No Means…What Exactly?

No Means…What Exactly?

By Lisa Ellman

I’m starting to be very conscious of eliminating the word “command” from my training vocabulary. I’m replacing it with the word, “behavior”. I just don’t like the way “command” sounds, or the connotations of it, anymore. And, basically, what we are teaching the dog is a behavior.

Speaking of training vocabulary, lets consider the word ”No”. “No” is neither a command nor a behavior, it gives the dog zero information about what behavior you desire. One of my favorite teachable moments is when I ask a client what they say when their dog doesn’t respond to a “command” or does something wrong/bad. They invariably tell me they say “No”. My follow up question is always, “No what?”. And that, without fail, leaves them stumped. It’s not that I like putting them on the spot (yes it is), it’s that once I point this out, a lightbulb goes off!

My next question is usually, “What do you want your dog to do instead?”, and this, again, seems to confuse people. “Uhh, I’m not sure”, is often their response. And then we laugh. The N O word can also contribute much confusion to your dog. For example, trying to get the dog to sit. One says “sit” and the dog jumps up. Dollars to donuts the next thing out of one’s mouth is, “No, sit!”. In your dog’s brain, you have just contradicted yourself, and confused them…sit or no sit?

A significant part of the hang up in getting one’s dog to do the right thing is that your message is not clear. Here’s another genuine example. I ask, “What do you want your dog to do when someone enters the house?” Their response, “Well I don’t want her to bark or jump on people.” Read those two sentences again and try to figure out where the mix up is. Hint: I asked what they WANT the dog to do. It’s perplexing to me, how often I hear what people don’t want. Maybe it’s because we humans have a difficult time saying exactly what WE want?

Who knows. But I digress…Different people in different situations have different desires about what behavior they want to see when someone enters the home. And that is totally ok! If you want your dog to go to place and stay, teach them. If you want your dog to stop grabbing things from the garbage, teach “Leave it”. If you want your dog not to jump on people, teach an alternative behavior. Focus on ways for them to earn praise, instead of constantly correcting “wrong” behavior. The issue of “wrong” behavior largely comes about because the human doesn’t have a plan. They know what they don’t want, but have failed to take the next step and give the dog information about what they do want This is the crux of teaching your dog to do the right thing. YOU have to know what the right thing is. Your dog is always seeking information from you, but they have dog brain and require very specific, clear communication. Think about action and reaction, watch how your dog responds to your body language and vocal inflections. A simple, sharp, “Eh!”, is enough to get your dog’s attention, before redirecting.

It is also essential that when you are training new behavior(s), you are fully engaged in the activity and have a goal, a vision of the behavior you want from your dog. Put in the work everyday until your dog is consistently successful. It definitely is work, but the rewards make it worth the effort. And your dog will thank you too; “Oh! Now I know what you want!”

Good Dogma has been training humans and their dogs since 1996. Readers are invited to submit questions to gooddogma@hotmail.com. Contact information and all offered services can be found on our website www.GoodDogma.net