hunting, agility, Frisbee, or
law enforcement dogs being
offered food rewards during
training or job performance.
Why? Because it would break
focus and interfere with actual
performance. Instead, other
muses are found, including
praise and, perhaps, brief play
with a favourite toy. Most of
all, reward for these dogs
comes from the joy of the job
itself.

This generalizing is especially
vital when teaching the recall
command, a behaviour that
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