This was one of Webster's less successful exercise of the Come Game at the Oceanside Harbor. There seems to be some confusion as to who is paying for what and when. We will continue to add this to our session plan until he is offering the behavior without question.
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Mutiple criteria.....the trainers are not clear and Webster is getting mixed messages. Webster was doing well playing The Come Game. When Karen stepped in, it might have been a good time to begin again from the beginning (make everything easier). Then, each time you stopped and discussed training technique, it might have been a good time to begin again from the beginning.....with clear criteria.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the mixup on when to click when your criteria includes a default sit: click AFTER Webster arrives in front of you and IS SITTING.
When your criteria is clearly defined, he does just fine! This is a good example of when it would have been good to stop. Assess the training. Decide what will happen next. Determine a single, simple criteria and begin again.
I agree with Lynn, it is so important to discuss what THE criteria IS before beginning the training session. However we all make the mistake of thinking we are on the same page and finding we are not!
ReplyDeleteI also agree that when the dog seems to be confused, or things are not going as you might like, stopping is a superb idea!
I would add that stopping working on the behavior that isn't clear and replacing it by beginning immediately do something he is VERY good at, that is VERY generalized and VERY easy for him and to do about 3 reps of that before stopping that training session and THEN give him something else to do (rest on his mat, chew a bone, get in the car and relax) while you regroup and decide what to do next.
This sequence can allow YOU to end the frustrating session feeling good which in turn makes the dog happy too! : ) It is so much easier to think, hear other peoples observations and make a new good decision on how to proceed if you are more relaxed and feeling happier yourself. At least that is my experience.
Good points, Sheila. We need to remember to focus on what we are doing when doing it and then stop working while discussing or talking about it, rather than continuing to work with divided attention. We all do it. This is a good example of the value of a coach. The coach can interrupt and say, "Let's stop and evaluate".
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