One of the best things I ever learned with dogs was attention as a behaviour

Jane Killion explains this best, click here to find out more (link to takes you to her site with in site purchases. i do not earn a fee for this link).

Why do I need to know this, Katie?

From experience, I’ve found that if an animal is not focused on you, or at least with you in the moment you need them, to be, you may need to help them out. Basically, increase the likelihood of them paying you attention for whatever reason. And to be honest if your dog ain’t focused on you how the heck can you do any training with them?!

A real life example (which of course I wasn’t filming at the time), was myself and Kirsty were out walking the dogs at the Downs in Bristol, it was quite busy. We were on our way back to the car and the dogs were still off lead when we noticed Ren start to run at some approaching people. Kirsty immediately used her “What’s this?!” cue (aka command) and Ren turned on a dime and came to sit next to Kirsty, gazing up at her, happily expecting her well deserved reward (Ren got treat bombed!).

This didn’t happen by itself though, it needs training and perfect practice to make it perfect like this. A dog or cat offering voluntary attention is amazing and can make such a difference to your life with them. But sometimes, they need a little help and here’s how I do it. By the way, I tend to use what’s this more than using their name’s as a recall cue, I just prefer to because my dogs have been known to blow me off in public when I’ve used their names. It’s embarrassing! What’s this works better.

How do I do that though, Katie?

VOLUNTARY - For your pet to pay you attention voluntarily, simply observe them for eye contact on you or sitting for your attention. When you see this, reward it happily and lavishly. After all, you want more of this, right? Your pet will pay attention to this feedback from you, and therefore will be more likely to repeat this behaviour in future. Dr Irick-Barlow (2015) states that “The bottom line for trainers that higher value reinforcers delivered more frequently result in in more effort expended to get them”. In other words, pay better and more often and you’ll see results quicker!

INVOLUNTARY - Teach “what’s this?!”. Honestly, this multi purpose command is so useful and simple to install as a response! And because this is fun, it carries with it a positive association which helps our companions not only feel confident in the task but in us too. It’s a great way to bond more with our pets (Meyer and Forkman, 2014)!

You’ll need to plan ahead a little at first to make sure your pet is able to be successful, choosing a time and place where you are likely to get an attention response from your dog for looking at you when you ask them, “What’s this?!” Personally I have found that moment when you are about to feed them, or play with a toy with them, works well. A video on this will come soon!

Be prepared to act like what you have for them, is irresistible. They don’t know what ‘this’ is, but the idea is, they really wants it!

• Before you hand them their dinner, say in an interesting and exciting manner, “what’s this?!” They love a show, don’t be shy.

• Observe your dog or cat…are they showing signs of happy anticipation? Maybe they prick their ears, or meow, or head tilt, or wriggle their bums or lick their lips (food response not stress response), happy expression.

  • Avoid overdoing the anticipation if it’s likely to frustrate your pet at first

• If yes, present what you have to them, with a flourish and enjoy watching them enjoy

• Repeat on other occasions…for example, when presenting them with a new toy, or their fave toy, may be a treat.

  • In time, with practice, you’ll be able to have most dogs eagerly anticipate a stick of celery as being amazing, as well as their treats or fave toys.

• increase the difficulty for them over time, for instance if starting indoors, start playing the game in the garden but make sure there are less things there that may distract them.

  • For instance if your dog is likely to go out and chase birds immediately, wait until they’ve chased and toileted before playing. “What’s this?!” can eventually work with birds!

• Over time you can make things harder for them by practicing out the front of your home, in the car or on a quiet walk.

  • As I mentioned earlier, you will find that the game works even with major distractions but can take a lot of practice and will depend on the intensity and prior experience of the situation.

  • At home I use whatever I have to hand, be it a piece of kitchen towel to shred or a slice of cucumber, but on walks I always take smelly treats as a bigger reward to help my dogs succeed.

What else could this be useful for Katie?

I use the game in place of ‘leave it’ as I find because it’s trained with so much positiveness that it’s a better interrupter of unwanted behaviour than some other commonly used commands. You say it happily, your pet reacts to you with a happy response and just feels nicer to all of you.

It can also be useful as a secondary recall cue, just in case your first one fails, again likely because of the positive associations to hearing the words. Works a charm when it’s well rehearsed.

You’d also be keen to know I use it for loose lead walking too, as a way of regaining attention back on me if the dog can’t break focus from a stimulus (distraction, thing they have noticed) and are either starting to become over aroused or simply stuck.

This applies to dogs who may be feeling less confident when on walks, if they need help, if they become stuck and can’t seem to think with their thinking brain, I’ll use what’s this as a positive interrupter, I’ll guide them away from the scary thing and give them the reward either scattered to the ground for a game of find it, rolled along the floor for them to chase or a short game of tuggy if they prefer this. I’ll write about find it another time, but basically scattering food on the ground and letting the find with noses (fur gods can play this game too). It then brings a positive association and you can then guide them elsewhere after without minimal frustration or anxiety (more on this another time too).

I’d love to know how you get on playing this game, let me know!

If you like this post, tell me, share it and hit subscribe for more.

References:

Meyer, I. and Forkman, B., 2014. Dog and owner characteristics affecting the dog–owner relationship. Journal of Veterinary Behavior, [online] 9(4), pp.143-150. Available at: <https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1558787814000343> [Accessed 3 August 2020].