If you are interested in volunteering at the Chico Animal Shelter working with the dogs, it is important that you have the proper training. Dogs learn whether we think we are teaching them or not. Many dogs at the shelter have behavior problems. Quite often they were turned in (surrendered) to the shelter, or never reclaimed, because of behavior problems. While it is important to provide enrichment for the dogs while they are here at the shelter, it is also important to provide behavior modification. While we cannot solve all of a dog's behavior problems in the shelter (and may not actually see some of them while they are in the shelter), how we handle dogs at the shelter can either contribute to their problem behaviors (or even create bad behaviors), or it can create good behaviors and habits. A well behaved dog has a better chance of being adopted, and is less likely to be returned or re-homed by the new owner.

It is also important to have the proper training so that you and the dogs you handle remain safe. While we cannot prevent or anticipate every incident, knowing what to look for to determine if a dog is stressed, fearful or aggressive can help avert a problem before it starts.

The courses we have created discuss dog body language and our philosophy on dog training. Please go through the modules in order and take the quiz at the end of each module. You must pass each quiz in order to start working with the shelter dogs. Don't worry, you have several chances to take each quiz if you don't pass the first time.

The Learn to Earn program is used to teach people how to be effective leaders and to mold the dogs they're working with into polite, happy pets. If you teach a dog that polite behavior gets them what they want, they will behave politely more often. If a dod learns that they can get what they want by being rude and pushy, that behavior will increase in frequency. Every time you interact with the dogs at the shelter (and in the world), you are teaching them which behaviors work for them. Help the dogs put their best paw forward by only rewarding desirable behaviors, and by removing rewards for undesirable behaviors.

"We're Positive" by Pat Miller/Peaceable Paws LLC

Please read the following article:

WE’RE POSITIVE

How we know that training with lots of positive reinforcement – and without force or physical punishment – is best.

We’ve come so far since those dark days just over a decade ago when virtually all dog training was accomplished through the use of force and compulsion. I know those days well; I was quite skilled at giving collar corrections with choke chains and attained several high­scoring obedience titles with my dogs using those methods. And as a shelter worker responsible for the euthanasia of unwanted dogs for whom we couldn’t find homes, I was convinced that a little pain in the name of training was acceptable and necessary to create well­behaved dogs who would have lifelong loving homes.

In fact, when I enrolled my Australian Kelpie pup in the now­renowned Dr. Ian Dunbar’s first­ever puppy­training classes at our shelter in Marin County, California, I was so sure that using physical corrections in training was the only way to go, that I dropped out of the class after just two sessions; I was convinced he was ruining my dog with training treats!

It was several more years before I crossed over to the positive side of dog training, thanks in large part to my wonderful dog Josie, who gently showed me the error of my ways one day by hiding under the back deck when I brought out her training equipment. Her quiet eloquence made me realize, finally, the damage I was doing to our relationship with tools and techniques that relied on the application of pain and intimidation to force her to comply. I threw away the choke chains and began my journey toward a more positive perspective on training.

What’s the difference?
Today, in many areas of the country a dog is at least as likely to be enrolled in a class with a trainer who uses positive methods as one who still employs old­fashioned choke chain or prong­collar coercion. As more dog owners and dog trainers see the light, clickers, treat bags, and positive reinforcement replace metal collars, shocks, and dominance theory. Many trainers who still fall back on compulsion tools will at least start with dog­friendlier methods, resorting to force and intimidation only when positive
training seems not to work for them. Dogs and humans alike are delighted to discover a kinder, gentler method that still gets results.

Trainers, behaviorists, and dog owners are realizing that this is more than just a philosophical difference, or a conflict between an ethic that says we should be nice to animals versus a more utilitarian approach to training. While both methods can produce well­trained dogs, the end result is also significantly different. With positive training, the goal is to develop a dog who thinks and works cooperatively with his human as part of a team, rather than a dog who simply obeys commands. Positive trainers report that dogs trained effectively with coercion are almost universally reluctant to offer behaviors and are less good at problem­solving. Fearing the
“corrections” that result when they make mistakes, they seem to learn that the safest course is to do nothing unless and until they’re told to do something.

