{"id":21090,"title":"It's All About the Bond","description":"The relationship between human and dog is the most important thing. By using positive reinforcement reward based training we protect that canine-human bond.","content":"

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Not so long ago, I found myself watching an online panel discussion that took place between some of the speakers who were about to present at one of the big canine behaviour online conferences. This conference held one of these panels each day, free to view, and on this day the topic under discussion was the future of positive reinforcement reward-based training.<\/p>

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As part of the discussion, each of the participants gave a summary of their own path to being a reward-based dog trainer. As is the case with lots of dog trainers and canine professionals (including me) a couple of the speakers described themselves as \u2018crossover trainers\u2019 having moved over from the more \u2018old school\u2019 compulsion-based methods, using equipment like choke chains and verbal or physical corrections. Some things that one of those two speakers said during the discussion really hit home and stuck with me. They prompted a lot of thought on my part, not even so much about training as such, but about the future of the relationship between us, that canine-human bond.<\/p>

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The most striking comment for me was when she spoke about the fact that humans share our homes with a separate and distinct species, living together for the most part in a comfortable harmony, and that fact struck her as amazing. If I\u2019m honest, that blew my mind hearing her say that \u2013 because I had never thought about the subject at all in that way, hadn\u2019t made that kind of connection. Two such utterly different animals, poles apart in communication styles and methods, with such diverse patterns of natural behaviour, co-existing in the same space.<\/p>

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The speaker continued to follow the theme by talking about how the relationship she has with her dogs differs now when using reward-based methods from before with the use of training based on compulsion. This steered me to a similar comparison of my own life with dogs, my own journey from \u2018balanced\u2019 training, using compulsion-based methods (mild by the standards of many but still a long way from how I live with my dogs now), and how I would do things differently today compared to my days with working sheepdogs in the past.<\/p>

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Some of the training that I do happens because of safety, things that I need to know my dogs will do when asked because I can see or understand potential dangers that they don\u2019t. One thing every single dog needs is a reliable recall \u2013 if in areas where loose dogs could get into trouble or cause trouble to others in the area, but their recall isn\u2019t great, use a lead or longline. One cue we find useful is wait, when waiting to cross a road for example. We use stay, in case there is a situation where it\u2019s safest for my dog to wait and I make my way to them. We practise wearing a muzzle in case there\u2019s ever a time he needs one as it takes some of the stress out of the potential situation.<\/p>

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The other cues we work through we don\u2019t train necessarily because my dog needs to know them. The dog I currently share my life with loves to learn, he adores training sessions, learning new things, and getting to show off what he already knows. He really enjoys the process of working out what will get me handing over the tasty treat, bringing out his favourite toy for a game of tug, or a scratch in that spot right behind his ear that he loves. We train a lot of the time because we enjoy the process, it exercises his brain and it\u2019s a way we really bond together. Training is, for that reason, a major component of the relationship we have.<\/p>

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Other dogs may not have quite so much enthusiasm for training as my boy. They might be happy to take part and learn new things, but it doesn\u2019t bring them joy in the same way it does him, and that is fine too. Something modern canine professionals talk about a lot is the importance of recognising and working with the dog in front of us, seeing their individual personalities and quirks. Training enthusiasm is no different to any other personality trait we could consider. If not training, there will be some other aspect of the relationship you have with your dog that will click in that way \u2013 it could be long relaxed walks, favourite games, snuggling on the sofa in the evening. Whatever it is, that thing will create that real relationship booster. After all, the relationship that exists between us is the most important thing of all.<\/p>

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It\u2019s not the number of cues my dog can follow that bring me joy in our training together. It\u2019s the expression on his face while we\u2019re training \u2013 happy, goofy, and full of joy as he\u2019s working out what I\u2019m asking or following the cues I request. He\u2019s having fun and knows that things he likes are coming. My dog actively enjoys us doing these things together, spending time with me, and that\u2019s worth everything to me. When something startles him and he gets spooked, he will come to me, sitting as close as possible (usually on my foot) because he knows that whatever is going on, I\u2019ve got his back.<\/p>

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Another thing that came up in this panel discussion is how we talk to people currently using compulsion-based training or \u2018balanced\u2019 training (where using rewards alongside unpleasant things as punishment). We can tend to come out hard in favour of reward-based training and talk entirely about the effects using punishment and unpleasant methods can have. This can lead to those listening developing cognitive dissonance. This is an unpleasant feeling that follows learning something we believed is not true, and which can lead to people doubling down and digging their heels in to insist that what they \u2018know\u2019 is the truth. It is a horrible thing to go through, and I speak from experience as I felt it in the early stages of my crossover journey to reward-based methods.<\/p>

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As the panel participants suggested, perhaps this is the time to stop permanently digging in, forever getting ourselves more entrenched. Instead of focusing on the bad that these measures bring (which does not lessen the severity of them), we should instead focus on the good that comes with reward-based training. Let\u2019s celebrate the amazing things that happen when we used kind, reward-based methods. The relationships that we see developing with our dogs when training is positive and fun for everyone involved. When we take the time to identify and consider our dogs\u2019 needs and wants. When we can find that amazing feeling of connection and cooperation, that incredible canine-human bond which lays at the very centre of the best dog-human relationships.<\/p>

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This is the future of positive reinforcement, reward-based training. The focus is not even on the training \u2013 it\u2019s all about the bond.<\/p>

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*Each of the designs linked here is available in both men\u2019s<\/a> and women\u2019s<\/a> clothing and as cotton tote bags<\/a>.<\/p>","urlTitle":"its-all-about-the-bond","url":"\/blog\/its-all-about-the-bond\/","editListUrl":"\/my-blogs","editUrl":"\/my-blogs\/edit\/its-all-about-the-bond\/","fullUrl":"https:\/\/good-guardianship.teemill.com\/blog\/its-all-about-the-bond\/","featured":false,"published":true,"showOnSitemap":true,"hidden":false,"visibility":null,"createdAt":1663530980,"updatedAt":1663532050,"publishedAt":1663532050,"lastReadAt":null,"division":{"id":233478,"name":"Good Guardianship"},"tags":[],"metaImage":{"original":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/fin0fs252xqwvrnzmjp9tjuvuurtxsybc8jt8puthd5icbwy.jpeg","thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/fin0fs252xqwvrnzmjp9tjuvuurtxsybc8jt8puthd5icbwy.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/fin0fs252xqwvrnzmjp9tjuvuurtxsybc8jt8puthd5icbwy.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"metaTitle":"It's All About the Bond","metaDescription":"The relationship between human and dog is the most important thing. By using positive reinforcement reward based training we protect that canine-human bond.","keyPhraseCampaignId":null,"series":[],"similarReads":[{"id":20448,"title":"Let Them Sniff!","url":"\/blog\/letthemsniff\/","urlTitle":"letthemsniff","division":233478,"description":"When we think about what gets our dogs tired, the chances are we think of long walks or an energetic game in the park. There are other things we can do, that allow our dogs to fulfill the most natural of behaviours - so let them sniff!","published":true,"metaImage":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/8xg0bln1rezdn91z1hegi6xaxlkenfs8t73jphfqct4uj6m7.jpeg.jpg?w=1140&h=855","banner":"https:\/\/images.podos.io\/8xg0bln1rezdn91z1hegi6xaxlkenfs8t73jphfqct4uj6m7.jpeg.jpg?w=1920&h=1440"},"hidden":0}],"labels":[]}