Teaching Connections: Engagement

One of the wonderful things about being in college to become a elementary school teacher while training dogs at the same time is that I can make lots of amazing connections between the two professions. Every time I learn something new as a future school teacher, I feel that it makes me a better dog trainer. And vice versa. And while children and dogs are very different, there are certainly connections that I can make between the two professions. At the very least, learning how to work with little humans is beneficial to me as a dog trainer because, well...dog training is more about training the owners than the dogs. And dog owners are human ;-)

One thing that we talk about a lot as future educators is the concept of student engagement. Is the student engaged in the lesson? How can we engage the student in the lesson? Engagement is simply what it sounds like: is the student actively participating in the lesson, and are they excited about the lesson? When students are engaged in the lesson, they are obviously more likely to benefit from the lesson. It seems fairly common sense. Even as adults, we are much more likely to retain information if we are engaged in the lesson at the time. Think of someone telling you a story. If you are distracted or even bored with the story, you are much less likely to remember it later. Well the same thing goes for dogs!

Rana is focused!

Engagement in dog training is not something I hear about often. Sure, we talk a little about making sure we have the right treat, that our training sessions are short and sweet, etc. But I never hear people talking about the importance of engagement in dog training on the same level that we talk about it in terms of child or even adult education. So how important is engagement in dog training?

Short answer: Very.

Anyone who has ever tried to get their dog to learn something in a crowded basic obedience class can tell you, it is extremely frustrating when your dog is distracted. I make a point to tell my students that group classes are not a nice, sterile environment. The other dogs, strange people, and loud noises can be very distracting for some dogs! So I tell students, "if this is not working in this environment, that is okay. Try it at home, let me know how it worked for you when we meet next week. This is normal!" Obviously, in cases where dogs are distracted, they have trouble learning commands in the first place. Even if they do get the command in a distracting environment, they might not retain the lesson. This is partially a problem with engagement. The dog is not engaged in the lesson!

So how do we ensure that our dogs are engaged in our training sessions? Here are seven of my tips for keeping your dog excited and focused while learning!

 Tip #1: Work on the 3 Ds in the right order. Duration, distance, THEN distraction! Distractions are a big problem for dogs. Whenever we dog trainers start working on a command, we talk about the 3 Ds of dog training. They MUST be done in the right order. Duration. Distance. Distraction. When working on stay, for instance, we start with duration (increasing the time that a dog can stay), then distance (walking away from the dog for a step, then two, then three, etc), and finally distraction. We start each D on "easy mode" and slowly increase what we expect from the dog. We start with a few seconds for stay duration, then add more as we work on it. We start with a step for distance, then slowly work until we can walk across the room. We add small distractions (some noise in the other room or the owner making a small but unusual movement like hoping on one leg) and move on to increasingly more difficult distractions like the owner suddenly running in the opposite direction, throwing food near the dog, or having another dog walk by. Unfortunately, many owners try to work on Ds in the wrong order. Sometimes they have control over it (like when an owner tries to teach "stay" by walking backwards while chanting the command before they have worked on duration). Sometimes owners do not have any control over it (like trying to work on a new command in a distracting basic class). Either way, this can pose issues for a dog's engagement in the session.

Tip for engagement #1.5: Eliminate as many distractions as possible during the early stages of training. You will never have a completely distraction-free environment. But if you are working on a down/stay at home, and a firetruck goes blaring down the street and your dog gets up to sing to the truck, go ahead and stop working until the distraction has passed. Don't get frustrated, and don't try to be louder than the firetruck. Remember to work with your dog, not against him. If you know that your cat walking by is a distraction for your dog, then put kitty in another room during training sessions. If the cat isn't a significant distraction for your dog, then don't worry about it.

