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When a dog doesn’t respond, the key is to add more information. What that information looks like depends on why I think the dog isn’t doing it.
If the Dog is Hesitant or Doesn’t Know
In this case, I add lighter information: a food lure, subtle body language, or a poppier tone of voice.
This usually happens during the learning stages - and remember, dogs go through learning stages throughout their lives, not just when first taught.
I ask myself:
• Has the dog been asked to do this in this environment before?
• Did the environment suddenly get more difficult?
I always want to start as soft as I can.
This doesn’t mean a complete absence of pressure - often, pressure is how we first ask for things (think gentle leash pressure to sit). If the dog isn’t responding, I won’t remove the pressure entirely, but I also won’t add extra pressure in that moment.
If the Dog Understands but Doesn’t Want To
Here I add more pressure.
Once the dog has learned the behavior and performed it many times and I’ve asked lightly multiple times and gotten the right response before, I can confidently say:
“Ok, I know you know this, let’s stop messing around.” And make it happen with more pressure, this could be the increase of leash pressure, ecollar pressure, or spatial pressure.
The Risks of Misjudging
• A dog who is hesitant, nervous, or confused may shut down if more pressure is added.
• A dog who is resistant or defiant may become more resistant if they’re given a food lure after refusing.
This is what developing your feel is all about - it’s about connection and understanding. It’s about knowing when to lighten up and when more pressure is necessary. Developing your feel takes time, repetition, and more repetition! I personally think a perfect feel doesn’t exist, but if you’ve got it give me a call - you’re hired!
The Three D’s
Distance: The space between you and your dog.
Duration: The length of time you are asking your dog to perform a behavior.
Distraction: Whatever else is going on around you dog when you are asking them to perform certain behaviors.
As each D increases, it becomes more difficult for your dog to understand how to perform a behavior successfully. And if all three come into play without your dog having trained for each one individually, the chance of him doing what you ask is slim.
The farther away you get, the less reliable your dog will become. When you’re training distance, start small and build slowly. When training, always return to your dog before you release him or give him his final reward. Doing so will prevent him from anticipating his treat and following you as you walk away.
Some behaviors don’t have a duration factor, such as spinning in a circle or jumping over a bar, but for those behaviors that require your dog to hold a position, like “sit” or “down,” the longer he has to hold it, the harder the task becomes.
If your dog finds it exciting or disrupting, it’s a distraction. Even extra-special treats can be distracting for some dogs. Be sure your dog can handle duration and distance before you start adding distractions. That means training new behaviors in familiar, quiet environments where you are the most interesting thing in the room.
Any time you notice your dog struggling to perform a behavior you thought he knew, look at the three Ds. Chances are there is something too tricky for him to handle. Incorporate duration, distance, and distraction into your training to ensure your dog understands what you’re asking no matter what.