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There are many ways to help our dogs learn valuable and important life skills and obedience cues. Take a look at some of the ways dogs learn passively, just by experiencing daily life, and then some of the ways that we can help to influence and cultivate more of the behaviors we would like them to do more often.
Associative Learning:
Dogs learn through associations, connecting events or behaviors with outcomes. For instance, they associate the sound of a treat bag opening with receiving a treat.
Every time you grab your dog's leash, they get excited because they've associated the leash with going for a walk.
Classical Conditioning:
Dogs develop responses to neutral stimuli due to pairing with meaningful events. Pavlov's famous experiment, where dogs salivated at the sound of a bell because it was associated with food, demonstrates this.
When your dog hears the sound of a can opener, they come running to the kitchen because they've learned to associate that sound with getting food.
Operant Conditioning:
Dogs learn based on consequences. Positive reinforcement, like treats for obeying cues, increases the likelihood of a behavior recurring, while punishment decreases it.
Your dog sits when you ask for it, and then receives a treat, reinforcing the behavior of sitting in response to your cue.
Observational Learning:
Dogs can learn by watching others. They might imitate behaviors they see in other dogs or even humans, like learning to fetch by watching another dog play.
Your new puppy learns how to properly dig a hole in the yard by watching your older dog dig.
Social Learning:
Dogs are social animals and often learn from interactions with other dogs. They observe and mimic behaviors to fit into their social groups.
A puppy learns the rules of fair play by mimicking the behaviors of trusted older, well-behaved dogs.
Habituation:
Dogs can become desensitized to repeated or nonthreatening stimuli over time, like getting used to the sound of traffic outside.
Initially, your dog is afraid of the sound of a passing car on the other side of the fence, but over time, they become used to it and no longer react.
Trial and Error:
Dogs learn by trying different behaviors and understanding which ones lead to desirable outcomes. This is common in solving puzzles or finding hidden toys.
Your dog figures out that scratching at the back door results in the door being opened, allowing them to go outside.
Cognitive Learning:
Dogs have problem-solving abilities. They can understand cause-and-effect relationships, like pushing a lever to release a treat.
By repeatedly pawing at a lever, your dog learns that doing so dispenses treats.
Sensitization:
Dogs might become more responsive to a stimulus over time, such as becoming increasingly fearful of thunderstorms after experiencing several.
After a few encounters with a vacuum cleaner, your dog becomes increasingly afraid of it and hides whenever it's brought out. This tends to get worse over time.
Contextual Learning:
Dogs learn in specific contexts, associating behaviors with particular environments. For example, they may only sit when asked inside the house rather than in the park.
Your dog knows to sit automatically before you put their food puzzle down on the floor due to a history of reinforcement, but may not automatically sit and wait for you to put their favorite dog bone down on the floor in the living room.
Shaping:
Complex behaviors can be taught by breaking them down into smaller steps. Dogs are rewarded for achieving each step until the desired behavior is complete.
Teaching your dog to fetch step-by-step: rewarding them first for picking up the toy, then for holding it, then for bringing it to you, and finally for dropping it at your feet.
Extinction:
If a learned behavior is no longer rewarded, dogs can "unlearn" it over time. For instance, if a dog stops receiving treats for sitting, it might stop sitting on cue.
If your dog no longer receives attention for jumping up on humans as an acceptable greeting, they eventually stop the behavior.
Generalization:
Dogs can transfer their learning from one situation to a similar one. If a dog learns to sit in the living room, it might also sit in the kitchen without explicit training.
Your dog understands the "sit" cue in various places – at home, in the park, or at a friend's house.
Cues and cues:
Dogs learn to respond to specific verbal or visual cues, associating them with particular actions or behaviors.
Your dog learns that when you say "stay," they should remain in their current position until you give them permission to move.
Emotional Learning:
Dogs can associate emotions with experiences, leading to conditioned responses. For instance, a dog might become anxious when it sees the vet's office.
Your dog becomes frustrated and anxious while on a leash when they see another dog because they associate the other dog with feeling discomfort from their prong collar from their previous walks.
Imprinting:
In their early developmental stages, dogs can form strong attachments to specific individuals or objects, influencing their social behaviors.
A young puppy becomes attached to you as their primary caregiver and seeks comfort and security, more from you than others.
Latent Learning:
Dogs can learn from their experiences without immediate reinforcement, only demonstrating the learned behavior when the need arises.
Your dog learns the layout of your home and the location of their dog bed and seeks to rest there on their own, without immediate rewards.
Escape and Avoidance Learning:
Dogs learn to avoid unpleasant situations by exhibiting certain behaviors. For example, they might learn to sit quietly to avoid scolding.
Your dog learns to sit when the doorbell rings to avoid being scolded for jumping on guests
Consistency and Timing:
Clear, consistent cues and immediate feedback are crucial for effective dog training, helping them quickly make associations between behaviors and outcomes.
Ex: Your dog quickly learns to associate the sound of a clicker with receiving treats because you always click immediately after they perform a desired behavior.
Every moment, we are all learning. We can harness that understanding about how our dogs learn, to find ways to reinforce the behaviors we want, or accidentally reinforce ones we don’t!
Think of some examples you have seen with your own dogs. What can you do during each day, to help build your dog's positive behaviors?
We are here to help with your dog's behavior training!