The Average Dog

Science has shown that positive reinforcement works best with the average dog. This is why it’s important to point out that the average dog doesn’t have leash reactivity, territorial barking, resource guarding, major fear or anxiety, and so on.

This is something even I forget, sometimes for long periods. I start wondering if everything I’m doing is wrong, despite almost thirty years of experience. I try positive reinforcement only, just to find that it doesn’t work.

Then something reminds me: it works best on the average dog. It does work, brilliantly, on sane, stable dogs, which are most of them. It’s when you get toward the edges of the bell curve that things start to fall apart.

I’m not saying you should beat your dog–far from it. But using a squirt bottle, putting them into a quick sit, reversing directions–these are all things that frequently work on the dog that isn’t average, and has more than the average level (or number of) problems.

It’s easy to forget that it’s not the average when the dogs you see all the time have problems, because that’s what I do: I work with the problem dogs, of all levels.

Is positive reinforcement still important? Oh, heck yeah! I use it all the time, because it’s the best way to teach a dog how to do something, whether or not they’re average. But if you’re working with dogs who aren’t average, or you have dogs who aren’t average, it’s important to remember that it shouldn’t be the only thing in your repertoire.

Jenna