Have you ever arrived at work and wondered how you got there? You know you drove your car and you must have driven safely and made all the correct turns because here you are safely at work. This phenomenom is often called 'auto pilot', as we automatically perform the required behaviours with very little active thought or intention. In the training world this phenomenom is referred to as 'fluency'. We want our dogs to perform behaviours automatically when cued and when distractions are present.
How many times did you have to drive to work before you experienced your first feeling of "I don't remember my drive to work this morning?" I'll bet the number is more than a weeks worth of driving to work. It probably took a minimum of 100 drives in to work for your 'auto pilot' to kick in.
How many times does a dog have to repeat a behaviour before the dog's 'auto pilot' kicks in? How many times has your dog repeated the behaviours you want him to know really well?
Everytime your dog does something he is learning to do that behaviour. For instance you don't want your dog to jump up but regularly your dog gets the opportunity to jump up on new people......even though you may be training your dog not to jump up he is also learning at the same time that there are times when he CAN jump. Inadvertantly the jump up behaviour ends up being strengthened due to the fact that the dog is reinforced (jumps up successfully) periodically. Much the same as slot machines.....every once in a while you win some money which strengthens your behaviour of continually pulling the lever (or pushing the button).
It is always best to PREVENT the behaviours you don't want your dog to do while you train for the behaviours you DO want your dog to know and perform regularly.
How many times did you have to drive to work before you experienced your first feeling of "I don't remember my drive to work this morning?" I'll bet the number is more than a weeks worth of driving to work. It probably took a minimum of 100 drives in to work for your 'auto pilot' to kick in.
How many times does a dog have to repeat a behaviour before the dog's 'auto pilot' kicks in? How many times has your dog repeated the behaviours you want him to know really well?
Everytime your dog does something he is learning to do that behaviour. For instance you don't want your dog to jump up but regularly your dog gets the opportunity to jump up on new people......even though you may be training your dog not to jump up he is also learning at the same time that there are times when he CAN jump. Inadvertantly the jump up behaviour ends up being strengthened due to the fact that the dog is reinforced (jumps up successfully) periodically. Much the same as slot machines.....every once in a while you win some money which strengthens your behaviour of continually pulling the lever (or pushing the button).
It is always best to PREVENT the behaviours you don't want your dog to do while you train for the behaviours you DO want your dog to know and perform regularly.