In sharp contrast, dogs who have been effectively trained with positive methods tend to be masters at offering behaviors. Give them a new training challenge and they almost immediately set about trying to solve the puzzle. In fact, one of the criticisms often voiced by trainers who don’t understand – or accept – the positive training paradigm is that our dogs are too busy – always “throwing” behaviors instead of lying quietly at our feet like “good” dogs. This conflict in perspectives is illustrated graphically by a T­shirt belonging to one of my trainer friends, Katy Malcolm, CPDT, of Canine Character, LLC, in Arlington, Virginia. “Behave!” proclaims the front of the shirt in bold letters. To the average disciplinarian, “Behave!” means “Sit still; don’t move!” But the back of Katy’s shirt says, “Do lots of stuff!” Positive trainers see the word “Behave!” as an action verb and encourage their dogs to offer lots of behaviors.

Another criticism of positive training is that the dogs are spoiled and out of control because, while the dogs are highly reinforced for doing good stuff, no one ever tells them what not to do. “Dogs,” the critics say, “must know there are consequences for inappropriate behaviors.” We don’t disagree with this statement. Positive does not mean permissive. We just have
different ideas about the necessary nature of the negative consequence.

When one is needed, positive trainers are most likely to use “negative punishment” (taking away a good thing), rather than “positive punishment” (the application of a bad thing). As an adjunct to that, we counsel the generous use of management to prevent the dog from practicing (and getting rewarded for) undesirable behaviors.

The result? Since all living things repeat behaviors that are rewarding, and those behaviors that aren’t rewarded extinguish (go away), the combination of negative punishment and management creates a well­trained dog at least as easily as harsh or painful corrections – and without the very real potential for relationship damage that is created by the use of physical punishment one of the most significant reasons for not using physical punishment or force with dogs is the potential for eliciting or exacerbating aggressive behaviors from them.

This was illustrated by an English Bulldog in a recent episode of the National Geographic Channel’s show, “The Dog Whisperer.” Cesar Millan, the star of the show, spent several hours intimidating the Bulldog on a hot Texas day, in an effort to get the dog to “submit,” until the dog finally inflicted a significant bite to Millan’s hand in a futile attempt at selfdefense. Millan brushed the incident aside as insignificant, apparently blissfully unaware that he had provided the dog with the opportunity to successfully practice the undesirable behavior (aggression).

Even if the dog’s reaction falls short of a flesh­shredding defense, the relationship between dog and owner can be significantly damaged as the dog learns to fear or resent the angry, unpredictable responses of his human, and the human comes to fear the beloved dog who now bites him. Given our odd primate body language and behaviors, we are undoubtedly confusing enough to our canine companions, without adding what to them must seem like completely unprovoked, incomprehensible explosions of violence.

Crossing over increasingly, trainers are entering the profession who learned their craft without an early foundation of coercion training. This is a good thing! However, there are enough oldfashioned trainers around that positive trainers still find themselves working with a fair number of “crossover dogs” – those who are convinced that they must not dare offer a behavior for fear of punishment.

It can be frustrating to owners and trainers alike to work through the dog’s conditioned shutdown response to the training environment. Shaping exercises, especially “freeshaping” that reinforces virtually any behavior to start with, are ideal for encouraging a crossover dog to think outside the box. This serves the same purpose for crossover owners and trainers as well!

It takes time to rebuild the trust of a dog who has learned to stay safe by waiting for explicit instructions before proceeding. It’s well worth the effort. The most rewarding and exciting part of training for me is watching the dawning awareness on a dog’s face that he controls the consequences of his behavior, and that he can elicit good stuff from his trainer by offering certain behaviors. We never, ever, experienced that in the “old days.” I used to take “sit” for granted, because if the dog didn’t sit when I asked, I made him do it.

Today, I never get over the thrill of that moment when the dog understands, for the first time, that he can make the clicker “Click!” (and receive a treat) simply by choosing to sit. It keeps training eternally fresh and exciting.

Not quite convinced?
So why, given all the available scientific and anecdotal evidence about the success of positive training, do some dog trainers and owners cling stubbornly to the old ways? Because it works for them much of the time? Resistance to change? Fear of the unknown? It pains me that so many in the U.S. are still so far away from the positive end of the dogtraining
continuum. The celebrity status of Cesar Millan is evidence that dog owners and trainers are more than willing to buy into the coercion­and­intimidation approach to training, and that the use of force is an ingrained part of our culture.

