Clean Run Magazine - May 2009 - 24

wasn’t interested in losing our company again. Maybe she was also surprised to find out that Owen was not pushy after all. Albert watched the whole thing and could barely believe his eyes: “It took less than three minutes!” Three minutes? Not quite. If I’d begun counterconditioning her reactivity by delivering negative punishment instead of hot dogs, she would have had a nervous breakdown rather than a moment of enlightenment. But at this point, understanding a negative consequence (loss of our company) helped Tigerlily make her choice from competing reinforcement opportunities. “Two years, plus three minutes,” I corrected him. in the park. And it wasn’t. Unless I could match the available reinforcement, just walking through that park could damage her sense of the reinforcing nature of our relationship. Premack to the Rescue Every time we insist the dog sit before we open a door, or sit before being leashed or before going out the gate on a walk, or whenever we reinforce a few steps of loose-leash walking with an opportunity to Go Sniff, we’re practicing the Premack Principle. The Premack Principle is: More likely behavior can be used to reinforce less likely behavior. Rather than make highinterest behavior higher-cost (as in my previous example with Owen) Premack comes into play when we use “distractions” to reinforce desirable behavior. On a nice safe beach, miles from traffic, it can be safe to ask for a sit, then click and send a dog to flush shore birds. As long as the birds fly straight up, and the dog hustles right back for another setup, the trainer appears to be in control of the reinforcement. I wouldn’t dare, however, send my dog to flush a fat goose, as geese are notorious for paddling methodically out to sea and drowning distracted dogs. So, controlling Premack reinforcement isn’t as easy as controlling cheese, for example. Premack reinforcement is often about delivering the reinforcement from a potentially dangerous and uncontrollable distance. So in the park, I clipped a long-line on Tigerlily’s harness, which would allow more control of the reinforcement and far greater safety. We had already practiced long© ElizabEth biEbEr Matching Squirrels Tigerlily’s youthful reaction to prey was a sight to behold. Her whole body quivered and if I couldn’t grab her up and run, the quivering progressed to loud and tortured prey screams. And no prey reinforcement could possibly be of higher value for Tigerlily than squirrel-onthe-hoof. I tried dozens of things to “match” it: barbecued spare rib, rosemary roasted chicken, expensive liverwurst. I bought squirrel tails and pheasant wings, tied them on a string, and dragged them enthusiastically around, trying to get her to run and tug. But nothing worked around squirrels. It made me feel like such a party pooper. I even bought a live mouse (sold as snake food), not planning to let Tigerlily eat it, but I was obviously desperate to please. I just wanted to see if one live mouse in the hand was worth 200 squirrels The Premack Principle says the treat doesn’t need to be food; we can reinforce a Sit, Wait with the opportunity to go through a gate or doorway. Close the dog inside if he breaks the stay and open the way if he sits. If the dog remains sitting inside, click and cue Hand (or your target cue). Responding to a cue to Hand around big distractions, Charlie earns a click, and the opportunity to Go Sniff around the horse’s pen. 24 Clean Run | May 09

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Clean Run Magazine - May 2009

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