Dog Training Essentials: Jumping & Counter Surfing Workshop

Hi Dinna,
Thank you for your feedback and I'm sorry to hear you aren't satisfied with the course content. If I'm correct in which video you are referring to, it's covering how to capture wanted incompatible behavior with jumping on the counter in the kitchen. As described in that module, 'This is her first session of practicing Sit in the kitchen while I prepare food on the counter. I’m not asking her to Sit, I’m waiting for her to offer it, clicking, and then treating. At the same time, she's learning that jumping on people doesn't get her anything. Do you see how she starts to offer Sit faster and hold it longer as this short training session goes on? ... My expectations in this session are low, and my goal is just to focus on rewarding the sit. Her owners don't mind if she's in the kitchen while they cook, which is why I'm not focused on teaching her to stay out of the kitchen altogether. Just remember that you should train for your expectations and goals — every family is different in what they want from their dog's behavior.'
It certainly can look counterintuitive but what's important to remember here is the timing. Dogs need reinforcement or correction within one to two seconds of the behavior. With the dog in the video, I'm starting easy, just rewarding the sit and ignoring the jumping. Once a dog has a reinforcement history for an incompatible behavior, then I might address and potential behavior chain that a dog has learned.

The process for addressing non food items vs. food items on the counter is the same. I would also recommend lots of enrichment for dogs who like to 'forage' for non food items.

Great question about attention – it certainly is a reinforcer for many dogs. If she finds that 'misbehaving' gets her attention, then it can make the behavior happen more. Ignoring unwanted behavior is a technique that can be used for jumping on people, but is not very effective without also focusing on teaching incompatible behaviors. I would not use the ignoring technique for counter surfing because of the inherent reinforcement of finding items or food on the counter and the potential danger of ingesting something.

I am always happy to answer these questions within the course in the comments section for each module, which can be especially helpful so we know which videos or section you are referring to. That way you can get personalized feedback for each step of the training process. Again, thank you for sharing your experience. Best — Cathy