Old­fashioned methods can work. Decades of well­behaved dogs and the owners who loved them can attest to that. So why should they bother to cross over to the positive side? The short answer is that positive training works, it’s fun, and it does not have the potential to cause stress
and physical injury to our dogs through the application of force,
pain, and intimidation. It takes the blame away from the dog and puts the responsibility for success where it belongs – on human shoulders.
In the old days, if a dog didn’t respond well to coercion we claimed there was something wrong with the dog, and continued to increase the level of force until he finally submitted. If he didn’t submit he was often labeled defective and discarded for a more compliant model. With the positive paradigm, it’s our role as the supposedly more intelligent species to understand our dogs and find a way that works for them rather than
forcing them into a one­size­fits­all mold.

The longer answer is that it encourages an entire cultural mindset to move away from aggression and force as a way to achieve goals. The majority of dog owners and trainers who have fun (and success) using positive methods with their dogs come to realize that it works with all creatures, including the human species. They feel better about training and find themselves less likely to get angry with their dogs, understanding that behavior is simply behavior, not some maliciously deliberate attempt on the dog’s part to challenge their authority. People who use positive methods to affect relationships get nicer.

It feels nice to be nice.
Children learn to respect and understand other living beings instead of learning to be violent with them. When training programs founder, positive trainers are more apt to seek new solutions rather than falling back on force and pain, or worse, blaming – and possibly discarding – the dog for not adapting to our rigid concept of training. Indeed, in the last two decades,
during which time positive training has gained a huge following, we’ve made even more advances in our training creativity and our understanding of behavior, canine and otherwise, and have even more positive options, tools, and techniques.

So, why positive? It’s simply the best way to train.

The Learn to Earn Program: Developing Leadership in Humans and Impulse Control in Dogs

The following information is from Cattle Dog Publishing: The Legacy of Dr. Sophia Yin

Every day pet owners email me about problems they are having with their dogs—anxiety, aggression, unruly, lack of focus. One of the common themes with all of these scenarios is that these dogs tend to lack impulse control and their humans need to find better ways to provide guidance and leadership.

Fortunately, humans can develop the needed communication skills while training dogs to have self-control and emotional control in one fun, reward-based program called the Learn to Earn Program. In this program, humans gain leadership by controlling all the resources that motivate the pet and requiring the pet willingly work for these items instead of getting them for free. Now, the focus is on using all valued resources to reward desirable behaviors while simultaneously removing the rewards for undesirable behavior.

This overall approach has been called nothing in life is free, no free lunch, or the learn-to-earn program. Each behavior consultant has his or her own variation. The following presentation is my own version of the Learn to Earn Program for Developing Leadership in Humans and Impulse Control in Dogs. The actual program is laid out step-by-step with photos in Perfect Puppy in 7 Days (chapter 5). This blog is part of a 3-part blog that highlights the most important points of my Learn to Earn plan.

Say Please by Automatically Sitting is the Foundation Behavior
In this Learn to Earn program, the idea is to use everything your dog wants to your advantage as rewards for training purposes. The dog will learn to earn everything she wants by politely and automatically saying please by sitting. She will at the same time, learn that performing undesirable behaviors such as jumping on you cause the potential rewards for those behaviors to go away.

For the fastest training, dogs should earn their meal throughout the day when you are home. That means no food in the food bowl. Instead, you’ll carry food around with you in your pockets, in a bait bag or have it available in easily accessible containers throughout the house. Then, throughout the day, when you are home, you’ll reward appropriate behavior.

How the Learn to Earn Program Trains Leadership and Communication Skills in Humans.
This program consists of setting clear rules for the dog to automatically sit for all resources. The human learns to communicate the rules by immediately (i.e., within 0.5 seconds) reinforcing correct behaviors as they occur, and preventing the dog from receiving rewards for undesirable behaviors. So a large part of this program is teaching owners the exact body movements and timing that help them convey a clear message.

Leadership is established when humans can set clear guidelines for the dog’s behavior and can effectively communicate the rules by always rewarding correct behaviors as they occur while preventing or immediately removing the rewards for undesirable behaviors before they are accidentally reinforced. The owner must stick to this plan long enough for the good behaviors to become a habit.

