When you welcome a new dog into your world, it’s your job to help them make the correct associations. Think of it like this: Everything your dog encounters is going to be categorized as good and safe, or bad and dangerous. You have the opportunity, through the use of classical conditioning techniques, to help your dog make the proper associations. This is important because the wrong association can lead to behaviors you don’t like. With that in mind, let’s get started!
What is classical conditioning?
You’ll often hear dog trainers use the term “classical conditioning”, and it’s simply another way of referring to “learning by association.” For example, most dogs learn to have associations with leashes, which predict a walk is coming, or the sound of the fridge opening, which indicates it might be meal time. These are good associations and you have the opportunity to replicate these relationships by pairing other objects, phrases, people, experiences, etc with things your dog likes (e.g. a treat or toy) in order to create multiple good associations. For instance:
- Use food rewards: If you want your dog to feel good about people coming over to the apartment, give them treats every time a visitor arrives.
- Use non-food rewards: If you want your dog to feel good when the vacuum is on, reserve a special toy for the days you’re vacuuming the apartment.
What is counter conditioning?
Counter conditioning is the act of re-teaching a dog to have a neutral or good association with something that was once disliked or feared. If there’s something your dog dislikes or is afraid of, you can use rewards to help change your dog’s feelings about “the thing” and produce a neutral or good reaction over time. To do this:
- Use food or non-food rewards to develop good associations: If your dog doesn’t like the sound of the blender, give them a treat or toy every time you turn on the blender. Over many repetitions, your dog will associate the blender with getting a treat or toy.
- Remember value matters: The more memorable the reward, the faster the emotional response will change. Think ham, hot dogs, chicken, turkey, etc. Variety is important, so be sure to rotate to keep your pup engaged. If you know you will be encountering high-stress situations, bring high value toys and treats.
- Don’t reinforce a behavior by attempting to use punishment: With many dogs, any attention from you may seem like a reinforcer. Usually, when reaching into the punishment tool kit, yelling and scolding are the first things you’ll pull out. For a dog who is highly rewarded by words and attention, you might inadvertently reinforce a behavior you don’t like. Taking your attention away from your dog can be a more effective punishment. Try developing a kind of “screensaver” mode —become extremely still and quiet until your dog stops doing the behavior you don’t like. The stark difference between you when you are still and you are when you are normal will make the reward of your attention all the more valuable.
- Be patient: Your dog’s response is involuntary at this point. You are working to change it, but until the emotional response has been changed, know it will be hard to get a reliable and consistent behavior response.