What?

DOC stands for Dismiss – Observe – Capture and it is how we handle stable dogs in stable environments.

Handling a stable dog in a stable environment can be a difficult task for positive trainers in general and can seem near impossible for handlers who work with reactive or fearful dogs.

Positive training is about action. Shaping behaviors is very good for getting dogs to do new things and to be confident and experimental, but it is often not applied to managing a dog in a stable environment. This disconnect is why many trainers have a hard time handling their dogs in new environments. Shaping can and should be used for handling dogs in new environments and DOC provides a simple and elegant framework for doing exactly that.

Who?

All handlers who use positive reinforcement for training should be familiar with the DOC protocol. … Read More »

This is a brief overview of our methodology for working with reactive and fearful dogs.

STARR Protocol for Reactive Dogs

Working with reactive or fearful dogs is a specialty of Pawsitive Vybe. The key to dealing with these troubled dogs is allowing the dog to make decisions – simple decisions – that will help to center and ground them and to enable them to deal with environmental distractions on their own terms.

The Pawsitive Vybe STARR Protocol is an elegant system for handling reactive and/or reactive dogs.

Skinner Rocks but Pavlov Rules

The realm of rational decisions (operant behavior) are dictated by the classically conditioned state.

The woman who stands on the chair in the kitchen shrieking, broom in hand, in the presence of a mouse, is not making a rational decision. She canʼt. Sheʼs over threshold. Sheʼs making a silly decision, a decision that is … Read More »

Many dogs get very high when working for cookies and clicks. Some go over threshold when working. I think this is fairly common for clicker trainers. It’s part of the reason that some seemingly simple behaviors can take months to create and is responsible for much of the frustration that positive trainers experience.

The Consequent Game is a structure of communication for learning through play. Performance of target behaviors is tied to energy levels…

A dog that is engaged in drive is often hard to handle and gives many good discdoggers fits. It is important for handlers to be able…

Attention and Targeting are the basis of team based work. Without these skills teams don’t function very effectively. Shaping…

There are 2 videos in this player… Tugging 101 with Indy and Flag and Flash Cuing.

Searching for some bitework video on the site here and couldn’t find it… So here we go. A couple oldies but goodies.

Last Sunday we had a Disc Dog Drop In, like usual, and one of our good friends from Paws With A Cause, Becky, came over to work on sustaining drive with her dog Rhythm.

Rhythm is an awesome mini-Aussie, also known as The Weasel, due to his sharp nose and tendency to offer the ‘Aussie Smile’ at the drop of a hat – he really looks like a weasel. Oh yeah, not only does he look like a weasel, he POPS like one – he’s a huge leaper for his slight size.

Rhythm is an awesome athletic talent, and has had tons of time devoted to teaching him many skills and behaviors in many environments. Becky is also a good trainer, a former service dog trainer at Paws With A Cause.

Rhythm has a tendency to explode into the environment when he’s asked … Read More »