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The Power Of The Premack Principle - How To Use Grandma's Law To Boost Your Dog Training Efforts

Do you remember as a kid when your
Grandmother would tell you that you had toSince we now understand the Premack
finish your vegetables before you could havePrinciple, we can set up training situations
any  ice  cream?where your dog learns to respond to the
command  "Come"  before  taking  chase.
If your Grandmother or anyone else has ever
said that to you, then they were using theHere  is  an  exercise  that  I  teach:
Premack Principle, also known as Grandma's
Law.With your dog on a 10 to 15 foot leash, throw
a treat about 20 feet away. Let your dog see
Basically, the Premack Principle is this: "Ifyou  throw  the  treat.
high probability behaviors (more desirable
behaviors) are made contingent upon lowerNow let your dog go to the treat but stop her
probability behaviors (less desirableabout two feet from the treat. Your dog will
behaviors), then the lower probabilitybe interested in the treat and probably
behaviors  are  more  likely  to  occur."ignore your command "Come." Give your dog
just a slight tug on the leash and back up a
Or to put it simply: "You can't watch TVfew feet. Once your dog comes to you, hold
until  you  finish  your  homework."your dog's collar, praise your dog, and then
let your dog run back and get the treat. You
So  how  does  this  apply  to  dog training?have just used the Premack Principle with
your  dog.
The Premack Principle works great when you
are trying to teach your dog to come whenYour dog wants the treat (very desirable to
called. You see, when your dog is outsideyour dog) but can't get the treat until she
there are more desirable things to do than toresponds to the command "Come" (less
come  back  to  you.desirable behavior), you are now teaching
your dog to respond to your commands in
If your dog is outside and sees a squirrel,distracting  situations.
the chances of coming back to you decrease
dramatically. Chasing the squirrel is muchAt first you need to use the leash to get the
more desirable than responding to yourless desirable behavior to occur, but over
command  "Come."time you'll find that your dog will start to
respond to your voice command and you'll need
But...to use the leash less and less.



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