Simply Ignoring Bad behaviors and redirecting does not work.

Some trainers will say an owner can get rid of bad behaviors with 3 simple things:

1. Ignore bad behaviors

2. Redirect your dog to something they should be doing instead

3. Reward good behaviors
   

The problem is this 100% positive approach does NOT work for the vast majority of dogs. There has to be a balanced system of both rewards AND consequences. Yes, of course we want to reward the dogs for good choices- absolutely! But there also has to be SOME level of consequence/accountability for bad behaviors to actually stop the bad behaviors long-term. Sometimes... being a "bad dog" is just way more fun and rewarding then being a "good dog".

Tell "ignore bad behaviors" to owners with the following:

1. The dog that continues to bark non-stop at every little thing... even when barking is ignored, the owners try to refocus the dog on something else & "quiet" is rewarded with treats and praise. Yet... the dog still barks ALL the time!

2. The dog that continues to lunge, bark, growl at other dogs while out on a leash walk... despite the owner trying to redirect the dog with a toy or food when passing other dogs on the walk. Not only is the redirection technique constantly needed and often cumbersome to handle, but it will fail quite frequently for many dogs. AND even more importantly.... it never actually teaches the dog to makes better choices. It never addresses the actual problem of reactivity. It is nothing more than a "Band-Aid" technique.

3. The dog that is so "mouthy" with humans that it has left marks and scars on the hands and arms of the owners... despite the owners trying to redirect the dog to something that is allowed to chew on (bone, tug toy, etc) and/or trying to reward their dog when it is not being "mouthy" and the dog continues to "mouth" humans hands and arms.

4. The dog that continues to "fence run" or "fence fight" over and over and over with passer-bys (dogs, people, bikes and skateboards, etc) despite the owners trying to ignore the fence reactivity, redirect the dog with something else, etc. The dog continues to fence run/fence right.

5. The "social butterfly" dog that continues to jump (out of excitement) on people, including young children and elderly adults, despite trying to ignore the jumping (turning one's back, no affection) and then trying to reward the dog when it stops jumping and sits. The truth is: for some dogs... jumping is wayyyyy more fun and rewarding for a dog then sitting for a treat is.

6. The dog that will not come when called despite treat lures, marker/clicker training and bribing.

As a dog trainer, of course I reward dogs for good behavior! And there are absolutely times that I will ignore a very minor bad behavior and use redirection techniques.... especially with very young puppies. There are times and places for those techniques; however, just understand that the success is very short-lived with those techniques for the vast majority of dogs. As the dog matures (and starts getting to be around 5.5 months old)... we MUST start to build in SOME level of accountability/consequences for bad behavior if we want the unwanted bad behavior to go away (with long-term results). Accountability/consequences need to be something that THE DOG TAKES SERIOUSLY and every dog is different. Some dogs are super "soft" and sensitive. Other dogs are super brazen, pushy, "hard" and stoic. So obviously the consequence/accountability needs to be appropriate for each individual dog.

So how do we do it? We teach our dogs to respect our "No" marker. Just like rewards follow a "Yes" marker, consequences follow a "No" marker. A LOT of communicating with dogs is simply rewarding good behaviors and giving consequences for bad behaviors and being consistent with both.

How do we teach our dogs to respect "No"?

Please see my blog on this website titled, "Does Your Dog Truly Value and Respect "No?"

That blog explains how we can easily, reliably, quickly, and humanely teach our dogs to respect "no" and stop unwanted behaviors for the long-term.

No species on the planet (including both canines & humans) lives in an only positive world... where good choices are always rewarded and poor choices are simply ignored. There is nothing wrong with accountability :) In fact, it brings harmony and balance and it makes life so much better... for both humans and canines.