This is the first of a few emails I’ll be sending out as a recap of my recent week at The Michael Ellis School For Dog Trainers in Santa Rosa, CA, where I attended Kynology 4.0, a symposium on modern dog training. My brain is pretty full right now, so I’ll be splitting this in to several emails, and then converting them to blog posts here at daisypeel.com.
I’ve spent over twenty years trying to perfect my ability to create and change behaviors using only reinforcement with a sprinkling of negative punishment. Trying, always trying, always falling short, always something missing from the equation. Timing, criteria, rate, type, schedule, you name it.
I think it’s fair to say I’ve gotten very, very good at reinforcement strategies, and why wouldn’t I? It’s something I’ve been paying attention to for over twenty years. Something I’ve been applying myself to. I’m skilled at it, and I am also skilled at helping others get better with reinforcement strategies. Reinforcement strategies and reinforcement constitutes the bulk of all my dog training, and the bulk of all good modern dog training for those trainers who are employing it.
Now, though, I’m keenly interested in upping my game with….aversives and punishment. What constitutes a punisher? What constitutes an aversive experience for a dog? How does context change the value of an event such that it’s sometimes a reinforcing experience and sometimes an aversive experience for the dog? Why are some behaviors resistant to consequences, be they reinforcements or punishments?
What happens when we try to raise up a dog that never experiences anything aversive, or anything stressful, or that doesn’t ever experience any pressure? How can I use social pressure to my advantage, and when should I avoid using social pressure as a punishment? How can I set up situations that might cause my dog some stress but that will create resilience on the other side, and most importantly, what role does aversive control and aversives in general play in improving a dog’s welfare? And MY welfare? What even IS welfare?
Some of these questions I already had. Some I didn’t even have language to formulate. Some were just a vague nagging feeling that something was missing, that there was a whole realm that was veiled to me, and it was those questions and vague notions that led me to the work of Michael Ellis, and then Dr. Stewart Hilliard and the Kynology group.
More on what I found there in the next email, but if you’re curious, check out https://www.kynology.org – there’s even a video of ME there that you can watch if you register for a free account.