When owners can meet these criteria, their dog learns to view them as consistent, predictable, and able to guide. Alternatively, when rules change randomly the dog may view the owner the same way you might view a boss who keeps changing his mind. Overall with the Learn to Earn Program, rather than complying out of fear, dogs can choose to follow human direction because doing so leads to rewards and then doing so becomes a habit. This model reflects a good understanding of the underlying cause of improper canine behavior and leads to a stronger dog–owner bond.

How the Learn to Earn Program Leads to Self Control in Dogs.
In general, dogs have impulse control issues because taking things without asking, barging through the door, blurting out of turn, and pulling with all their might have worked so well in the past. For some dogs and breeds of dog there may be a physiologic or genetic tendency towards having less impulse control, which means their humans must carry out the program more thoughtfully and consistently than owners of the average dog.

In this program, we turn the house rules onto their head. Whereas taking things without asking worked before, the only thing that works to get them what they want now is to automatically say please by sitting. We start with easy situations such as requiring dogs to sit for treats or kibble delivered by hand. This way we can quickly build up a high rate of reinforcement leading to a faster rate of learning. Next, we systematically work with more difficult situations such as sitting to play fetch or for the opportunity to chase squirrels and then we expect longer or more bouts of desired behavior for fewer and fewer rewards.

The Benefits: How the Program Changes Your Dog’s Perspective
Because dogs learn that the only way they can get what they want is by sitting and looking to you for permission, the learn to earn program teaches them to control their emotions (self-control) even if that means remaining calm in order to:

• get attention from you or whatever they want most.
• that paying attention to you, your words, signals, and guidance are important because it gets them what they want.
• when faced with a difficult situation, they can and should look to you for guidance.

Consequently, the Learn to Earn program is useful for dogs with fear, anxieties (including separation anxiety), arousal issues or hyperactivity, inability to focus on their owners, as well as just general lack of training and unruly behavior.

Why training during all interactions throughout the day and for all resources, including all of their food, is important.
This training throughout the day and for all resources, including each kibble, may seem a huge inconvenience but doing so will make a huge difference. Here’s why we do it.

• So your dog will develop a habit rather than a trick: If you only train in specified sessions, your dog may just learn to behave during those training sessions. The things you do at the start of such sessions, such as pulling out a treat bag or placing a special collar or leash on, will become the cues to behave for just that short time rather than behaving well all the time. Then, if on top of that you add other resources such as petting, attention, and play when she wants these things, you’ll increase your toolbox of rewards even more. Add to this removal of all rewards for undesirable behavior and now you have a formula for changing the dog’s behavior patterns virtually overnight (meaning days to weeks instead of weeks to years).

The necessity and benefits of tethering your dog to you at first.
In the first days of training your dog should be tethered to you on leash at all times when you are at home and she isn’t in her crate or pen, dog-safe room, or tethered to an object near you. When she’s not tethered to you, she specifically needs to be in some type of situation where she can’t practice unwanted behaviors, such as barking, pacing, and others that reinforce poor impulse control. Tethering to you is especially important because:

• If your dog’s near, it’s easier to reward good behaviors as they occur. Otherwise, you tend to forget and miss opportunities, which makes training take weeks or months longer.

• Because she’s supervised, it’s difficult for her to practice or perform unwanted behaviors.

• Tethering to you teaches your dog that when she doesn’t want to pay attention to you, she can’t just blow you off, walk away, and then get rewarded by something else, such as a dropped food wrapper that she grabs. That is, tethering her to you helps prevent rewards for undesirable behavior.

I use a Buddy System hands free leash (www.buddysys.com) for the tethering to me or to furniture. I keep my dog on a regular flat buckle collar or on a harness that hooks to the front such as the WalkinSync®, Freedom Harness® or Gentle Leader Harness.

How long to continue the plan.
Some people assume they’ll have to continue this intense program forever. The reality is that if humans work at this diligently their dogs will progress more in a week than most dog-human teams learn in many months. But just so you have an idea of how long you will go.

