Yesterday I did a 90 second Instagram reel on aversive techniques in training. Conventional choke collar training is where my own training experience began. Waaaaayyyy, back when I was 13 years old (1975) aversive training was all that there was. The positive reinforcement training revolution had yet to make an appearance in the little town in Canada where I was from.
Aversive - A reprimand or punishment.
Aversive training works by shutting down a behavior by inflicting pain or fear; it does nothing to educate our dogs.
I didn’t discover positive reinforcement training until the mid 90s; and once I did, I never looked back. I think this is one of the MAJOR reasons I am so passionate about positive training. Once you really learn how dogs learn best; a more humane way to train, there is no going back.
When I was first into training, I remember the whole feel being about anger. If your dog didn’t do what you wanted, you yanked on them. It was us against the dogs and I have to say that much of the aversive or “balanced” training I see out there is still the same. :(
The first “trainer” I worked with was probably one of the most alpha, dominant woman I’ve ever met. It was all about physical control over the dogs. Looking back I shudder at the things she shared with new dog guardians. I remember going to the first class of a session where she and her assistant were fitting slip collars on the dogs.
“It has to be tight and right up behind the ears” her assistant told me. “No I’m not putting it there,” I told her. She instantly got her back up; I was not the normal student who was going to do what they told me blindly. She called the head trainer over to deal with the young rebel (me). I held my ground as I pushed back at every tactic she attempted to conform me with. It was futile, I wasn’t buying what she was selling.
It wasn’t long after that when I was introduced to a better, more humane and extremely more educated way of teaching dogs - Karen Pryor’s clicker training. From the moment of learning that there was a better way, my mind never stopped wanting more. My story is a long one; 48 years since I first laid my hands on a dog in the conformation ring and training class. A lot has changed since then in the world of training dogs; and my own evolution has been a huge one.
I didn’t come from a dog background so what I learned about dogs was all on my own. Once you learn how it can be done without anger, without pain infliction, without yelling and dominating…it just becomes about the connection. The connection we have with the canine species can be an amazing one. But, if you stay stuck in history; and you aren’t willing to learn a better way, to do better for our dogs, things never change.
I hate that I still see people yanking and yelling at their dogs. So many people with pinch/prong collars on their dog.
You can’t do better, until you know better.
Maya Angelou
This is one of my favorite quotes and it so applies to our dogs. People just don’t know. But, if enough people talk about it; if we can get the dialogue going, people will hear about a better way.
Dogs are FAR more intelligent than we know.