Basic Training Skills: Start at the Beginning
Your own basic training skills are the foundation of everything you want to train your dog to do. “Advanced training is simply the precise application of the fundamentals.” — Dr. Robert E. Bailey Really? That’s all there is to it? To highly skilled trainers, the statement above is a reminder that the most basic training […]
Science and Animal Training Series #4: Science-based Dog Training Matters
The big picture of dog training There’s a big picture of dog training, and it involves how we treat animals and humans. Positive reinforcement can help us get others to respond in ways we like. It requires us to observe our own behavior and choose what we do so we can get the responses we […]
Science and Animal Training #3: Behavior Science Principles
The application of behavior science is based on the behavior science principles of Stimulation, Reinforcement, Extinction, Punishment, and Generalization. Anyone who has a dog uses these principles every day, but you may not realize the power you have to use them deliberately. Stimulation or The Stimulus Stimulation is giving a cue. The stimulus is whatever […]
Science and Animal Training #2: Do I have to be a science geek to learn to train dogs?
You can be whomever you want! There’s an advantage to enjoying reading about the topic of behavior science. You don’t have to read the cold, dry language of scientific studies, but it’s helpful to choose books and articles that include references you can check. You have to be objective and you have to ask questions, […]
Science and Animal Training Series #1: What is Science-based Training?
Training “Training” most often refers to changing the behavior of an organism. The organism may be your dog or cat, horse or parrot, fish, lizard, or a human family member. The behavior may be your dog learning to retrieve a ball, a lizard going to a certain area of his cage, or your nephew learning […]
