The Power of Positive Dog Training

Rusty is a rescue from Mississippi shipped to a local shelter here in San Diego. He is now a very powerful and athletic 60 lb two year old. When we adopted Rusty at 7 months old he wasn't house trained, was fearful and aggressive to most people, and had no idea how to play with other dogs. He was terrified of doors, hoses, and vacuums. When frightened, he would dart in, bite, and then dart away which made him dangerous. I immediately enrolled in a traditional "positive" training class, which used force training. The "positive" aspect was praise after the dog complied. If the dog didn't comply, he was forced using the leash and a pinch collar. Rusty freaked out at my attempts, and even more so at the trainers attempts to get him to lie down. The trainer's solution was to apply more force, putting Rusty into a mindless panic. Not wanting Rusty or the trainer to get hurt, I withdrew from the class and looked for a more effective approach. I discovered Pat Miller in the bibliography and recommended reading sections of several dog training books by animal behaviorists, especially Patricia McConnell and Jean Donnalson (I highly recommend both). Pat Miller's approach is clear, scientific, sensible, and highly effective for ALL types, sizes, and ages of dogs. One of her points, that I agree with, is that there are no vicious or "difficult breeds" of dogs. All dogs (and people) live to please themselves, to maximize reward and minimize punishment. Using reward almost exclusively to change behavior 1) is powerful because you can associate the reward consistently with the target behavior in the dog's mind, 2) results in quick learning depending on the trainer's skill in communicating to the dog, 3) builds the dog's loving relationship with the trainer, 4) results in a balanced, calm, and confident dog, and 5) is fun. In contrast, punishment 1) is not very effective because it's hard to associate the punishment with the target behavior (e.g. to a dog yelled at or hit for being on the sofa, "is he mad at me because I'm standing by the window, or because he's dangerous and unpredictable?"), 2) usually results in learning the wrong lesson (e.g. only go on the sofa when the owner isn't present) 3) creates a fearful and mistrustful relationship with the trainer, 4) results in a fearful, sneaky, neurotic dog (putting easily aroused dogs into the danger zone for attacking), and 5) isn't fun. The book is well organized, well written, and is all you need for a comprehensive training program. Rusty has learned remarkably quickly using Pat Miller's approach. He walks well on and off leash, comes when called, likes people and other dogs, plays acceptably well (it's hard to completely correct for no socialization as a puppy), knows many tricks, is well behaved, and loves and trusts me and my wife. He loves to learn because it's fun and he always gets what he wants when he learns (a treat and a stoke). I love to teach him because it's fun, because I love him, and I get what I want, which is a happy and well behaved big athletic dog. Other books will help you understand dogs and the relationship between dogs and people better, but for training this is the only book you need. You and your dog will be happy if you follow Pat Miller's approach.

Very helpful, good information and made me more confident regarding training our menace aka puppy and staying calm

I've read this book a few times now because I keep coming back to sections, and so far it is working great! Seeing your dog's eyes light up with recognition when he gets it right and hears the click is really something, and you know you're working towards your goal! My puppy learned sit and his name in a day no problem, and crate training is to the point where I can close and latch the door, and walk around the house for a while without him getting upset. When I get back, CLICK, treat! Going well. As for criticisms, it mostly comes down to the fact that there is not enough information in there for stuff LIKE crate training. She describes a bit about crate training the dog, how to click and treat, but nothing about at what point should you just lock him in for a time, or when he can be left alone? Should you wait until he is totally happy and comfortable in there for hours? Or is it okay to get him pretty happy, then bite the bullet and have him in there over night. There is no information on the first night. They give a bit of a sample, but nothing about where to keep your dog. The perfect scenario shows you locking the dog in the crate the first night, him fussing a bit, then going right to sleep. Well my puppy didn't fuss a bit when I first got him, he freaked out. I was worried he would injure him self. Our solution was from another book (The monks book) to tether him on a short line right beside the bed. This way he could not go off and relieve himself, but was not totally confined to the crate. SO when you get a new puppy, are you just locking him in the crate? Or are you doing the long crate training process in chapter 4? Anyways I do feel there are some glaring omissions here, but overall I'm really happy with the clicker training. As I said my dog is only a few weeks old and is already learning to pee on command, sit, pay attention when his name is said, whine less in his pen because whining earns him nothing, silence sometimes gets a click and treat, etc. This is after 3 days training. We need a book with the step by step practicality of the Monks book, with the methods described in this one.

Man merkt es diesem Buch an, dass die Verfasserin 30 Jahre Erfahrung in der Hundeerziehung hat. Ihre Methode ist gewaltfrei und ohne Strafen, dabei höchst wirksam, wenn man den Anweisungen genau folgt. Der Schreibstil ist kurzweilig und prägnant. Wenn man einen jungen Hund gut erziehen will, braucht man nur 1 Buch zu kaufen, nämlich dieses.

Depsite using positive reinforcement training with my horses, when we rescued our bearded collie x who had fear aggression issues I was at a loss as to how to manage him. I was recommended this book by a small animal vet and it focused me on how to start clicker training with him. It had a great introduction to the dogs mind and useful exercises to practice and aim towards. This book and my application of the principles to our training and handling of our new dog was the turning point in our relationship. I highly recommend it.

É um ótimo livro para quem quer aprender sobre adestramento e sobre como agir com os animais. Super recomendo :)

I had to send this review as this book, to me, should be at least a first book on training your dog. Yes it is what I call the new age of dog training using a clicker and food as treats and a reward. I have trained two dogs using the old methods of choker chains, but after reading the authors references, I see and confirm behaviors resulting from this method. I just adopted a four month old mixed breed from our local SPCA ( folks please don't write these dogs off as having poor training abilities) and here are my comments. It has taken me less then three days to teach this dog to sit, lay down, HOUSE TRAIN, and shake a paw! More importantly, all books usually will advise a pen to teach your dog about house training and securing your home if away ( this works by the way). Have you ever tried to put a dog in kennel? If you have succeeded without a battle, the dog must have lived in one, because this was the hardest thing I have ever tried in the past. However, it took me no time using the treats as a reward and the clicker. On the second night he beat me to the kennel! For experienced dog trainers this would appear likely to be no big deal. This is why I recommend this book, because too many of the books you read forget that most of us are just learning a method to deal with and train our dogs whether pure breeds or muts. The begining chapters explain how your dog learns, your body language, the dogs language, and how they effect your training methods. To me this was worth the price of the book by itself. And for all dogs not just registered breeds. I recommend this book as the most informative book on training methods that I have found at least. I suspect that those who issue a poorer raing are those that have had years and knowledge in training and forget about the beginers. So, some of the information as I have shown above, would be so what! I can do these things in minutes as well, but remember most people buying these types of books are first timers. Some don't have access to training courses or perhaps the money. They need the basics to understand how to accomplish there goal which is usually just for living in peace with their dog not trying to win awards at dog shows, although the author goes into the higher levels if that's your goal. If you are new to training, why clicker training is so effecive, you couldn't buy a better book, that's my opinion and thanks for reading.

Excellent explanations and easy to read plus inspirational.