Continue the complete indoor program including tethering:

• In general, a dog should stay on this tethering stage until she readily and automatically quickly sits when she wants something—food, attention, to go out the door, etc—and also has a 100% come when called the first time you call even when there are distractions in the house. To develop that 100% come when called you will go through stages where the dog is dragging a long leash so you can specifically work on come.
• For most problem dogs that I work with in my house, this takes just several days or at most a week. For more difficult dogs this stage may last much longer (3-4 weeks for me which means much longer for you).

Continue the sit for everything:

Until you have the perfect dog that you want. Remember that impulse control in one situation will affect arousal and control in another. So that if our dog goes bonkers over squirrels and over tennis balls, say please by sitting in order to play fetch is important for getting him to behave well around squirrels too.

Learn to Earn: Implementing the Program!

#1 First Teach Your Dog to Automatically Say Please By Sitting for Treats

Just hold a treat when you have a hungry dog (on leash) and quietly wait for her to sit. Once she sits, immediately give her a treat (kibble or treats) followed by a few more sequentially for remaining seated. Then take a few steps backwards, far enough so she has to get up and follow, and repeat the exercise. Repeat the exercise 5-10 times and stop while she still wants to play more.

Randomly play this repeat sit game during the day. The goal is that she thinks sitting is fun and trotting after you and sitting fast becomes a game. Even try to get 10 repeat sits in a minute. When she can do this easily, start rewarding her on a variable ratio where she may get rewarded every 1-3 times she performs the behavior correctly. For ways to make sit even more fun and compelling, read section 5.2.2 in Perfect Puppy in 7 Days.

#2 During the Day Keep Her Tethered to You When You’re At Home (or to furniture close by when you’re at home) and Reward Her For Saying Please Until the Behavior Becomes a Habit
For many dogs, once they know the sit-for-treats exercise well, which usually takes just 5-15 minutes, they are ready to be tethered to you when you are at home in situations where they would have access to interacting with you. Tethering allows you to reward Fido with treats (kibble) for sitting repeatedly so that she learns sitting and focusing on you is fun. If she tries to nudge, paw or jump on you to get the treats, stand still like a tree and ignore her until she sits. For instance, if you’re working at your desk and she puts her paw on your lap, immediately stand up so it’s clear that doesn’t work. Then, when she sits and looks at you, give her a series of treats. Or if you walk to the kitchen and clean the counters and she sits, reward her with a series of treats. As she improves, use fewer treats and space them further apart.

When your dog’s attached to you on leash, she should sit and remain seated when you are stationary and then walk by your side on a loose leash (not ahead of you) when you move from place to place. Choose the same walking side you use when you take her on walks.

If your dog tends to dash ahead, remember to always stop in your tracks immediately as her front feet get ahead of yours, even before she has a chance to get to the end of the leash. That way by the time she does get ahead, it will be clear to her that you have become firmly planted like a pole and are going nowhere until she comes back and sits in front of you.

Your dog's response after a couple of days to a week will provide clues as to how consistent you’ve been. If when she hits the end of the leash she comes back to sit and look at you, you’ve done a great job. If, when she hits the end, her first reaction is to pull harder, you know you’ve accidentally trained her that pulling gets her where she wants to go.NOTE: Many owners will need to practice the leave-it version 2 below as well as one or two heeling games (such as repeat sits on the left side and rewarding walking at attention) before their dogs are ready to be tethered to their owners while the owners are walking around the house.

NOTE: When the dog is tethered to furniture near the owner, the dog can have a toy for entertainment.

#3 Apply the Say Please by Sitting Exercise to the Game of Leave-it Version 1

This exercise teaches the dog to 1) look to you for guidance in new situations, 2) that she can’t get what she wants unless she asks you for permission anyway, 3) that blocking means she can’t get by, and 4) that a release word such as “ok” means she can have what she wanted.

