Dog Training Today with Will Bangura: #138 Train As You Go: Turning Ordinary Moments into Training Opportunities for Your Dog

Imagine turning every random moment of your day with your furry friend into a mini dog training session, building reliability and attentiveness with just a simple cue. It might seem like a dream, but that's exactly what we're promising in today's episode with the method 'Train as You Go.' Discover the triple power of the cue "down" - it’s easy, calming, and extremely adaptable. You'll learn how to use this foundational command, and why you should be aiming for at least 10 mini training moments every day. We'll also share a secret - the importance of a treat pouch and high-pitched praise. 

Now, what if you could turn everyday activities into exciting learning opportunities, challenging your pup while keeping him engaged and attentive? That's where we jump in with the concept of incremental challenges. Starting with the basic "down" command, we'll guide you on how to gradually up the stakes, making each day a little more challenging than the last. But remember, it's not just about the challenges; it's about making the training fun and rewarding for both of you. We'll share some tips on experimenting with different cues and making every training session a positive experience. So, buckle up and get ready for a fun-filled journey of training and growth with your furry friend.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Do you ever feel like your dog needs a brain switch before they start listening and training, or does your dog only perk up after the, say, third or fourth time that you've given a commander cue? Well, I want to take just about 10 minutes or less to introduce you to an incredible technique called train. As you go, this technique will transform every day moments into little tiny, mini, mini training sessions, and this is going to build attentiveness and it's going to build reliability. One quick cue at a time. Don't go anywhere. Let's take a couple minutes and unpack this.

Speaker 2: 0:45

Raised by wolves with canine DNA and his blood. Having trained more than 24,000 vets helping you and your fur babies thrive, live in studio with Will Bangura answering your pet behavior and training questions. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome your host and favorite pet behavior expert, Will Mangura.

Speaker 1: 1:14

Would you like to go on Wookiees? Good day dog lovers. I'm Will Bangura. Thanks for joining me for another episode of dog training today. Today I'm going to just do a real quick, brief, brief, mini podcast. I want to talk about a technique that I don't know if it's something that I picked up from another trainer years ago or whether this is something that just came about in my mind doing tons of training with dogs and clients, but I call it train as you go and I'm going to talk about doing train as you go with drop and chill.

Speaker 1: 2:01

Okay, one of the things that you know I think we've all experienced this, whether you're a new dog owner, a new pet parent, or whether you are a seasoned dog trainer listening to this podcast. When you start a training session, do you have the dog the kind of dog that it kind of needs a little bit of a warm up period where, when you first start your structured let's say, for example, you devote 30 minutes every day of structured training time and you begin that session with your dog and maybe the first command or cue or two, your dog's a little slow to get started, but then after 30 seconds, 60 seconds or so, you've asked the dog to do one, two, three things. Now, all of a sudden, you've got your dog's attention. Now your dog is in the groove, so to speak. Well, in the real world. And why do we train? Isn't it so that we can communicate to our dogs in the real world and we can manage them and manage their behaviors? So the only benefit of training is if it's reliable when you need it in the real world. And in the real world there's not a warm up period. In the real world we need our dogs to respond right away, the first time, the first time that we give a command or a cue. Okay, so train as you go. It's like sprinkling training fairy dust throughout your day. What you're going to do is you're going to incorporate short, random training opportunities into your regular routine. You're going to constantly remind your dog that focus and listening and needing to respond to a cue or command can happen anywhere and it can happen anytime. Think of it as building a bridge between structured training sessions and real life scenarios.

Speaker 1: 4:37

Now I like to use the thing that I call drop and chill. Why drop and chill? Well, using the cue down as our training foundation does several things. It kind of offers a triple whammy, if you will, of benefits. First of all, it's simple and clear. It's a straightforward keyword command. Most dogs understand it Now. Granted, if your dog does not know how to lie down, well, you need to teach your dog how to lie down first in order to be able to start this process. But again, it's simple and clear. It's straightforward Most dogs understand the keyword command of going down. Number two, the other benefit why do you drop and chill? Well, it has a calming effect.

Speaker 1: 5:28

Lying down promotes relaxation and that reduces unwanted behaviors. Also, there's versatility. Down is useful in various situations I talked about. You know it's useful for calming down an excitable dog, and maybe you need your dog to lie down because your dog's in your way when you're cooking and you need to move your dog 10 feet away and ask your dog to lie down. There's lots of practical applications for that. All right, are you ready to unleash the magic? All right, let's go through what the steps are.

