We all have vivid childhood memories, and one of mine involving my friend’s dog Chuka had a lasting impact. In all my dog training, I look to grow confidence and capability for dogs in any environment. I do that using the model of my 5C Pyramid. Now, you might already be familiar with the 5C Pyramid for Success, but I’ve got a couple of tweaks to the layers you’ll want to hear.
It all starts with our connection with our dogs and knowing the questions to ask, so we can be sure that our dog can meet our expectations. And for everyone who had queries from Episode 19 about what “sit” really means for a dog, I’m using that behaviour today as an example. We’re covering all the layers for confidence in anything you want to train your dog to do.
In the episode you'll hear:
- About my memory of Chuka, how the same thing happens to many dogs, and how
it can be avoided. - What my 5C model is and tweaks to the pyramid layers.
- Why the first layer of connection is the most vital of all.
- What engagement with your dog looks like.
- Why your dog can experiment and how that allows you to evaluate.
- What splitting a behaviour down really means.
- The three forms of challenges with distance, duration, and distractions.
- What is too much pressure for your dog and for you.
- How you can use the same model for your confidence!
- Important questions to ask before you take off your dog’s leash.
Resources:
- Podcast Episode 18: 4 Puppy and Dog Training Games for Acquired Bite Inhibition
- Blog: Improve Your Dog Training by Playing Like a Dog
- Blog: 6 Keys to Shaping Behaviour
- Podcast Episode 4: T.E.M.P. (Tail, Eyes/Ears, Mouth, Posture)
- Podcast Episode 2: Reinforcement
- Blog: The 3D Model for Dog Training: Duration, Distance, Distraction
Download:
I love this ep, give more time on the bottom of pyramid. Thanks.
I am very curious about the leashes you use and where to purchase
I love the confidence this podcast is building in ME, not just my dog, as a new dog owner. It’s wonderful to see my relationship with my 6 month old poodle growing. Thank you for these amazing podcasts!
I love it! Eat chocolate, you owe it to your dog!! Woot woot, thanks for that permission Susan!
Susan, I recently discovered your podcasts on YouTube and I am hooked. You have some of the best material I have found
Dogs have certainly shaped my life. For more years than I want to count I have lived in a multiple dog household and have a nonprofit canine rescue as well. We are always looking for ways to help dogs overcome issues and find homes. I have been throughout many training courses over the years and look for I formation based in behavioral science. Your podcasts are heartfelt, practical, and mindful of the well being of the dog. Thank you for sharing your wealth of knowledge with the rest of us.
Thank you Susan, as always…GREAT.
Love these bite-sized training podcasts. Very inspired to get up and get training. 😉 Thanks, Susan, as well for all the additional resources.
Susan, this whole journey has been very eye opening so far! As a horse trainer who also tried to teach people how to understand their animal, the biggest challenge was teaching criteria. Setting a reasonable criteria that your pet could understand and succeed as well as the human understanding WHAT IS THE CRITERIA? Can you do a podcast on this topic?
I 2nd that request for a podcast on criteria! Excellent podcasts…every one! Learning so much and listening to you is easy! THANKS!
Oh, something else occurred to me last night about the baseline Connectivness Susan was talking about. It dawned on me a way that I can erode my Connectiveness with my dog by not paying attention–be truly present–for my dog BEYOND adhering to a game plan or agenda. If our Clarity and Confidence (both those of my dog and of mine) start to get a little hinky, my dog will lose confidence faster than I will. My sense is that our dogs read us so exquisitely, and take their relationship cues from us so constantly, that we humans can quickly start to actually erode our existing Connectiveness because our dogs are reading our hesitancy, and can sense that we’ve gone on auto-pilot. For me, that would appear to be a signal for a visit back to the baseline of Connectiveness work, you know? And really practice being present with you and your dog. It’s crazy hard sometimes, but we humans drive the bus almost all of the time, driving the wholeness of the Connectiveness between us and our dogs. That’s a serious responsibility in my book, and it’s not always easy to “be there,” eh? Going back a step or two is such a great safety net for me, and I know for Maudie. Susan you really get the gears in my head whirring with all this stuff! My thanks to you.
Susan, I think you must of written this for me. I’ve been a little stuck with Maudie because I was trying to always move slowly ahead-ahead-ahead, but my training dance just got worse, and I started to get lost again. Your podcast today clarified something that my gut was telling me, that Maudie and I aren’t fully connected yet. In my language, true connection comes when the dog decides it’s time to commit, that this is all for real. I’m a rescue dog person, and they can come with a lot of trust issues (can anyone blame them?), so it can sometimes take time and a lot of consistency. That’s what the bottom layer of Connection is what all that is about, you know? Patiently waiting for that look, that subtle shift in what you call T.E.M.P. My game plan has now changed for the moment, where we will spend more concentrated effort on the bottom layer, and not worry about moving forward so much for now. I KNOW Maudie will be glad for it, as will I. Thank you for this wonderful podcast! -KB
Loved this episode and the tweaks to the 5C’s. Everytime I listen to Susan review these, I learn something new and absorb more of it. I’m guilty of trying to add too many D’s at once and this was such a good reminder. Susan also affirmed my experience with traditional puppy classes and how too much is asked at once. I feel even better about my choice to work on things my way and use the class experience as experience and not get hung up on progress as measued by someone else. Thank you for another great episode!