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Positive Pet Training Blog Hop: How Do You Measure Training Success?

7/7/2014

14 Comments

 
Typist: Bethany
In my many decade dog training journey, I currently find myself in a place where I have come full circle in how I measure training success. As a teenager, when I first started training my dogs, it was for fun as well as for practical reasons. My family needed dogs that listened, behaved in public and were polite when guests came. When I adopted Tynan, training was necessary to calm him down as well as acclimate him to his new (fourth) home. The instructor was enamored with Tynan's genius and work ethic and encouraged me to sample the few dog sports a mixed breed was allowed to participate in back then. Tynan and I had fun trying out different sports and training but in the end, all of his advanced training just made him a fabulous partner. Tynan went everywhere with me. He was the mascot of the sports teams of several kids I cared for as well as many of the health clubs where I taught classes. The front desk staff would argue over who got to have Tynan while I taught my classes and my students whined if I left Tynan at the front desk.
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Wilhelm learns from the master (Tynan.)
This was the happy life I had pictured for Wilhelm as well. I had no intention of going as far in training with Wilhelm as Tynan and I did. But the behavior problems that Wilhelm developed when Tynan died, led us back into basic obedience classes. When I discovered Wilhelm's passion for learning and eagerness to please, we tried agility, and our relationship completely changed. I wept when my little ten pound problem weiner earned his first title. I truly couldn't believe how far Wilhelm and I had come as a team. Wilhelm had become such a wonderful dog and I was hooked on the successes of dog sport competition. Or so I thought.
Pride swells in me when any of my pets accomplish anything. The dogs, cat and parrot I currently spend my life with all love to learn new things and most especially soak up one-on-one time with me. But I don't judge success in training by completion of a trick or title. My pets and I are a success when we work as a team at anything.
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All of the training we do is a success when we can walk anywhere, anytime, just like this.
Brychwyn and Huxley were both dogs I specifically sought out to train and compete with in dog sports. Brychwyn was going to be my agility star but his mysterious shoulder issue and leash reactivity completely changed our training journey together. Huxley was going to be the first dog I took all the way to a UDX but he gets quickly bored with obedience training and prefers agility. And with all of the traveling the dogs and I have been doing for the last several years, we haven't had much time to focus on or proof any one behavior or sport. So all of the dogs ribbons are tucked away in a cupboard and I am back to training for fun and for practical reasons. I measure success not by titles but by smiles. When I say "share the road" to the dogs on a walk and they all duck in behind the stroller to make room on the sidewalk for another pedestrian, I smile and know we are a success. And if the other pedestrian smiles, that feels like a best in show score to me. The best part of my full circle journey in the reason for and how I measure success in dog training, is all I have learned about positive reinforcement techniques. I am eager to continue to hone my positive pet training skills whether I measure successes in smiles and miles or ribbons and titles.
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Wilhelm, Brychwyn and Huxley have collected more states visited than competition ribbons.
How do you measure training success? What successes have you had recently?
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This is the First Monday Positive Pet Training Blog Hop hosted by Cascadian Nomads, Dachshund Nola & Tenacious Little Terrier. If you have a training success story to share or any positive reinforcement based training blog post, please add it to the linky list below! We also encourage readers to share positive training stories in the blog hop comments or on social media. Our goal is to build a community of sharing, learning and support in positive based pet training. The next Positive Pet Training Blog Hop is August 4th. Our hop runs through International Assistance Dog Week so our theme will be assistance dogs. Please honor an assistance dog, share about positive assistance dog training or, as always, add any positive reinforcement based training post.

14 Comments
Leah Erb link
7/7/2014 01:06:26 am

Beautiful story, and inspiring to step up training in own my pack.

Reply
Bethany
7/7/2014 07:33:21 am

The single most important item any traveling dog needs is training! Food is a close second.

Reply
It's Dog or Nothing link
7/7/2014 02:52:01 am

I completely agree that success is measured differently for each dog. I had hoped for Mauja to become a therapy dog, but she developed anxiety in new places. Now it's success if I can get her to sit calmly by a store entrance! Even though Atka is younger, he doesn't have the anxiety so i have higher expectations for him ;)

Reply
Bethany
7/7/2014 07:36:41 am

I have a show dog friend says she knows way too many people in the dog show business who expect their dogs to be like robots. She and I often discuss the pleasure we get from having our dogs be our companions, their unique personalities and that they don't always just doing our bidding!

Reply
Tenacious Little Terrier link
7/7/2014 05:31:27 am

Group classes are also a big one for us. He used to have difficulty working around other dogs due to leash reactivity but now he'll snark a bit but he will settle down and work.

Reply
Bethany
7/7/2014 07:38:22 am

It doesn't surprise me that Mr. N's work ethic can keep him calm in a group environment. Brychwyn never shows signs of leash reactivity at shows or in classes; it's serious work time!

Reply
Sarah Lukemire link
7/7/2014 09:46:54 am

That is quite the accomplishment to be walking 3 dogs and pushing a pet stroller! I loved your quote, "Pride swells in me when any of my pets accomplish anything. The dogs, cat and parrot I currently spend my life with all love to learn new things and most especially soak up one-on-one time with me. But I don't judge success in training by completion of a trick or title. My pets and I are a success when we work as a team at anything." - Keep up the great work :)

Reply
Jana Rade link
7/7/2014 10:22:03 am

I never had the desire for ribbons and titles. I think it takes much of the fun out of it and adds stress. We use training to be able to enjoy each other better and to have fun. Definitely measuring is smiles and miles.

Reply
Reilly and Denny link
7/7/2014 11:12:36 am

I think one of the things we quickly discover is each dogs learns in different ways, each has there favorite thing and as they get older they change the rules :) :)

Reply
Bethany
9/16/2014 06:35:10 am

Life with smart pets is indeed a constant learning experience!

Reply
Lauren Miller link
7/7/2014 02:52:10 pm

Wonderful blog post!! I try to find success in the small things. Like my dog not completely freaking out during a thunder storm. Or my other dog not pulling on the leash when a dog barks at her.

Reply
Alix Mitchell link
7/10/2014 12:24:57 am

Great post! Buster is reactive, and we just started private positive reinforcement training last week. My ultimate goal is to make him a Canine Good Citizen, but if that doesn't happen, or takes awhile, then I'm fine with that. Yesterday during his training session, I saw him completely stop in his tracks and rein himself back in without any coercing from me instead of continuing and crossing this threshold and becoming reactive and lunging and barking. Seeing him do that all on his own was phenomenal. Just knowing that he can do that now is by far one of the biggest successes.

Reply
Bethany
9/16/2014 06:37:18 am

Brychwyn is reactive and has his CGC as well as RN and RA titles. I have seen a lot of dogs learn self control when trained but also distracted away from being reactive when they have a job to do. Best of luck to you both!

Reply
JenJelly link
7/19/2014 02:08:48 am

Great article. My dog Laika is reactive and quite the resource guarder. I had to take a step back and really do my research and analyze her behaviors in ways I didn't have to do with my previous dogs, so the bit about measuring a dog individually is spot on.

Since we started different positive training techniques her resource guarding is extremely manageable and the reactivity is only present with new or startling things that are unexpected. We still work on it every day but the simple steps like learning Nothing In Life Is Free and some other positive training methods have worked wonders.

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