Tip for engagement #2: "Crack, not Crackers". This is a phrase I've heard multiple times in the dog training world.  I apologize for the drug reference, but when we are talking in terms of engagement and food motivation, you truly want your dog to act as though he is "addicted" to the treat. You want him to be excited to work for that treat, because then he is actively engaged in the session! Dry dog biscuits ("crackers") probably won't engage your dog in the training session. Instead, you need to bring out what is called a "high-value" treat ("crack"). The value of the treat is determined by the individual dog. In general, stinky, high-calorie treats like liver and cheese are considered high-value. But I have met dogs that have treat preferences some might consider a bit...odd. I knew a dog that would do ANYTHING for a piece of banana! The trick is to find a (safe) treat that your dog L-O-V-E-S! And use a tiny bit of that treat (no need to give your dog the whole banana, just a little piece at a time will do). The other thing that is important about food is that the smell of food floods a dog's brain with feel-good chemicals like dopamine and activates the learning part of the brain. This is a very good thing when we are trying to engage our dogs in a training session!

High-value treats are very important in training!

Tip for engagement #3: Play games! This is something that we use quite often in child education. Children learn best through play. Games are exciting, rewarding, and engaging. They also create a fun, positive learning atmosphere. All of this holds true for dogs as well. Learning games help you to have fun. And when you are having fun, your dog is having fun, too! Games help your dog stay engaged in the lesson. For some ideas of learning games you can play with your dog, check out the intro to loose leash walking and intro to recall blog posts.

Dogs love to play and run! Take advantage of that in training. 

Tip for engagement #4: Incorporate physical activity. This is another thing that we implement a lot in child education. Physical activity is important for any animal, dog or human. Exercise floods the brain with feel-good chemicals, lowers stress, and just generally helps us to stay healthy! Incorporating physical activity into your dog training sessions is fun for your dog, and good for his health, too! And it is as easy as simply running a few steps, asking for a command, giving the treat, and then darting off again. Your dog will happily follow you (especially if you have a high-value treat). You become unpredictable. Your dog never knows where you will run off to next or what you will ask for when you stop. All of the sudden, your boring sit-down-stand drill exercises become fun and engaging! You can also incorporate this kind of training on walks, hikes, etc. Many training games (such as the recall game) also incorporate physical activity. As an added bonus, training sessions that include exercise work a dog's mind and body, making for one tired pooch! And as the saying goes, "a tired dog is a good dog!"

A tired dog is a good dog!

Tip #5: Keep your training sessions short and sweet. It is no secret that dogs can have short attention spans. Don't push your dog to the point of boredom by insisting on a super-long training session. In general, five to ten minutes is a good length of time for a session. Sometimes I go as long as 15-20 minutes with Rana, but she is a professional and has two years of experience putting up with me. If your dog starts to act bored, let him take a break. Go for a walk, let him out in the backyard, etc. You can always try again a little later. One of the secrets of keeping your dog engaged in a training session is ending the session with him wanting more. If you put down the treats, walk away, and find that your dog is following you with a disappointed, "hey, get back here!" look on his face, then you have succeeded! Get to know your dog and find out his "stamina" for training sessions, then try to finish just before he hits his point.

Tip #6: End on a high note! This goes along with #5. If you have been working for 5-10 minutes on a command, and your dog finally does it perfectly, STOP! I know it is incredibly tempting to continue, but you will only frustrate yourself (and possibly your dog) if you try for that "one more rep" and your dog doesn't do it. I've seen plenty of owners fall to pieces because "he JUST did it perfectly! Now he won't do it!" Which brings me to my next tip...

Tip#7: Don't train when you are frustrated! Dogs pick up on our emotions. If you are tired, frustrated, or upset, your dog is going to know. And many dogs will shut down if you are in a bad mood. That is no way to keep your dog engaged in a training session! Don't start a training session if you are in a bad mood, and stop a training session if you feel yourself getting frustrated. Yes, I am giving you permission to hold off on training your dog. It won't benefit either of you to push a training session when you are in a bad mood. Trust me. It isn't worth it.

So those are seven of my tips for keeping your dog engaged in your training sessions. Keep training fun and rewarding, and your dog will be excited to learn!