Dog training methods explained

The empathy we have for our four-legged family members should remain in the back of our minds when seeking professional help with their behaviour or training. It can be difficult to filter through all the industry jargon when searching for a dog trainer, walker or other dog professional – and that’s where we come in!

Dog training with emotions in mind

At Woodgreen we want to build the best relationship with our pets. And we offer lots of services to help new and existing owners do the same.

With so much accessible information at your fingertips, it’s hard to navigate the good, bad and ultimately dangerous advice out there. It’s very simple to search for dog professionals on social media and see videos and photos of their work. Some of these businesses will claim to quickly ‘fix’ your dog’s behaviour problems, and their videos often look impressive. But there’s rarely a kind ‘quick fix’ for emotionally driven behaviour problems, such as barking at dogs, aggression and being destructive.

Reinforcement vs punishment

Very simply, reinforcement increases the likelihood of a behaviour occurring again, while punishment reduces the likelihood of it occurring again.

What’s reinforcement?

If something your dog likes happens as a result of a behaviour, they’re likely to repeat it.

For example, if your dog picks up a shoe and you then chase them around to get it back, this is a fun game! On the other side, if you give your dog a small treat each time they sit, you’ll find they’re more likely to sit when asked.

What’s punishment?

Punishment is when something unpleasant happens as a result of a behaviour. While this method can help to reduce the behaviour, it generally doesn’t work forever, so you have to keep doing it.

Punishment doesn’t help a dog learn an acceptable alternative behaviour, either. So, if you knee your dog in the chest each time they jump up at you in greeting, they may eventually stop doing it if you hurt them sufficiently. But they haven’t learned how you’d like them to greet you.

A kinder alternative is to work on training a strong sit, only giving your dog attention when he’s sitting. This results in a dog who isn’t afraid you’ll hurt him, a behaviour that’s long-lasting that you can reinforce with your attention, and you can enjoy seeing your dog happy that you’ve returned home!

Force-free and fear-free training

Reward-based methods don’t intimidate a dog in any way. These dog trainers practise positive reinforcement (adding something your pet likes to increase the behaviour) to train and modify behaviour.

They’ll use:

• Food
• Treats
• Toys
• Affection
• Favourite activities

They won’t use

• Choke collars
• Pull harnesses
• Prong collars

They’ll have a good understanding of why a behaviour is happening and work on improving the mood and emotional state of your pet, rather than applying a ‘quick fix’. Neglecting to deal with underlying emotions can mean the behaviour will come back, or you may end up with a more serious issue in the future.

What’s balanced training?

Dog trainers who tend to use a variety of methods. They’ll often use some sort of positive punishment (adding something your dog finds unpleasant to decrease the likelihood of a behaviour re-occurring), which is likely to be scary or painful, to stop or interrupt unwanted behaviour. They’ll then use food rewards to work on a preferred alternative behaviour.

Balanced trainers may use

• Food
• Toys
• Praise
• E-collars (delivers an electric shock to the dog’s neck when a button is pressed)
• Choke chains
• Prong collars (have spikes in the inside that pinch or squeeze a dog’s neck when pulled)
• Spray or rattle bottles

Methods that claim to quickly stop a behaviour in its tracks need to be quite scary or unpleasant to the dog to work. They may look impressive and you may see quick improvements, but often the unwanted behaviour is just supressed. The underlying emotions are still present and haven’t been changed. This means the behaviour could come back, possibly worse than before.

Dominance, alpha theory, rank reduction and pack theory

Dog trainers who use dominance, alpha theory, rank reduction and pack theory – or hold these outdated beliefs about dogs – haven’t learned anything new in the last few years. These theories have been widely debunked and aren’t backed up by modern science and ethical opinion. It’s more likely that feral dogs live as a loosely-associated family group, and this is how we should consider a pet – as a member of our family. They need guidance and boundaries, but this doesn’t mean we should bully or scare them.

Choosing a dog trainer

When selecting someone to help with your dog’s training or behaviour, you should assess whether their methods are ethical and kind, not just effective or convenient. Training is a huge part of dog ownership and enjoying fun activities with our pets really helps to build a trusting and strong relationship.

Numerous studies have shown that using aversive training methods has a negative effect on a dog’s behaviour and well-being.

So, it’s important to think carefully about how you want to teach your companion.

Woodgreen offers training classes, behavioural support and educational workshops. Our behaviour specialists have many years’ experience, and are affiliated with organisations whose members are committed to using kind, effective and modern training methods.

Not local to our centre in Cambridgeshire? We recommend you visit the Animal Behaviour and Training Council to begin your search for someone who cares about your dog’s emotional well-being and welfare as much as you do!