Cooperative care allows your dog to be a willing participant in a necessary activity that involves handling, such as nail trims, eye drops, brushing teeth, etc. It enables them to communicate when they are stressed and need a break from handling, creates a safe environment, and makes them more comfortable with the activity. For example, when a dog is experiencing stress during a nail trim, this creates negative associations and can make nail trims more stressful and more difficult over time. Instead, we can reduce stress by giving breaks when they’re communicated and heavily rewarding with treats and praise. Giving
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Why do we use positive reinforcement when training and working with our dogs? Positive reinforcement (also known as R+) builds trust and helps strengthen our relationship with the dogs around us. We use a mark and reward system to teach the dog when they are doing something right. This helps us effectively communicate behaviors that we want to see more from our dogs and helps them build confidence too! With R+, we mark using a clicker or a friendly “yes!” and then we reward the dog with a reinforcer like a high value treat. The dog quickly learns that the
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We all know how important enrichment is for our animals. Enrichment gives them the opportunity to engage in natural behaviors and provides them with vital mental and physical stimulation. Sniffing, chewing, shredding, and licking are all ways to relieve stress. Additionally, when a dog is experiencing heightened arousal from activities like a brisk walk or playing in the yard, engaging in enrichment afterwards is a great way to bring their chemicals like cortisol and adrenaline back down to a baseline level. Getting creative with enrichment is fun and we can even step it up by offering something like multi-layer shredding
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The legendary animal trainer Bob Bailey once said, “Training is a mechanical skill.” While it seems like it shouldn’t be complicated, it can be surprisingly tricky to juggle a leash, treats, clicker, and anything else you might need in a training session. Because learning happens fastest when consequences are clear and occur quickly after the behavior, we can end up confusing our dogs if we are fumbling, dropping treats, and delivering rewards late. Before a training session, it is a good idea to make a plan. Think about how you are going to hold the various equipment, decide how you
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