What reward should you use for training?
What’s your reinforcement (reward) scoring against the environment you’re training in? It’s a question I often ask owners when they’re training skills such as recall, stay etc.
Every dog is different, some will work for food, some for praise/interaction and others for toys – sometimes breed is a factor, but every dog is individual. The fact remains, you know your dog better than anyone. So, if you’re training why not take some time to establish their “pay scale”.
What’s a pay scale? Well, if I offered you £1 to run 10miles would you do it? What about if I offered you £10k? Remember, when we train our dogs it’s often for our benefit, not theirs. I suspect no human would offer 35hrs a week, 50 weeks a year of their time if they weren’t paid a salary….but you’re not being “bribed” – you’re earning it. Money is a big motivator for humans, the biggest! (as your employer is well aware).
If your dog is food motivated, offer two types of food rewards (a different one in each hand) at the same time and see which order they eat them. On the next “round”, replace the second choice with a different option (winner stays on effectively) until you’ve found the “highest ranking” food reward. Once you’ve eliminated the opposition try the exercise again, this time excluding the “winner” – the most favoured reward will now place second.
You can do a similar exercise with toys, how does a ball rank against a tug toy? Are squeaky toys higher value than non squeaky? Does a frisbee outrank a ball? Remember it’s the interaction which is the value on toys – so you’ll need to engage in play with each one and see how quickly your dog gets bored rather than expecting them to choose (like they would with food).
What keeps them close to you the longest – ear rubs? belly scratches? bum massages? Again, for praise/interaction driven dogs it’s about knowing what “floats their boat”.
Once you have a pay scale, you can then use it when training. Start with the lowest ranking reward, you can then “go up” the scale as needed. Remember, where you’re training is so important – will carrot outrank other dogs playing nearby – not likely! but in the garden with no distractions, it could be sufficient to get that focus.
Enjoy your training!
PLEASE NOTE: Dogs taking medication or with any ailment or illness should seek the advice of a Vet before making changes relating to their dog’s diet and/or exercise.
Louise Burton IMDT
Hilton Dogs Training Academy