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pats though –some reward is always necessary or your dog
will think it doesn’t matter if he complies with your
commands. Using food as a reward only on occasion (and
randomly), actually increases the chance that your dog
will continue to listen and respond to you. Called
“intermittent reinforcement”, this is a powerful way of
getting animals (and people) to perform consistently, in
the hope that this time there will be a highly-desired
but unpredictable reward. Intermittent reinforcement is
not only responsible for the best-trained animals, but
has caused many people to lose everything they had at
the slot machines: they keep waiting for the payoff! (A
negative example of intermittent reinforcement is
occasionally giving pets food at the dinner table. Even
if you only do it once in awhile, your dog (or cat)
starts hanging around and begging, because he has
learned that once in awhile, bad behavior pays off in a
delightful snack. )
Train your dog to “Hush”
Once your dog has learned to “Speak”, teach him to
“Hush”. It doesn’t matter what words you use to train
your dog as long as you use the word you chose for a
behavior consistently. If sometimes you say “hush” and
other times, “quiet”, your dog may become confused and
it will take longer to teach him.
Start by having him speak, then while he’s barking, hold
up a treat and say “Hush”. It may take him awhile to get
the idea, but wait until he stops barking, then say
“Good Dog”, giving him the treat and patting him. Do
this for ten minutes, once or twice a day until your dog
has learned to hush on your command. When the dog barks
at other times, use “Hush” and “Good Dog” as in
training. It’s important to be consistent, so don’t let
an opportunity escape to correct your dog when he barks.
After your dog consistently responds to your “hush”, you
may reduce the number of times you reward him with food,
as long as you continue the praise and pats for good
responses. If you don’t have a treat on you, it’s okay
to just tell him "good dog” and give him pats.
Apply “Hush” to specific situations.
Pinpointing the times when your dog’s barking is a
problem, use those times in training. Continue your
“Hush” training, only this time, instead of telling your
dog to speak, start training in a situation where she
already barks unnecessarily. You may want her to be
quiet in the car, in the yard, or when people come to
the front door. Work with her on “Hush” in the places
where she usually barks too much. Have a friend come to
the door over and over until your dog can easily “Hush”.
Once your dog can “Speak” and “Hush” on your command,
you will want to do some fine-tuning. Over time, you
will probably want to phase out the food rewards, but
keep the verbal rewards. Instead of cutting off the
treats all at once, you may want to start reducing them,
giving a treat every other time, every fifth time, until
you can just use “Good Dog” as the only reward, and only
give a food reward when it’s convenient for you.
What to do if training doesn’t work or if you can’t
train your dog.
Hire a professional trainer: A good trainer is
the best answer for people who can’t train their dogs.
You should also expect that the trainer will plan to
train you as well. Look for a trainer with professional
credentials and a reputable background. Never hire a
“trainer” who uses shock, hitting or other pain to
achieve results.
Quick Review of Collars: (Collars are second-best to
training, but may be used in conjunction with some
training methods. In general, a collar may work while
it’s on the dog, but the “training” may be reversed once
it’s removed.)
Citronella collar: This is the kindest of the
collar methods. When the dog barks, the collar puffs out
a hit of citronella. The combination of surprise and the
unpleasant lemony smell may teach the dog not to bark by
interruption and negative reinforcement (i.e., the bad
smell stops when the dog stops barking).
Sonic Collar: You may buy a collar that emits a
tone humans and dogs can hear, and that dogs find
unpleasant.
Ultrasonic Collar: This collar’s pitch is
inaudible to humans but audible to dogs.
Pinch Collar: This collar “bites” the dog’s neck
when you pull on the lead.
Shock Collar: This collar shocks the dog when he
barks.
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