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Competing With Critters – When Food is NOT ENOUGH – Video
We’ve been discussing scent quite a bit and discussions are happening in multiple threads.
The idea that we can use a dog’s primary sensory system and preference for scent as a motivator to get behavior we want in response to formal training cues might be new for you – listen in to this recent brainstorm session where @Abbie shared about a critter-motivated dog and @vesna and I collaborated on ideas to help turn a distraction into a teachable moment.
What would you add to the scenario for a complete training plan?
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5 Replies
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Hi! @Catherine…
I think this is a fascinating idea, to use a flirt pole (I’ve never used one) with some scent of the animal you are mimicking. Lots of my clients have issues with their pup’s prey drive, either on walks or just in their yard.
Would taking the flirt pole and scent INSIDE your home (eww?) to work without distractions be a good first step, maybe with a Leave It cue? Not sure what a good reward would be, because if your dog successfully Leaves It, would you want to get him used to thinking he could play with the scented toy afterwards…we wouldn’t let him play with a real critter!
Sidenote: one of my walking clients stuck her head into a bush and ATE a small bird right out of the bush! It was 6am, so by the time I said Drop It, a pair of wings fell out of her mouth…
Also, another client’s dog has a huge prey drive and has caught (and amazingly, released) two squirrels in his yard! The owner says the swirls actually taunt him…
Also, we had an English setter, when I was in my college years, who used to hunt for bullfrogs in the nearby creek. When she caught a rabbit once (she had such a soft mouth) on a hike, my mother told her multiple times to Drop, which she did…when the rabbit started moving again, she caught it again…eventually the rabbit got away, but just saying how amazing dogs are with their prey drives!
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Absolutely, I’ve used a flirt pole indoors to work with a small dog (very high prey drive) on her recall. Premack is a powerful thing! It’s a nuanced way to reward a dog, but very, very valuable.
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@Bernerlabreclectus Try using our search bar in this platform for “Premack” – I know there’s at least one video when we’ve talked about it. Check out the Motivation channel, too!
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Thank you so much, @Catherine ????. You’re awesome!
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