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Cutting out the Cookies: Reducing Reinforcement for the R+ Trainer

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February 12

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6:00 pm PT

Click to Take CEU Quiz for this Presentation

This talk is eligible for CEUs from: IAABC, KPA

Description

Ever feel envy when you watch an obedience/rally/Schutzhund/etc. … trial performance and the dog executes perfect skills for the WHOLE routine? No treats in the handler’s pocket, no toy in their hand, but the dog is certainly acting like there is!

Meanwhile you’ve got a bait bag on one hip, cookies in one hand, and a toy in the other, reinforcing for sits and focus around other dogs. The thought of sequencing a trial routine together without treats gives you butterflies in your stomach a hitch in your breathing and worse…

Trust me, I’ve been there. With my dog Ones, I felt panic overwhelming me at the thought of heeling onto a ring without MY pacifier, his puffy tug toy. And my sport of choice, Schutzhund, has an obedience phase that lasts for up to 10 minutes, and that’s not even counting the down stay at the end where the judge picks apart your routine in front of the whole audience!

How DO you ever get from here to there? Well, the key is to train some specific pieces and to start thinking of reinforcing in terms of dog’s effort, rather than specific skills. Join me in this webinar as I detail out some steps/concepts that are really going to help break it down and make it more achievable.

Presented By:

Shade Whitesel

Shade Whitesel (she/her) has been training and competing in dog sports since she was a kid. Always curious in how dogs learn, she has successfully competed in IGP/IPO/Schutzhund, AKC obedience and French Ring. Her retired dog, Reiki vom Aegis, IPO 3, FH 1, French Ring 1, CDX, was 5th at the 2010 AWDF Championships, 7th at the 2012 AWDF Championships, 1st at the 2011 Northwest Regionals, and 2nd at the 2012 Dutch Shepherd Nationals. Along the way, Shade has received a perfect score in the IPO tracking phase on two separate dogs, and a perfect score in IPO obedience with Talender von Grunheide. Shade currently competes with Reik’s son, Ones, who has his IPO 2, and AKC Preferred Novice title and is looking forward to hitting the trial field with her youngest dog, Talic, who is looking very promising for all the things!

Though Shade is owned by highly motivated working line German Shepherds and is known for her toy skills classes, she especially enjoys teaching foundation skills to all manner of dogs and their people. Good training and learning start at the beginning.

What started out as an experiment — competing at the National level in IPO without the use of an e-collar — has now turned into a firm commitment to the positive method, and the desire to teach other trainers and dogs how to be successful in the bitesports with as little aversives as possible.