Clean Run - February 2018 - 33

Part 1

Building a

Reward System
for Effective
Dog Training
By Anne Stocum, photos by author

You have a new puppy and are excited
to get started with the fun training
games that will result in agility stardom in a few years. Or, you have an
older dog and want to improve your
training results. Have you thought
about how you use rewards, how you
want your dog to think about rewards,
and what type of rewards to use and
when? Do you have a mental model
of your reward system?

being a dog like sniffing, scenting, barking, seeking food and water, a nice comfy
place to sleep, and the company of other dogs. In an effective reward system we
use an understanding of what our dogs find reinforcing to build the behaviors
that we want. Put simply:
Reward = Something your dog wants and can be used to reinforce behavior
Why do we reward? To build behavior in response to our cues:
Cue

Response (behavior)

Reward

"Sit"

Dog sits

Dog gets cookie

This series of articles is about how to
improve the way you use rewards so
you can teach behaviors quickly and
accurately, and strengthen your relationship along the way. There are many
simple things that can be done right
away to use rewards more effectively
while other changes may take more
time. When building a reward system,
the work put in to develop good habits
in yourself and the expectations you set
for your dog will pay off for all the years
of his life. It's worth the effort!

What Is a Reward?
In its simplest terms-and in a training
context-a reward is something your
dog wants and something that will
increase the likelihood of a behavior
being repeated. A reward reinforces
the behavior you seek. In reality any
behavior your dog finds reinforcing
is more likely to be repeated. This includes behaviors that are just part of
February 18 | Clean Run

The Power of Effective Rewards
Think of the trainers you admire most. Her dog learns quickly and is fluent in a
number of behaviors, performing each with a great attitude. His dog is responsive
to his handling with great handler and obstacle focus and fantastic obstacle performance. Do you think this happened by accident? Or do you think these trainers
33



Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run - February 2018

Contents
Clean Run - February 2018 - Cover1
Clean Run - February 2018 - Cover2
Clean Run - February 2018 - Contents
Clean Run - February 2018 - 4
Clean Run - February 2018 - 5
Clean Run - February 2018 - 6
Clean Run - February 2018 - 7
Clean Run - February 2018 - 8
Clean Run - February 2018 - 9
Clean Run - February 2018 - 10
Clean Run - February 2018 - 11
Clean Run - February 2018 - 12
Clean Run - February 2018 - 13
Clean Run - February 2018 - 14
Clean Run - February 2018 - 15
Clean Run - February 2018 - 16
Clean Run - February 2018 - 17
Clean Run - February 2018 - 18
Clean Run - February 2018 - 19
Clean Run - February 2018 - 20
Clean Run - February 2018 - 21
Clean Run - February 2018 - 22
Clean Run - February 2018 - 23
Clean Run - February 2018 - 24
Clean Run - February 2018 - 25
Clean Run - February 2018 - 26
Clean Run - February 2018 - 27
Clean Run - February 2018 - 28
Clean Run - February 2018 - 29
Clean Run - February 2018 - 30
Clean Run - February 2018 - 31
Clean Run - February 2018 - 32
Clean Run - February 2018 - 33
Clean Run - February 2018 - 34
Clean Run - February 2018 - 35
Clean Run - February 2018 - 36
Clean Run - February 2018 - 37
Clean Run - February 2018 - 38
Clean Run - February 2018 - 39
Clean Run - February 2018 - 40
Clean Run - February 2018 - 41
Clean Run - February 2018 - 42
Clean Run - February 2018 - 43
Clean Run - February 2018 - 44
Clean Run - February 2018 - 45
Clean Run - February 2018 - 46
Clean Run - February 2018 - 47
Clean Run - February 2018 - 48
Clean Run - February 2018 - 49
Clean Run - February 2018 - 50
Clean Run - February 2018 - 51
Clean Run - February 2018 - 52
Clean Run - February 2018 - 53
Clean Run - February 2018 - 54
Clean Run - February 2018 - 55
Clean Run - February 2018 - 56
Clean Run - February 2018 - 57
Clean Run - February 2018 - 58
Clean Run - February 2018 - 59
Clean Run - February 2018 - 60
Clean Run - February 2018 - 61
Clean Run - February 2018 - 62
Clean Run - February 2018 - 63
Clean Run - February 2018 - 64
Clean Run - February 2018 - 65
Clean Run - February 2018 - 66
Clean Run - February 2018 - Cover3
Clean Run - February 2018 - Cover4
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