Do you have a picture trained dog? How can you tell if your dog being trained appropriately? It is important to understand the answer.
How can you tell if a dog is trained or getting properly trained? In practical terms, when you give your dog a command, is there a high probability your dog will do that command consistently?
I was working with students this morning to demonstrate this concept. We were in public, and the test command was Sit. One basic rule: no tension was allowed on the leash. The leash was on only for safety purposes, and to obey the law, not to make the dog do anything. The test was to say the Sit word without helping the dog. In other words, they were to say the Sit command, but without a hard voice, no corrections, no treats, no toys, no eye contact, no cornering the dog, no hand or body movements, no use of the leash or collar, and no touching the dog. Would the dog Sit correctly, quickly, and efficiently by just saying the command in a conversational voice?
In the beginning, dogs are going to fail this test. It is therefore tempting to cheat when doing a test like this since novice dog owners get frustrated when their dogs don’t Sit. However, we are looking to evaluate what the dog knows.
Now, anyone can make this test easier by being alone in a quiet, familiar room with a dog. But, that isn’t the test. What about doing this in public? With that strange dog being walked over there? Even with those kids on the playground equipment? Even with those horses being set up for a walk about 100 yards away? With those cyclists driving by on the sidewalk? And with that nice fall air blowing scents of the park past the dog? That’s the obedience test. If the dog can do 10 proper Sits in a row without any help, regardless of the direction the dog is facing, and within 30 feet, then I’d say your dog has passed the test for basic obedience. The test would be up to 100 yards distance, including other more difficult tasks and distractions, for advanced obedience. The goal is that the dog “knows” the Sit command for each level of distraction. This test is a good example of what is referred to as stimulus control. You say the command, the dog does it. Your training is on track.
Now, what is this “picture training” concept? Picture training is making it look as if your dog is trained, but you are forcing that happen. For example, you say Sit, but you must use those other influences to make it happen, such as choosing a quiet room, or a hard voice, unwarranted corrections, treats, toys, eye contact, cornering the dog, hand or body movements, use of the leash or collar, or touching the dog. It might look like a dog that is doing a Sit, but really the dog isn’t doing it… you are doing it. You are creating a picture, often to look good to others or to save yourself embarrassment, but your dog isn’t yet trained. The “picture” is a fake, it isn’t the display of a trained dog. Worse, the more you use the more forceful influences on the dog, the more you’ll become dependent upon them and the more likely you’ll infuse setbacks in the training process.
A dog that is only doing a picture that you’ve created isn’t a trained dog. It is a circus performer, at the very least. At the worst, it is a dog that has been bullied and traumatized. I regularly observe people forcing dogs to do things that the dogs don’t understand. You’d think that trainers, some professional handlers, many dog owners, and many competition obedience handlers would know better. At the root is often their egos won’t let them be free from using these other influences to get dogs to correctly learn each command. Many sport trained dogs are picture trained, they give the impression they are capable of doing real tasks, but outside the ring they can’t do what the real working dogs have to do. Corrections play a role in completing a dog’s training, but should only be considered and applied towards the end, to clean up any undesired alternative responses that would result from the differential reinforcement potential of undesirable and attractive things in a real world environment. A truly “off leash” trained dog isn’t a picture dog; it is a real trained dog. Isn’t that what you want?
I caution my students to be patient with the training and let their dogs learn. Don’t force a picture, but instead pay the price, in terms of time, affection, and effort to help dogs understand, be motivated, and do each command properly and consistently. I’m sometimes asked, “how long will this take?” It takes whatever amount of time and effort your dog requires to understand what you are teaching. I don’t put dogs on a timeline, and you shouldn’t either. Instead, I teach: if you do the right things, then over time, you’ll see the right results from your dog.