Speaker 1: 6:06

Okay, so first of all, let's talk about duration. Now, if you are going to do this, I want you to dedicate 30 days to this experiment. Okay, do it 30 days. You can do that. I guarantee you're going to love the benefits if you do this. So dedicate 30 days to this experiment. Remember can consistency. Consistency is key.

Speaker 1: 6:37

Now let's talk about our target frequency. What we want to do is we want to shoot for at least 10 train as you go, moments per day, and you're going to do this very spontaneously throughout the day. So 10 times randomly throughout the day, you're going to ask your dog to drop, you're going to ask your dog to lie down, and that's it, and you're going to go about your day. Now let's make sure that in the beginning of the day, you get your treat pouch on, because, again, you're going to be doing this randomly throughout the day. You don't have time to just go grab your treat pouch. So have a treat pouch on. Stock up on your dog's favorite treats. They should be highly palatable. Also, make sure that you've got some really good, high pitched praise and playful affection for your dog as well. All right, we need to embrace these little tiny moments of training with our dog every day. So, throughout your day, what you need to do is you need to keep your eyes open for your dog.

Speaker 1: 8:02

Okay, be more attentive and aware of your dog throughout your day and where your dog is, as you, let's say, pass your dog in the hallway or walk by your dog's bed or go into the kitchen and your dog happens to be in the kitchen or you walk into the living room. Well, whenever you see your dog randomly, you know you're going from the kitchen to living room. Whenever you see your dog randomly, give that one and done cure command, ask your dog to lay down, give the cue for down. When your dog goes down, make sure that you're showering your dog with rewards, mark that behavior with a clicker or an excited yes and make sure that you follow that by a high value food reward or Praise, love, attention or a favorite toy. Now, make sure that you keep this random.

Speaker 1: 9:10

What do I mean by that? Well, mix it up, don't fall into a predictable routine, and what I mean by that is vary the locations, the context and the times of these little mini training sessions. And when I say a mini training session, I'm talking about giving a cue one time, having your dog do that, respond to that mark and reward and then go about your business. So, literally, this is 30 seconds or less and you go about your business, and you do this at least 10 times a day. Now, like I said, these are short and sweet. Keep the interactions brief. I mean it could be five to 10 seconds of focused training. Now all I'm doing is asking the dog to lie down. I'm marking and rewarding, releasing the dog going about my business, and that will leave a very lasting impression if you're consistent, if you commit to 30 days, if you do this 10 times every day, randomly, if your dog doesn't respond right away, just simply repeat the cue or command and reward any progress, even a partial drop or a lowered head.

Speaker 1: 10:33

Remember the goal is to build attentiveness and reliability. All right, practice, practice. Practice doesn't make perfect, there's no such thing as perfection, but it brings about more reliability and permanence of that behavior. Now let's make sure that we're celebrating our progress and our success. Track your wins, all right. Keep a simple log or a chart to track your daily train. As you go, moments, Think about what you're seeing in your progress, witnessing your progress, monitoring that, putting it down on paper. That can be very motivating for you.

Speaker 1: 11:21

Now the other thing gradually increase the difficulty. What do I mean by that? Well, as your dog becomes more reliable, add a slight challenge, use it down in a slightly more distracting environment or maybe create a distraction for a second and have the dog stay in that down a little longer, maybe five seconds, before releasing your dog. Now, most importantly, have fun with this. Let the training be a joyful bonding experience. Your dog's gonna pick up on your positive energy. Your dog's gonna pick up on your enthusiasm. So make sure that you're having fun with that. Make the promise, make the process that your dog has to go through something that your dog will love to do, and when you do that, you're always gonna have a dog that's gonna respond well for you.

Speaker 1: 12:29

Now let me give you a bonus tip Don't just limit yourself to down. Feel free to experiment with other basic cues like sit or stay or come as you get comfortable with the train, as you go technique and as you get through your first 30 days at least 10 times each day, just asking your dog to lie down and marking and rewarding Once you get through that process. Try that with different cues. Okay. Remember consistency. Consistency is the key and patience, okay.

Speaker 1: 13:16

But by preparing your day with these mini training opportunities, what's gonna happen is you're gradually gonna shape your dog into being more attentive and more focused towards you and more responsive when you're asking your dog to do something and getting your dog to listen the first time, every time, every time where there's no warmup needed, no warmup required, all right. So grab your treats, all right. Grab your treats, grab your treat bag, channel your inner canine behaviorist and get ready to sprinkle some train as you go magic into your lives. Have a great day, everybody. I'm outta here. Get in the dog. Just get in the dog. Come on, just get in the dog come on.