Spudlet
Well-Known Member
Positive reinforcement is a powerful training technique when used correctly. It means adding something to a situation to increase the frequency of a given behaviour - positive in the mathematical sense of adding, reinforcement meaning to strengthen the behaviour.
It does not mean stuffing your dog full of treats at random - you can use anything that the dog values to reinforce, such as a toy, a game, praise, or food - or best of all a mixture of all of the above.
It does not mean that you must never say 'no' to your dog. Dogs need leadership, discipline and boundaries. Ignoring some unwanted behaviours may be effective, but it is not wrong to say 'no'. The dog will not stop loving you.
It is not a new, fluffy technique. If you have used the words 'good dog' you have used positive reinforcement. You have added something that the dog values as a reward for a given behaviour.
It does not result in spoilt, badly behaved dogs if used correctly. If used incorrectly, it will give bad results just like any other method of training.
Sorry, that needed to be got off my chest.
It does not mean stuffing your dog full of treats at random - you can use anything that the dog values to reinforce, such as a toy, a game, praise, or food - or best of all a mixture of all of the above.
It does not mean that you must never say 'no' to your dog. Dogs need leadership, discipline and boundaries. Ignoring some unwanted behaviours may be effective, but it is not wrong to say 'no'. The dog will not stop loving you.
It is not a new, fluffy technique. If you have used the words 'good dog' you have used positive reinforcement. You have added something that the dog values as a reward for a given behaviour.
It does not result in spoilt, badly behaved dogs if used correctly. If used incorrectly, it will give bad results just like any other method of training.
Sorry, that needed to be got off my chest.
