Science Behind Positive Reinforcement Dog Training | Pupford

Positive Reinforcement training is the most effective and humane route to train your dog. Unfortunately, in the past, aversive, punishment, and now-debunked methods were spread by trainers, the media, and other outlets.

Part of our mission here at Pupford is to help spread the message and power of positive-reinforcement-based training!

Choosing to train via positive reinforcement will help your pup be more confident, attentive, and well-behaved in the long run. But don't get us wrong, it takes lots of time, patience, and persistence! :)

Be sure to check out the studies below. Also, if you are new to being a pup parent, I would thoroughly study and understand the first bullet point below about LIMA dog training & the Humane Hierarchy!

Pupdates for Today: Dogs in the classroom improve reading scores, cognitive learning and more! https://www.weareteachers.com/dogs-in-the-classroom/

Podcast Episode

If you haven’t already, please subscribe to the Podcast! You can do that here.

Video of Episode about Positive Reinforcement

If you haven’t already, please subscribe to our YouTube channel to be up to date on our new videos! Subscribe on YouTube here.

What is Positive Reinforcement Dog Training?

Positive reinforcement dog training is a method of teaching our dogs what we want them to do by adding (positive) something of value to them (a reinforcement) when they do a desired behavior.

So, when you ask your dog to sit, and they sit you give them a treat to positively reinforce that behavior. By reinforcing the behavior, it increases the likelihood of it occurring again in the future.

As a note, our dogs get to choose what is reinforcing. There are many types of reinforcers for dogs, but here are some common ones:

• Treats and food
• Play, like fetch or tug of war
• Petting, scratching or belly rubs
• Verbal praise

It's our job as pup parents to figure out what's reinforcing for our dogs and train accordingly! Remember, the learner (your pup) is the only one can decide how reinforcing something is.

Research & Studies about Positive Reinforcement Dog Training

While science isn't perfect and some studies certainly have their own flaws, the vast majority of research and studies show that aversive training methods can lead to increased stress, anxiety, and even more problem behaviors in the long run.

It's important to look at the research around different training types as we make decisions on how to raise and train our pups.

Links to Relevant Articles and Studies About Types of Training:

• What Is LIMA? https://m.iaabc.org/about/lima/
• Aversive Methods Lead to Signals of Stress. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1558787814000070
• Punishment Makes Dogs Less Playful. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0168159111000876
• AVSAB's Position Statements. https://avsab.org/resources/position-statements/
• Debunking Alpha Dogs, Dominance, and Pack Leadership | Pupford

Recap of Episode

Not everyone you know will teach you science-backed, positive methods for training. That's why it's important to do the research and find what the professionals and researchers have uncovered about the power of positive reinforcement!

Looking for guidance on how to train your dog more effectively? Be sure to check out our 100% free (and positive-reinforcement-based) dog training app.

Get more info about the training app here.

If you have questions, please ask them below in the comments. Thanks for listening/watching/reading this episode, please subscribe to stay on top of all new episodes! :)