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Leslie McDevitt
Certified Dog Trainer, Behavior Counselor
Y2K9s Dog Sports Club
Wyndmoor, PA |
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Leslie specializes in clicker training and using positive
reinforcement to modify problem behaviors in both pet and
performance dogs.
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THE PREMACK PRINCIPLE
In my beginner obedience classes, I distract the dogs by letting
them lick out of a peanut butter jar! Their owners call them
away from it, and when they return to their owners, they are
delighted to discover that their owners were hiding a second
peanut butter jar.
This exercise is strengthening recalls, and using the “Premack
Principle.”
This principle tells us to reward the dog with what they most
wanted in the first place; it tells us to “use the environment
to reward the dog.”
Example: Dog wants to take a swim in the lake, so do your obedience
exercises near the lake and send the dog into the lake as his
reward. Or, if you are working on recalls, repeat sending the
dog into the lake, calling them out again and then sending them
back in. Or, should your dog enjoy the playful attention of
another dog, then call him away, reward him, and send him back
to play.
Your dog will learn that coming away from distractions is part
of the fun, not the end of it, because you are putting yourself
in control of access to the distractions. This is a very powerful
principle in dog training and helps build very reliable recalls
and “leave-its.”
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©2003-2009
The Animal Welfare Project
P.O. Box 987
Valley Forge, PA 19482
(267) 249-5762 Duplication prohibited without written permission.
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