Well established cues are under what is called stimulus control. The stimulus (cue) increases the chance that the behavior will occur because the animal has been reinforced for performing the behavior in the presence of the cue. But what does it really mean for a behavior to be under good stimulus control? Properties of cues [...]
A Ginger Adventure
Ginger got away at dog training class tonight. Luckily, the property is fenced, so she didn’t really get away. She just got to tear wildly around the property for awhile until I cornered her and stepped on the leash. When other dogs have gotten loose in the past, they want to investigate the other people [...]
Ginger gets a gold star!
Well, not really. If we gave her a gold star, she’d probably eat it. But, we are really proud of Ginger because she passed her pre-agility level 1 class Monday night! The last time I wrote about our training classes, I had just increased our reinforcers from measly dog treats to hot dogs and string [...]
Dog Training Update
Here’s a video of Ginger and I playing from about a week ago. It shows a handful of the things we’ve been working on recently. We’ve been working quite a bit on targeting type behaviors, including touching my palm and touching the end of a targeting stick. (More information about target training.) She really understand [...]
what makes a good reinforcer?
Here’s how I’m putting theory from the classroom into my training sessions! Several weeks ago in my intro behavior analysis class we talked about good reinforcers using an acronym called DISC. This is what DISC stands for: D–deprivation I–immediacy S–size C–contengency The best reinforcers are something the animal hasn’t had in awhile (principle of deprivation), [...]
Rainy Day Fun.
It rained all day Wednesday. And most of the day Thursday. Then, it rained all day today. Ginger usually spends most of the day outside, so it was a pretty lousy week, in her opinion. So, we decided to have a bit of fun this afternoon.
First Night of Clicker Training Classes
Ginger and I just got back from our first night of clicker training classes. She’s now completely passed out on the living room floor. Man, she says, training is hard work! The class went well. I liked the instructor and the group isn’t too huge (there are 10 of us). I think it’s going to [...]
What’s the best way to train an animal?
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I'm a graduate student studying the science of behavior and training. On this blog I share stories of my animal training adventures, as well as tips, techniques and tricks to help you improve your training. Although most of this blog centers around training rescue horses, the ideas discussed apply equally to all species. The other animals I work with, including dogs and rats, also appear occasionally on the blog.
Mary Hunter
cheeriotrainer@gmail.com
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