I took her to puppy kindergarten where she promptly bit my arm while we were teaching our dogs to lie down by yanking the collar toward the ground. At the time I thought the worst: This dog was deranged and perhaps I couldn't keep her. I talked to my vet and he told me about "something for something," as he called it. He told me that I should make her follow a command before I gave her anything, that nothing was for free. I told her to sit before I fed her, gave her a toy, bone or affection.
I had no idea until more than 20 years later I was practicing positive, rewards-based training. The author in with her willful puppy Roxie, who turned out to be a great dog.
Julie LeRoy. Roxie was also a leash puller. She was growing fast and growing big. I went to the pet store and was advised to purchase a prong collar. It squeezed her throat every time she pulled, and to this day I don't even recall if it worked. It looked like such a medieval contraption but I didn't even give it a second thought. It was all I knew. Again, I would find out more than 20 years later that this was a method of alpha training.
What are the differences between positive reinforcement training and dominance-based also known as alpha dog training? Positive reinforcement training is based on rewarding a dog for desirable behavior and withholding a reward for negative behavior. It can also involve clicker training.
You essentially mark the dog by tapping the clicker and offering a treat at the time the good behavior is observed. The belief is, you are maintaining the dog's good spirit and trust by avoiding harsh reprimands or physical force. Your dog learns through trial and error that responding to the owner's commands brings positive reinforcement. Failure to respond to the command results in something good being taken away. Dominance-based dog training involves reprimanding in a harsh voice and using tools that cause discomfort such as pinch collars and shock collars or subjecting the dog to something he doesn't like.
