Training Howard

Howard's training consists of multiple daily sessions of operant conditioning with positive reinforcement that mainly focus on desensitization. On his first day, we spent about eight hours (with lots of breaks in between) working on doorways. It took something like an hour and forty five minutes for him to walk through his first doorway and come into the house.

Today, doorways are a matter of course, and Howard walks through them both of his own accord and on command with little fuss. The only time they become an issue is when he encounters a traffic jam of canines trying to pass through a doorway at once. He doesn't like to linger in passages, so he will hop over everyone else and bound ahead. He can jump over Jackson with all four feet without even coming close to touching him. Jackson is not a small dog.

Right now, Howard's main training involves practicing looking at a leash, collar, or other similar threatening object and then getting treats. David and I drape the leash or other rope-like Scary Thing over our wrist and offer a treat. Howard will only approach the Scary Thing for a very high value treat. It is not hard to find Scary Things around the house. Anything that vaguely resembles a leash or collar will do--a tiny kitten collar with a bell attached, a shoe lace, a hair tie, and a piece of ribbon are all Scary Things. We also spend time taking Scary Things--even real collars and leashes--and attaching them to other pets, buckling and unbuckling them and jingling tags while ignoring Howard and praising whomever is having their collar adjusted. Our dogs enjoy this a lot since they already like having their collars adjusted, so this is a free reward for them.

Another part of Howard's training is the "Let's Put This Thing Over Our Head" game. This game involves putting objects that are not Scary Things over the heads of various members of the household, including Howard. Objects that are not Scary Things include blankets, towels, and t-shirts, among other things. Howard is pretty good at this game.

Meanwhile, Howard's personality is emerging as an affectionate, obedient, gentleman of a dog. He loves contact with humans and other animals, and interacts politely with both. He's a good communicator, and it's pretty easy to understand him and get him to understand us now, though a lot of his language with humans is different from most dogs. (That will probably be the subject of another post.) He definitely enjoys being with people,  likes to snuggle on the couch when we call him up there, and sleeps happily on the big dog bed that we keep at the foot of our bed. He's lovely inside the house with no interest in chewing or marking. In short, he's a terrific dog that's been trained to have some very specific fears, so our job will just be to retrain those.