Dog Training Community And Controversy: Can We Draw From Our Positive Reinforcement Values? #265
Shaped by Dog with Susan Garrett
DogsThat
4.8 • 679 Ratings
🗓️ 13 March 2024
⏱️ 22 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Visit us at shapedbydog.com
Have you ever been triggered by social media dramas about dog training methods? It's likely something we all experience. There was a recent incident at Crufts that flowed into the social channels this week that had a lot of thoughts flooding into my brain, including the question of how can we, as a community of dog loving reinforcement-based trainers, show up as our best selves when we get triggered by things out of our control? I'd love to open a dialogue on this topic and want to convey the compassion and empathy I have for everybody when sharing my experiences and observations in this episode. I understand that, for many, it might be a difficult conversation.
In this episode you’ll hear:
• About dog training, controversy and social media dramas.
• That we can all be triggered by differing dog training methods.
• Thoughts on the core values of reinforcement-based training.
• Why I’m not the same person or dog trainer I was 30 years ago.
• My experience with being a guest on a podcast with a balanced dog trainer.
• Insights into the evolution of dog training perspectives over time.
• Why I called Jean Donaldson and had an enlightening conversation.
• That we need grace and compassion for ourselves, and the big question.
Resources:
1. Crufts International Dog Show - https://crufts.org.uk/
2. Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show - https://www.westminsterkennelclub.org/
3. LickiMat Website - https://lickimat.com/
4. Podcast Episode 253: 7 Ways To Instantly Make Your Dog’s Life Better - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/253/
5. *Book: The Forever Dog by Dr. Karen Becker and Rodney Habib - https://geni.us/forever-dog
6. Podcast Episode 175: Food Luring VS Shaping In Dog Training: How Science Changed How I Teach Dogs - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/175/
7. YouTube Playlist: Susan Garrett's Dog Training Philosophy and Training Processes - https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy2An5_3KqDPqFVV6J6dYsYx&feature=shared
8. YouTube Playlist: Mastery of Positive Reinforcement Based Dog Training - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy20_Ko8p2SaE6B2IT4o6g6K
9. Podcast Episode 196: Why Mastering Reinforcement Is The Linchpin To Reinforcement Based Dog Training - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/196/
10. YouTube Playlist: The Heart / Mind Connection Side of Dog Training with Susan Garrett - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy1ruLW0CujlHgzCiTLK2Rfh
11. Podcast: Unlocking Us with Brené Brown - https://brenebrown.com/podcast/the-near-and-far-enemies-of-fierce-compassion-part-1-of-2/
12. Podcast Episode 7: You, Your Dog, Maslow and Lizard Brain - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/7/
13. Podcast Episode 91: Why Judgement Does Not Help People Or Dogs: ItsYerChoice LWT - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/91/
14. Shaped by Dog Podcast Episodes Site Index - https://dogsthat.com/podcast-all-episodes/
15. Book: Shaping Success by Susan Garrett - https://dogsthat.com/product/shaping-success-2/
16. Podcast Episode 197: Outsmarting Distractions: How To Use Environmental Reinforcement in Dog Training - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/197/
17. Jean Donaldson Academy for Dog Trainers - https://www.academyfordogtrainers.com/
18. Podcast Episode 208: Brilliance, Resilience And Gratitude: Inspiration And Motivation With Elliott Connie - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/208/
19. Watch this Episode of Shaped by Dog on YouTube - https://youtu.be/H3Vn7afXLiY
*Amazon Links Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Susan only recommends products she uses herself, and all opinions expressed here are her own. The link above is an affiliate link that, at no additional cost to you, we may earn a small commission if you decide to buy from it. Thank you!
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | In today's Shape by Dog episode, I'm going to tackle a difficult conversation and I want to |
| 0:06.9 | convey the compassion and empathy I have for everybody when I'm sharing my experiences and |
| 0:14.2 | my observations. I know that I can't help but offend somebody and if that is you, I am truly sorry. But I hope you |
| 0:23.3 | listen with an open mind because this isn't me teaching. This is me questioning. This is me |
| 0:30.2 | opening a dialogue looking for feedback. Hi, I'm Susan Garrett. Welcome to Shape by Dog. |
| 0:46.3 | Now, if you are on social media and in the dog training world, you would have become aware |
| 0:53.0 | of an incident that happened over the weekend |
| 0:54.9 | at one of the world's most prestigious dog events, and that is Crufts held in the UK. |
| 1:01.5 | Now, Crufts is massive. I don't know if it's bigger than Westminster, but they both are two |
| 1:06.9 | pretty big dog shows. And there's lots of booths, place where you can go shopping. |
| 1:11.6 | There was a vendor by the name of Likkimat. Now, Likkimat, I've used their products myself. |
| 1:17.6 | They are a great product for enrichment. And it's something that I've talked about a lot on this |
| 1:22.5 | podcast. Now, Licky Matt offered their booth to a dog trainer who had written a book and wanted to do |
| 1:30.0 | a book signing. He needed two hours of booth space. Now, unbeknownst or maybe not totally aware |
| 1:38.4 | of the press that this dog trainer brought along with him, it became a big drama on social media. |
| 1:46.2 | The dog trainer is a known trainer of aversives that he uses tools that many of us, |
| 1:53.8 | or probably all of us in the reinforcement-based dog training world, would never dream |
| 1:57.3 | of using on a dog. And so that caused a huge blow up on social media. |
| 2:04.3 | And there were a lot of reinforcement-based dog trainers that were calling for a boycott of the |
| 2:09.9 | licky mat products. And a lot of thoughts came flooding through my brain. My first thought was, |
| 2:14.3 | is bullying prevalent in even the reinforcement-based dog training community? |
| 2:19.1 | And if the answer is yes, is that congruent with the kind of trainer we want to be for our dogs? |
... |
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