Clean Run - September 2014 - 35

To see a behavior chain in action, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=po9yUF-dkCw
now, but remember that cues come in all shapes and sizes.
Some are verbal, some are physical. Physical might override a
verbal, etc. And, yes, it does mean that not only do we need to
know our cues, but we must also be able to execute them at
the right time to make our behavior chain/agility round work.
Note: Should something begin to go wrong in your agility/
behavior chain, your best course of action is to identify the
cue or behavior that your dog doesn't completely understand and work on it separately, with lots of reinforcement.
Only then should you attempt to put the cue or behavior
back into the sequence.
But that is not new. We all know it has a lot to do with timing,
and that we are all always striving to improve our timing. But
again, I feel that a little scientific knowledge will help us all
here, as now we know when to time cues: at exactly the time
that we would have clicked the previous behavior. Doesn't
make it any easier, we still have to practice! Coaches will still
stay, "Too late!" But we should have a much clearer idea of
what we are striving for.

Extinguishing Behaviors
In this article I have tried to help you to gain just a little understanding of how behavior chains work in all our training and
how a cue, properly taught, can become a reinforcer that you
really do carry with you at all times-even in the ring.
Before concluding, however, there is just one more idea that
I'd like you to consider. In addition to the question we have
just addressed (when do I stop treating a behavior and how
do I get rid of treats in the ring), I am also asked the following
with great regularity, particularly in Basic Manners classes:
"How can I stop my dog from doing _________?"

We have covered enough essential science now to understand that in order to make a behavior strong, and very likely
to happen when we need it, we must reinforce heavily at all
stages of training and performance. Therefore, it follows that
if you want to stop your dog from doing something (extinguish a behavior you don't like) make sure you never reinforce that behavior-ever!
Just think about that for a moment in relation to your agility
behaviors: your start-line stay, your down on the table, your
really tight turns over jumps, etc. Once you feel that your dog
has "got" a particular concept and "should know" how to do
something, have you ever found yourself not reinforcing that
behavior anymore? If a behavior is beginning to deteriorate,
have you ever felt, "Why isn't he doing that today. He knows
how to do it." Can you see a pattern emerging?
If you want your dog to do something reliably and well, make
sure that you reinforce it often and well.
Again, take a moment to think about how much your dog
loves running, jumping, and playing with you. How many
times could you have positively reinforced that broken startline stay by cueing him to do what he really wants most,
to run over those jumps? (Don't forget that you now know
that a positively taught cue can be used as a very valuable
reinforcer!) How many times might you have unintentionally
punished the very behaviors you do want by cueing late, not
reinforcing the end of the sequence, or stopping when you
get lost, leaving your dog to wonder what he did wrong and
why you stopped?
Yes, the more you get into this science stuﬀ, the more our dog's
reactions begin to make sense. Once again, this will not change
us into perfect handlers and trainers overnight, but our dogs
will thank us for our new understanding and patience! D

Originally from England, Lynne Stephens KPA CTP has been living in North Carolina since 2004. Her passion for dogs and dog training has spanned more than three
decades, during which she has achieved the highest levels of competition in both the U.S. and U.K. The highlight of her agility career in England was being picked as
a member of the British team for the 2003 and 2004 FCI Agility World Championships. In the U.S., she has competed at the USDAA Cynosport Games four times with
three Border Collies and a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Her Cavalier has also earned his MACH and finished 23rd overall in the 12" class at AKC Nationals. Lynne trains
and teaches using purely positive methods and recently qualified with distinction as a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner. She is known for her patience
and sense of humor. Lynne currently competes with two Border Collies (Turbo and Bizzy) and a Cavalier (Tynamite). She is the agility specialist, trainer,coach, and
co-owner at DogLogic in Statesville, North Carolina. She can be contacted by email, lynne@doglogictraining.com, or through her website www.doglogictraining.com.

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Clean Run - September 2014

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