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Shaped by Dog with Susan Garrett

Training Plan For Hyper Excited Dogs: Play The Threshold Game For Calm Focus #258

Shaped by Dog with Susan Garrett

DogsThat

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

4.8679 Ratings

🗓️ 9 February 2024

⏱️ 21 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Visit us at shapedbydog.com 

 

Does your dog get hyper and lose focus the closer they get to something really exciting? You are not alone, and I have a training plan to help you create calm and focus for over-the-top dogs. I’m covering why dogs can get out of control near things they love and what to do about it when you want to be a positive reinforcement-based dog trainer. Plus, you’ll get the steps to play the Threshold Game with a case study of a very excited young dog who visits me with my friend. 

 

In this episode you’ll hear:

 

• Why we can’t rely on cheese alone.
• The difference between transactional and relational dog training.
• Why dogs get out of control as they get nearer to exciting things.
• A review of the ABC to solve dog training problems: antecedent, behavior, consequence.
• The example of puppy Prophet at the store for creating positive experiences for dogs. 
• How good triggers and games help dogs change their emotional state.
• The Threshold Game training plan to calm dogs down so they focus on you.
• About mixing up reinforcement and progressing the Threshold Game

 

Resources: 

 

1. DogsThat YouTube Channel - http://www.youtube.com/dogsthat
2. Podcast Episode 99: When Reinforcement Based Dog Training Doesn’t Work - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/99/
3. Podcast Episode 215: What Your Destructive, Lunging, Nipping Or Hyper Dog Or Puppy Is Trying To Teach You - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/215/
4. YouTube Playlist: Loose Leash Walking with Susan Garrett - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy1mGMfdVKXq_hiJ27Ej1shW
5. Podcast Episode 245: Make Dog Training Easy! Quick Guide To Antecedent Arrangements - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/245/
6. Podcast Episode 16: The Thing Before Your Dog’s Thing - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/16/ 
7. Podcast Episode 94: How the Best Professional Dog Trainers Use Reinforcement - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/94/
8. Podcast Episode 164: The Danger Of Car Travel For Dogs: Evaluating Your Risk - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/164/
9. Podcast Episode 165: Why Do Dogs Bark In Cars And How To Stop It - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/165/
10. YouTube Playlist: How to Socialize a Puppy with Susan Garrett - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy0BlVig_nEj72p_phVU00lT
11. Podcast Episode 157: Dog Body Language: Understanding Canine Communication Signals And Emotions - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/157/
12. Podcast Episode 217: Understanding Emotional Regulation In Dogs To Create Calm - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/217/
13. Podcast Episode 109: Project Calm Dog: Prevent Over Enthusiastic Greetings - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/109/
14. YouTube Video: Understanding Your Dog's Reinforcement Zone (RZ) with Susan Garrett - https://youtu.be/OaUAScgaFAg
15. Podcast Episode 73: Why Your Dog Is Still Pulling on Leash And How To Fix It - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/73/
16. Podcast Episode 88: Barrier Frustration: Help for Fence Fighting, Leash Reactivity and Window Guarding - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/88/
17. Watch this Episode of Shaped by Dog on YouTube - https://youtu.be/1bIBG2B7p1o

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Imagine you're a dog owner who has decided, yes, I want to become a reinforcement-based dog

0:06.3

owner, meaning that you are going to look for all the solutions that reinforcement can give you

0:12.0

rather than looking at punishment or verbal intimidation to get your dog to behave.

0:16.9

But then somebody will make this great argument to you.

0:24.4

What if your dog is chasing a bunny?

0:32.8

Or what if you have Fenton who wants to chase all of those deer in Hyde Park? Your piece of cheese isn't going to work then, is it? And that's why reinforcement-based dog training doesn't work.

0:39.6

Now, you're going to think they've made a really good argument.

0:42.3

That is fundamentally sound logic.

0:45.8

But I'm here to say it's flawed logic.

0:48.6

And today I'm going to share exactly what you can do

0:51.8

when you're looking to troubleshoot your dog training when you're living

0:55.1

in a world where punishment isn't an option.

1:05.8

Hi, I'm Susan Garrett. Welcome to Shaped by Dog And, you know, the example I gave off the top,

1:12.8

my dog is doing something outrageously naughty, chasing, livestock, or, you know, knocking over my

1:19.1

grandmother. And I'm offering cheese to try and get him to come to me rather than to knock over the

1:24.3

grandmother, but the dog's always choosing to knock over the grandmother.

1:31.7

The big assumption that is wrong in that thinking is that dog training is transactional.

1:36.1

Good reinforcement of dog training is not transactional. So I'll give you an example.

1:44.2

You call somebody up and you say, hey, will you move my piano? And they say, yeah, I'll move it for $100 and they show up and you say, hey, would you do it for 10?

1:49.4

No, it's not worth it to me to do it for 10 and they'll leave. That's like saying to your dog,

1:53.2

do you want to stop knocking over my grandmother and come and get this piece of cheese?

1:56.8

Transactional, dog says, yeah, no, more value in knocking over the grandmother.

...

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