tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101438868458660054.post5638707245302696800..comments2024-03-04T06:54:50.622-06:00Comments on Reactive Champion: My Dog is Smarter Than Me, or: Breaking the Reactive Behavior ChainCrystal (Thompson) Barrerahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01738188430244886019noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101438868458660054.post-12862074439396063062010-01-09T16:26:53.183-06:002010-01-09T16:26:53.183-06:00I agree that this is not exactly the expected/norm...I agree that this is not exactly the expected/normal course for a reactive dog! Maisy has been nothing if not unusual. :) And, based on what I've seen with Maisy, yes: The classical conditioning has worked. She definitely isn't reacting emotionally most of the time. (There are a few moments where I can tell she is more stressed, but interestingly, in those moments, she chooses to play Look At That instead of lunging/growling/barking.)<br /><br />I think I wrote that I heavily reinforce/jackpot any time she chooses a "non-reactive" response to a known trigger. If she sees a big dog and starts forward but doesn't actually lunge or make any noise, I treat the heck out of her. If she plays Look At That, it's a big party. In other words, I completely agree that it's necessary to focus on the yes part. The reason I chose to completely ignore the behavior is because I didn't want to build in another step to the behavior chain... can you imagine her lunging, barking, and then doing a perfect front? Because I really believe that's what would happen, and I'm not good at being random enough at preventing it.<br /><br />Here's the interesting/encouraging initial finding:<br /><br />In my CU class this week, I ignored all reactive behavior. When I did, I waited for her to offer something desirable- lying down, sitting in heel, etc. I treated that. She was able to offer that desirable behavior fairly quickly- within 10 seconds or so of her outburst. And, she was incredibly relaxed when she took the reward- no shark teeth.<br /><br />This is a huge difference from the way it usually worked: lunge/bark/growl, turn back, get treat, and frantically take treat with shark teeth. It would take her 20-30 seconds to relax and take the treat calmly again.<br /><br />I'm not sure if I explained that well, but basically, it seems like being rewarded for the reactive behavior actually made her more aroused. Not being rewarded for her seems to defuse or derail the emotions. <br /><br />I'm really not sure what will happen going forward. This could be really awesome, or I might conclude that it wasn't as helpful as I'd hoped. The hard part is that I'll need to be able to tell if worsening behavior is just an extinction burst, or if it's actually worsening....Crystal (Thompson) Barrerahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01738188430244886019noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101438868458660054.post-24887665983133378912010-01-09T13:13:35.914-06:002010-01-09T13:13:35.914-06:00huh. that is a really interesting conclusion and ...huh. that is a really interesting conclusion and I honestly don't know what I think. From everything I've read they have all said that classical conditioning overrides operant conditioning. So even if your dog was barking/lunging/reacting you are still going to change the emotional response of your dog by pairing the other dog with cookies. In theory once the emotion starts to change so would your dog's behavioral. And I would expect there to be some middle point where the dog is still a bit nervous but doesn't react right away and you jackpot that. Plus everything should be done as much as possible below threshold so the dog is getting more treats from not reacting. <br />Of course in real life things go differently and you can't always be below threshold.<br /><br />So I'm not saying that you are wrong about Maisy's new behavior chain, but it's hard for me to grasp that from what I've read. I would be really interested to see what happens in the next few weeks!<br /><br />But assuming that Maisy does have this new chain, you are right in that even a glance in her direction could reinforce it. I think that is why I would still try and focus on the "yes" part of what you want her to do- sit, come fore, etc. and try to cue that before she reacts. of course if she reacts and then you cue a come fore that cue could reinforce the reaction. ahh, dog training is confusing!<br /><br />Anyways I'm really just writing the thoughts that are popping into my head right now. I'm not really trying to disagree with your conclusion :)Laura and The Corgi, Toller, & Duckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06437492165453445126noreply@blogger.com