Toss a treat on the ground and then block her from getting it. If she tries to make a dash, quickly sidestep (like a basketball player on defense) to make your block. Avoid grasping her leash with your hands (in basketball you’re not allowed to grab!). Each time she makes a move, thwart her by positioning yourself in her path fast enough so that she knows you mean business. Because you’re not confusing her with distracting chatter (e.g. you are completely silent), she’ll figure out that she can’t get to what she wants and then sit and look at you. Immediately give her a treat while she’s still sitting and then give a few more for remaining seated. When she’s stably looking at you instead of the treat on the floor, move aside so she has a clear path to the treat but be ready to block her again if she starts to get up. Give her a series of treats for looking at you and when she’s stably looking at you then release her with an “ok” and point to the treat to indicate she can get up and get it. Repeat this exercise until she immediately sits and remains focused on you until you give the release (generally at least 5-20 practice trials). At that point you can add a cue word “leave-it” right before you drop treats so that she learns leave-it means sit patiently and look to me for permission and you might get the opportunity to have it.. You can also start practicing in more realistic settings, such as by randomly dropping food in the kitchen or a toy in the living room, telling her to “leave-it” and then blocking her if needed so she doesn’t get it.

#4 Then add the Leave-it Game Version 2

In this version you toss the treat out of leash range and then stand completely still. When Fido pulls to the end of the leash and you fail to budge, she’ll soon figure out pulling gets her nowhere. Since she’s been rewarded so much for sitting and looking at you, she’ll turn back and sit in front of you. Give her a sequence of treats and then when she has a stable “watch” then say the release word and point to the treat. Make sure she can get to the treat on a loose leash or you will have negated what you just did. Note that this exercise helps teach Fido that when she gets to the end of her leash she should turn and then sit and look at you.

#5 Now Require That Your Dog Sit Politely for Everything She Wants.

Say please by sitting automatically to be petted: This is the most difficult exercise for people because humans tend to pet their pets without thinking. So it’s an exercise for humans to be aware of when they are unconsciously rewarding the wrong behaviors. This exercise is especially important for dogs that jump on people for attention or that are highly motivated for petting and attention and anxious when they don’t get it when they want it (such as with separation anxiety). In this exercise only pet your dog when she’s sitting. Pet in short 5 seconds bouts so that you can reward her for remaining sitting. Remove your hands and even stand up straight and look away if the dog even starts to get up. For wiggly dogs you can start by giving treats while simultaneously petting so the dog will hold still, and stop the petting and treat giving at the same time. Then work towards petting followed immediately by giving treats before the dog starts to wiggle. Then pet while the dog’s getting treats but space the treats out in time. Then stop giving treats altogether and just reward with the petting. For dogs that are really wiggly, hyperactive, or anxious, require that they lie down instead of sitting to be petted.

Say please by sitting automatically to get the leash on or have taken off: Wait for your dog to sit politely before you go to put the leash on. If needed, you can give treats while putting the leash on. If treats are needed, practice putting the leash on at least 5-10x in a day. That way, by day two or three, treats will no longer be required.

Say please by sitting automatically to go through door: The leave-it technique applies to waiting to go through doorways. Instead of letting Fido rush past you, first wait until he sits to open the door. Then when you open the door, block him, as you learned in the leave-it exercise from coming out. Only let him through the door when he’s sitting stably and focused on you.

Say please by sitting automatically to get out of the car: If your dog loves riding in the car, and in particular getting out, then have her sit patiently before you let her out of the car. Again use the blocking exercise to train this. Ultimately the goal is she automatically sits and waits for your release word and doesn’t need any treats.

Before you toss a toy: When Fido wants to play fetch, wait until he sits to toss the toy to him. If he has huge arousal issues around toys, then actually teach him to sit or lie down and remain seated even after you toss the toy. This exercise is particularly important for dogs that get more aroused and unruly during or after playing fetch and with those who are possessive over their toys.

Say please by sitting in order to get you to approach: For dogs that are overly dependent and who whine or bark when you are out of their reach because they want your attention, tether them to furniture and walk away. Then go up and pet them only if they will sit when you are just outside of their petting range. When they understand this association, then graduate to expecting them to sit if they want you to approach. That is, we want them to learn that whining, barking, and howling do not work to get your attention; rather, sitting or lying down and controlling their emotions is what gets you to approach and pet them.

These are the standard times when dogs should say please by sitting but also tailor the “please” to your needs. Some dogs may need to understand in additional situations (such as coming out of their crate ) that they only get what they want when they are calm and collected. Overall these exercises will help your dog be calmer, more focused and exhibit better self control. As a result he’ll be able to be more attentive to your signals and directions.

Good job!

You have completed the Learn to Earn Course!