First understand why, then change what.
This is not a list of exercises. It is a way of looking that you can apply to any dog and any situation. You still ask things of your dog, you just do not start at how do I fix this, but at why is he reacting like this and where does that come from.
A dog who obeys under pressure only does it while that pressure is there. The moment something more exciting happens outside, it falls away. A dog who joins in because he chooses to keeps doing it when things get hard. That takes longer to build, and it is the only thing that holds.
Three questions, always in this order
The order is the most important part. Most people start at question three and only wonder where it comes from once nothing works.
What is really happening?
Do not only look at the reaction itself, but at what comes before it. It builds up in the seconds beforehand, and that is exactly where you can still do something. Describe what you see without attaching a judgement: the lead is tight, the ears go forward, he is panting while it is not warm. Once you see the build-up, you can get ahead of the reaction instead of cleaning it up.
Where does it come from?
Age, breed and history shape everything. The same behaviour has a different cause in every dog, and that cause decides what you do about it. A dog who never learned something needs something entirely different from a dog who had a bad experience with it.
What does he need before I ask anything?
Only here does training come into view, and the first step usually turns out to be something other than you thought. Often it is distance, rest or clarity, not another cue.
You build from the bottom up, not the other way round
A dog who does not feel safe cannot rest. A dog who cannot rest will not trust you. And a dog who does not trust you takes nothing from you the moment it gets tense.
That is why the same exercise works instantly for one dog and not at all for another. Not because the exercise is bad, but because a layer underneath is missing.
You have to see the trigger before your dog does
Scan your surroundings. If you spot the other dog first, you still have room to add distance and choose what you do. If your dog sees him before you do, you are behind from that moment on.
You see him
You spot the trigger first and add distance while you still can.
Your dog sees him
From as far away as possible. You wait and let him register what it is.
You help
Now you use whatever works best for your dog: searching, a game or a task.
Fixation
Over threshold he takes nothing in. Anything you ask now fails, unless you have something worth more than the fixation. And that option is not always there.
Three cues for the hard moments
For the moments when an ordinary command no longer lands, because the surroundings weigh more than you do.
How you build them, when to reach for which one, and how you fade them out again is in the explainer about these three cues.
You say find it and throw a treat on the ground. The word always comes first, so that in time the word alone is enough. The sniffing that follows takes the tension out.
The same idea as search, only shorter: there is nothing to find. That makes it work best when your dog can still follow you but needs a nudge.
Asking for eye contact. It works as long as your dog is under his threshold and can still think. You want him to keep checking in by himself, so he does not get lost in something.
How you say it counts for more than what you say
A command is a word your dog has to translate while everything else is coming at him. In a busy moment it often does not get through. A short sound and a calm voice do.
Your tension travels straight down the leash. If you start talking louder or walking faster, the situation only gets bigger for your dog. A low, quiet voice does more than shouting.
A whistle, a click of your tongue or a short pst. It is shorter than his name, it does not sound like a demand, and it still gets through when he is half distracted. Save it for the moments you really need him, otherwise he stops hearing it.
Short, always the same, and not angry. A no is information: not this. Follow it straight away with what he can do instead, so he knows where to put his energy.
First mark, then reward
Those are two different things. The marker word says that it was right. The reward that follows says how right it was.
Your marker word. Your dog learns that this word means he made the right choice, and looks up at you for it. Something almost always follows, and what that is depends on how much the choice cost him.
A piece of kibble
For something that went well but did not take much effort.
Jackpot
For a choice that clearly cost him something. You see him hesitate between you and his own plan, and he picks you. Or he does something he normally finds very hard.
His favourite toy
Mostly for dogs who are not that interested in food. The value is in whatever your dog really wants.
A stroke or a scratch
For dogs who like contact, and for things he no longer finds hard. Good as a change from the other options too.
The reward has to be worth more than the surroundings
If a piece of kibble works indoors but not outdoors, then that kibble is worth less than whatever is happening outside. Reach for something he finds genuinely special, such as pieces of chicken or a rabbit ear. Once the surroundings get less exciting, the reward can get more ordinary again.
What this is and is not
I am not a behaviourist and this is not a course. It is a way of looking, written down by someone who had to work it out himself.
Look up what is going on with you
The framework is half of it. The other half is seeing how it plays out with a real dog in a real situation.
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