Proofing Vs Generalizing In Dog Training To Grow Skills And Confidence #184

Shaped by Dog with Susan Garrett

DogsThat

Education, Puppy, Recallers, Animalbehaviour, Dogs, Kids & Family, Pets, Dogtraining, Dogsthat, Petmanners, Susangarrett, Pets & Animals

4.8 • 679 Ratings

🗓️ 11 November 2022

⏱️ 17 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Visit us at shapedbydog.com

When I first started dog training 30 or so years ago, I was studying the sport of dog obedience because I wanted to compete. We were taught to lure our dog to do what we wanted and then move to the proofing stage. When proofing, we were looking for errors to test how well the dog understood what we’d taught them. And if our dog failed, we were instructed to give them a correction. What if we changed our mindset from proofing to building confidence? We’re covering how to help our dogs clearly understand what we want in any location and situation.

In the episode you'll hear:

• How you can have a well-trained dog without using corrections and intimidation.
• What proofing in dog training is and why it can create unrealistic expectations.
• About the acquisition and fluency stages of training a dog.
• How we can look at any behavior we are training as just one trick.
• That fluency will let you know what your dog really understands.
• How to generalize behavior, so your dog has the confidence to perform anywhere.
• Why generalizing leads to environmental neutrality for dogs.
• Bob Bailey’s 80% rule and using Jean Donaldson’s ““Push, Stick or Drop” to determine that 80%.

Resources:

1. Podcast Episode 172: How To Teach Your Dog Anything With My Training Plan – 5C - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/172/
2. Podcast Episode 24: Help for Dogs who Chase Chipmunks, Bicycles, and Neighbor’s Cats (Distraction Intensity Index) - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/24/
3. Blog Post: Head Games - https://susangarrettdogagility.com/2009/10/head-games/
4. YouTube Video: Susan Garrett Riffs on Transfer of Value in Dog Training (and water loving Labradors) - https://youtu.be/clFlutZ0mls
5. Watch this Episode of Shaped by Dog on YouTube - https://youtu.be/FKUo3NWXhLE

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	When I was first introduced to dog training, I was studying the sport of dog obedience and I really
0:05.5	wanted to compete with my dog. I was taught there was a learning stage where we use a food
0:12.2	lure to teach our dogs to do what we want. And then once the dog was given the chance to know
0:17.7	the behavior, we moved into the proofing stage. Today, I'm going to talk
0:22.8	a little bit about what proofing is, why we should change our mindset about proofing and
0:28.5	what other options there are for us as dog owners in order to help our dogs understand more
0:35.3	clearly exactly what we want from them.
0:51.8	Hi, I'm Susan Garrett. Welcome to Shape by Dog. I know I talk a lot about the good old days.
0:54.8	And it really for my dogs, I really wasn't so much of the good old days. And I recognize that there's a lot of trainers today that are training very
0:59.3	similarly to what I did back in the 80s and the 90s. And the truth is, there are still a lot
1:05.0	of trainers who believe what was working back then is good for today's dogs. Personally,
1:10.2	I don't think it was so great for my
1:12.9	initial dogs. And I think we can just do so much better for dogs. Having said all that,
1:17.7	I don't want to come off as being judgmental that there is a right or a wrong. It's what's
1:24.2	right for me. What's right for you who is listening to this podcast. It's up to you to
1:30.3	decide how does that sit with you to train your dog using these tools and methods versus
1:38.2	using other tools and methods? One is going to resonate with the kind of person you want to be
1:44.1	and the kind of relationship you want to be and the kind of
1:44.7	relationship you want to have with your dog because I'm here to tell you that you can have
1:50.7	an amazingly well-trained dog without the need of what other people might call physical corrections
1:57.0	or verbal corrections or blame or intimidation. Okay, let's get that out of the way. Let's talk
2:01.7	proofing. When we say the word proofing, what comes to mind is proof reading. And what are you
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from DogsThat, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of DogsThat and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.