If your pet jumps on visitors, chews your shoes instead of their dog toys or noses through the trash, resist the urge to scold or grab them, say experts.
“You might feel better by yelling at the dog or doing something to stop that behavior that you dislike, but stopping a behavior does not show what you want your learner to do instead,” explains professional dog trainer and author Melissa McCue-McGrath. “Punishment only suits the punisher.” Instead, teach them an alternate skill. Working with them also builds your bond so you and your dog will become a team working toward the same calm household.
Like all mammals, dogs are always looking for more of the things they enjoy, like tasty food and attention from their people, notes certified behavior consultant Mikkel Becker, lead animal trainer for Fear Free Pets. “The trick is to teach them at a rate that lets them be successful and keeps them from getting frustrated or giving up or feeling confused,” she says. Moving at their pace, setting them up for success and making the reward more enticing than the undesirable behavior are all important.
Manage Their Environment
First, make sure your home environment isn’t accidentally reinforcing your dog’s problematic behaviors. For example, putting the trash can where they can’t get to it or using one that locks will help them avoid being tempted to go through the trash. If your puppy potties on the living room carpet when left alone, keeping them close to you or in an enclosure on an uncarpeted area can help while they learn more appropriate places to go, Becker advises. And make sure everyone in your household is on board. “Any time that another person is still reinforcing unwanted behaviors, or we’re allowing that unwanted behavior, it makes it all the more challenging to address and to really make a change,” Becker explains.
Meet Their Needs
Unwanted behaviors are often a result of a dog’s trying to satisfy their needs, explains Becker. That’s why it’s crucial to not only redirect them to what you want them to do but also think about why they’re misbehaving. Dogs will often act out to get your attention if you engage with them only when they’re doing something you don’t like, Becker says, so to show them they don’t have to eat your shoes to get noticed, make sure you praise them when they’re lying down quietly or playing with their toys independently. Also, replacing regular feeding bowls with feeding puzzles at mealtimes can help a dog express their natural instinct to scavenge for food.
When trying to teach a dog to go potty outside, make a big deal of it when they do, but then don’t call them back inside or end the walk right away, Becker adds. If you do that, it can teach your dog that right after they go, the fun ends. Some dogs will actually learn to “hold it” to extend their time outside.
Make It a Lifestyle Change
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and good behavior won’t be either. Shifting your thinking to the long term can help prevent frustration if it takes your pet some time to learn what you want. Becker suggests thinking of training as a lifestyle shift and integrating short sessions into your day. Maybe you practice “Sit,” “Stay” and “Down” while you’re reheating something in the microwave or for the length of a commercial break on TV. Short sessions work best because dogs lose focus and become frustrated after more than five minutes or so, Becker says, and a frustrated or bored dog won’t learn well.
Remember the Four D’s
McCue-McGrath advises her clients to think about the “four D’s” that can impact training success:
- Distance
- Duration
- Distractions
- Difficulty
If your dog is learning to focus amid distractions, make sure that you’re close to them and that any distraction is far enough away that your dog can focus on you. Keep the duration of your training short, and make sure you’re not starting at a higher difficulty level than they can handle or moving on to a new challenge before they’ve mastered the fundamentals.
“There’s a fifth D, and it’s “drugs,” McCue-McGrath adds. “If we can’t make enough serotonin, then store-bought is fine, and that goes for our dogs as well.” Some dogs have anxiety or other medical issues that can contribute to unwanted behavior, so always check with your veterinarian to be sure there’s not a physical barrier to their living their best, most well-behaved life.
