Tootsie has been learning new behaviors.  One behavior that we’ve been working on is “chin.” Tootsie targets her chin to the ground while she is in the down position.

I involve Tootsie as an active participant in the learning process.  She is responsible for trying to figure out the desired behavior, and I am responsible for guiding her towards success.

After just a few sessions, she has figured out “chin;” she confidently targets her chin to the floor when we engage in a training interaction.  Now it’s time to teach her to wait for the appropriate verbal cue.

If I had lured the behavior, this task would be easier.  I could say my verbal cue, then immediately follow with my lure.  I would repeat this until Tootsie understood the connection.  But I don’t have a lure for this behavior.

Instead, I do this:

(You may have to turn up your volume to hear everything.)

00:05 – I reinforce for getting in the (down) position that is required to do the behavior

00:10 – I reinforce for offering “chin.”

00:15 – I reinforce for offering “chin.”

00:19 – I reinforce for offering “chin.”

00:23 – Tootsie offers chin, but I do not click.  Instead, I softly say “okay” to release her. When she raises her head, I say “chin.” She does the behavior, I reinforce.

00:30 – Same as 00:23

00:38 – I verbally praise her for keeping her head up. I say “chin.” She does the behavior, I reinforce.

00:44 – Tootsie keeps her head up. I say “chin.” She does the behavior, I reinforce.

00:49 – Tootsie offers chin, but I do not click.  Instead, I softly say “okay” to release her. When she raises her head, I say “chin.” She does the behavior, I reinforce.

1:00 – Tootsie keeps her head up. I say “chin.” She does the behavior, I reinforce.

1:06 – I verbally praise her for keeping her head up. I say “chin.” She does the behavior, I reinforce.

Some notes about this training session:

1. I begin the training session with a few reps of her offering the behavior; I want her to know what behavior we are working on.

2. Tootsie already knows that verbal praise, especially “good,” means that I like what she is doing and to keep doing it.  This encourages her to keep her head upright until she hears the cue.

3. Tootsie already knows that “okay” is a release from the behavior she just offered.

4. Tootsie does not know what “chin” means, and she has never heard it before in a training context.  But, Tootsie has played this game enough with other behaviors to know that when she hears a novel word it is likely to be the green light for the behavior she wants to offer.

5. This is just the start.  After a few sessions of this, I will work on her ability to discriminate “chin” from other verbal cues.  I may do something like ask her to “down” and then ask her to either “chin” or do a well known behavior like “sit.” She will have to really listen to be successful.