Pet The World

We all know that Consequences can be used to train new behaviours and reduce existing behaviours. But what about non-consequences?

Extinction is the process of not reinforcing a previously reinforced behaviour.

It involves identifying what the reinforcer is for a target behaviour and removing it.

For a dog who likes to ‘counter-surf’, i.e check out the kitchen counters looking for food, the reinforcer is easy to identify - FOOD.

To solve that sort of problem we need to use extinction. Whenever there is food on the counter, the dog must be doing something else or must be otherwise unable to come into the kitchen. He might be in a crate, or outside, or the kitchen door may be shut, or my favourite - we trained our dog to lie quietly in a designated area and shared a little of the food to reinforce this more acceptable behaviour instead. That way we both got what we wanted and our dog learned a better way to behave in the kitchen.

When we’re not cooking, or unable to supervise our dog, we must leave kitchen counters clean. We put away any food, and maybe even wipe the benches clean.

That way, when our dog comes to check out the kitchen counter he will find nothing, and therefore the behaviour will not be reinforced.

In the short term, the behaviour will get worse. Then it will get better. Then it will go away.

Beware the gambler’s curse - Variable Schedules of Reinforcement. This is where we forget one time to clean our benches and our dog finds some food. A Variable Schedule of Reinforcement makes behaviour very resistant to extinction, that is why addicted gamblers will spend every last cent on a poker machine that ultimately gobbles up all their money, paying out only occassionally to keep the gambler addicted.

You can still extinguish behaviour that is on a Variable Schedule of Reinforcement, but it takes longer to do. A common problem is when family don’t follow the rules and leave food out on the bench while the dog is unsupervised. You will need to explain extinction and Variable Schedules of Reinforcement so that they understand how important it is. Often it is simply a lack of understanding or communication that results in lack of co-operation.

So how can you apply Extinction to your pet’s behavior problem? First - identify the reinforcer. Second - remove it. If you can teach an alternative behavior or provide a more acceptable outlet for the unwanted behavior, then it may speed things up for you.

Another example. Many people complain that their dog raids their rubbish bin. The reinforcer in this case is usually scraps of food or something smelly to play with. How do we remove the reinforcer? We could buy a more secure bin with a lid. We could put the bin in a cupboard. We could move the bin to another room and shut the door so that the dog can’t access it.

Any of these options will work, it depends on what suits you and your lifestyle the best. You may have to make a compromise, but that is just part of owning a pet. The joy and companionship they bring more than outweighs the small inconvenience of compromises like these - more so when you come home to a loving pet who has NOT spilled rubbish all over your yard or eaten tonight’s dinner, I’m sure you will agree!

Aidan Bindoff is intensely interested in dog behaviour and works to remediate fearful, anxious and aggressive dogs in Australia. He also moderates the Training Levels group at http://www.groups.yahoo.com/group/traininglevels/ which offers a step-by-step training program for people training their own dogs. This program was created by Sue Ailsby, for more information visit the Training Levels group or Sue’s website (with FREE e-book) http://www.dragonflyllama.com

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What qualities do dogs look for in their leaders? Adopt these 3 simple qualities to turn your dog’s behavior around almost literally overnight!

It probably won’t surprise you to learn that dogs look for the same leadership qualities that people look for - consistent leaders who lead by example and who reward good behavior.

1. Consistency: communication between different species is not an easy task, especially when one species can talk and the other can’t! Inconsistency makes that task all the more difficult. By adopting consistent behaviors in yourself, setting consistent boundaries, and keeping some sort of consistent routine - your dog will have an easier job of figuring out what you expect.

2. Lead by example: dogs tend to mimic our actions. Don’t rely on them interpreting our intentions correctly. If we yell at our dog for being aggressive, this can lead to more aggression from our dog. They don’t necessarily understand that we are angry and upset with their actions, they just follow our lead. When we learn calm approaches to dealing with this sort of problem, our lead is followed with calmness in return.

3. Reward good behaviour: behavior that is effectively rewarded tends to increase or continue. Therefore it makes sense to reward the behavior we want to see in our dogs. In the same way we get paid to work, our dogs expect to be paid too. Life in the pack works that way; food, security, shelter, play and social contact are the rewards dogs work for. Whilst our pet dogs get most of this stuff for free, it makes sense to ask them to do something to earn it, no matter how simple the task. Asking a dog to sit before letting it outside, or asking for a short ’stay’ before being fed are two simple examples.

By adopting these 3 qualities and making them habits in your day to day interaction with your pets, you will see positive changes in your relationship. Dogs do respect these qualities and respond in kind with faithful companionship.

Aidan Bindoff is Editor of Positive Petzine, a free resource for people training their own dogs.

Join now, and for a limited time you can download ALL available back issues for free!

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Does your dog bark when you have a knock at the door? Follow this simple plan to end excessive barking at the door.

Many dogs will bark when they hear a knock at the door. This is probably to announce the arrival of a new person to their territory. They learn pretty quickly that a knock on the door is quickly followed by a visitor.

But what if a knock at the door was only occassionally followed by a visitor?

Some dog owners have quick success at reducing barking by simply knocking on the door repeatedly throughout the day. With no visitor appearing at the door, the knock sound soon stops being associated with the visitor. At first, the barking will probably get worse. After a few repetitions, it should start to reduce. Don’t lose heart if it doesn’t appear to work for a little while.

When your dog gets really good at not barking when he hears a knock on the door, invite someone around to help out. Just have them knock on the door every minute and not come in unless your dog hasn’t barked. Do this for about 5 or 6 repetitions, no need to overdo it.

You can speed things up by rewarding your dog for being quiet when he hears a knock at the door. A further refinement is to make the knock a cue to lay down on a mat, or to sit quietly by the front door. This is a very polite greeting indeed!

If you have a doorbell, the same procedure applies. If your doorbell has different ring tones, try to set it to use only one ring tone.

This is certainly not the only approach to ending barking at the door, but for the majority of dogs it is the easiest and most effective approach. Try it and see!

Aidan Bindoff is editor of Positive Petzine, a free resource for people training their own dogs, http://www.groups.yahoo.com/group/positivepetzine/ to subscribe and to download all back issues free for private use for a limited time only.

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