Many clients come to us with statements like “I tried positive reinforcement, but it didn’t work for my dog.” This means that the methods were not executed properly. By definition, positive reinforcement (R+) works. IT’S SCIENCE
Positive Reinforcement - Adding something to the environment to increase the likelihood of the behavior occurring again There are many factors that go into making R+ methods work, just like other methods like negative reinforcement, positive punishment, or negative punishment.
Reasons your R+ training might be failing All living things learn the same way, but all animals/people find different things reinforcing. Some dogs will work for kibble, some will only work for high value treats. Adjust your value of reinforcement based on context.If you are around more distractions, it will likely take a higher value treat than what you might train with at home. Other examples of changes in context: Dog is hungrier/not very hungry, lots of smells in the environment, dogs never been where you are before, dog is anxious or something scary has happened recently, dog is lacking exercise/stimulation, etc. Bring extra/different types of treats when out in public. You need to be higher value than distractions.
Timing If you aren’t clicking the right moment, you might be reinforcing the wrong thing. Practice your timing in low distraction environments. The click/mark should only be used to alert the dog they have done something good and are going to get a treat. Don’t use the mark to get the dog’s attention.Feel free to adjust - use a verbal marker like “yes!” when you have things in your hands or aren’t coordinated enough in the moment to use a clicker.
Setting unrealistic expectations/no longer reinforce behaviors Example: You teach your dog to walk next to you using treats, then your dog walks well for a week or two. You decide the behavior has been “taught” so you stop reinforcing the dog for walking beside you. The dog goes back to smelling and pulling because it's the most reinforcing thing at that moment. Wean your dog off of treats slowly until you get down to 2-3 or the number of your choosing during your walk. Go at your dogs pace, some dogs will work harder for less than what other dogs might work for. If you are struggling, go back to increasing your rate of reinforcement.
Consistency Everyone in the family needs to be consistent. If you don’t trust someone in your family to be consistent with potty training, table manners, or being consistent in general, it might take management. Have a dog stay with a pet sitter when you are out of town, block the dog off from the kitchen if your kids are too young to understand not to feed the dog from the table, etc. You don’t want your dog to rehearse bad behavior. The more they practice, the stronger that behavior gets. Reinforce your family if you see them doing the right thing.
Adding in Distraction too Quickly It’s up to the dog to determine what they find distracting. Slowly add in distraction levels with one thing at a time. Break up distractions. Example: If the dog is distracted outside, move to the garage, then crack the garage door a little more and more each day. Then maybe move to the back yard, front porch, front yard, sidewalk, then maybe work at a distance from distractions at a park, and slowly get closer each day. *IF SOMETHINGS NOT WORKING, CHANGE IT*There is plenty of room for creativity in every training plan.
Generalizing Dogs don’t generalize nearly as well as humans. Subtle changes can affect your dog’s understanding of the cue. They generally associate the cue with the environment/context they originally learned the cue in. Practice changing rooms, locations, distractions, clothes, positions, on different surfaces, etc. to really proof the behavior. Start from scratch when you change the context. You’ll notice dogs will generalize behaviors faster and faster each time. Negative Mindset If you go into the training with the idea that it won’t work, you will likely struggle. R+ methods tend to provide more solutions than other training methods. When something isn’t working, there is almost always something else you can try.