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Runner

brownietodd's picture
Posted June 9th, 2007 by brownietodd

Hey folks, I have just got my little macey back from boarding school(ob training) and when I let her off the lead she just takes off and won't recall yet at the kennels she would recall for the trainer every time. I know she's just got back home and would be a little excited but how do you reinforce the recall for everytime... we have a lot of roo's around and macey is a hunting dog (mastiff) but I need her to recall all the time...has anyone got any tips???

Todd

Comments

Board and Train

Aidan's picture
On June 12th, 2007 Aidan says:

Hi Todd, Board and Train sounds like a great idea, but the reality is that -
(a) it doesn't last unless you keep the training up
(b) you don't learn how to keep the training up
(c) they cannot train for every possible situation

Training is reinforcement. Any voluntary behavior you want to maintain or increase needs to be reinforced. That is an indisputable scientific fact. That's why Board and Train doesn't work in the long run, without reinforcement the behaviors eventually disappear - it's called 'extinction'. You've obviously already figured this out, hence your question.

I see you have ordered The Positive Petzine Collection (thanks!), so you're about to find out all about reinforcement, extinction, proofing a behavior with distractions etc etc

A recall is something that needs to be built up gradually through distractions. You start off in a low distraction area like your kitchen at home, then when he's really good at it there, you take him to a different room, then when he's really good at it there you take him to your yard etc

Full instructions are in the book. The method of reinforcement I recommend is food, dogs want to work for food. You could also use toys or games, like Tug. The board and train facility might have used 'negative reinforcement', i.e electric shock collar or choke chain. I don't recommend those even if you are experienced enough to actually use them properly. There is a misconception that they are faster than positive reinforcement methods. In very skilled hands there is a slight increase in efficiency for specific behaviors, but there is always fallout to deal with on top of that. Another thing that sounds good until you try it.

There are no shortcuts. Truthfully, it takes a lot of work to build and maintain a reliable recall around kangaroos. For now I would have her on a long-leash in roo territory.

Regards,
Aidan
http://www.positivepetzine.com

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