Proactive Vs. Reactive Training

If punishment is not the best way to correct unwanted behaviors what is? The trick is to become a Proactive versus a Reactive Trainer.

A proactive trainer understands their dog and is always one step ahead. If you can prevent an unwanted behavior from occurring you do not need to use punishment to stop the behavior once the dog is engaging in it. By doing this you are preventing a bad habit from being created. A proactive trainer sets their dog up to succeed by managing the environment, restricting the dog and rewarding good behavior.

A reactive trainer reacts to their dog's bad behavior by punishing it in hopes it will not happen again. A reactive trainer often sets their dog up to fail by giving their dog too much freedom to make mistakes and then punishes those mistakes.

The reactive trainer gives their puppy freedom of the house and then punishes the dog each time he chews on something he is not supposed to or pees on the floor. The proactive trainer crates their puppy when they cannot be supervised and only allows the puppy access to things he is allowed to chew and then rewards good behavior.

One of the best examples of proactive versus reactive training is teaching the dog not to jump on people. The reactive trainer does not have proper control of their dog in public or when guests are over and allows the dog to jump up on themselves or other people and then punishes the dog for doing so. The problem here is that once the punishment has been delivered it is too late; the dog has already been rewarded for engaging in the behavior. Even the 'off' command is ineffective because it only teaches the dog to get off after they have jumped up. So the dog learns; jump on people, then get off, not; don't jump.

The proactive trainer knows their dog has an issue with jumping on people and sets their dog up to succeed by first off, having control of their dog in situations when the dog may jump. When their dog is barreling towards them they will ask the dog to sit before they get a chance to jump and then reward the dog for sitting by going down to their level and saying hello. Out in public the dog will be controlled on leash and the proactive trainer will always have their dog sit before strangers greet them.

Think about how you want your dog to behave in any given situation. If you don't know what you want, your dog certainly doesn't either. Be very clear about your expectations and teach your dog to substitute good behaviors for common transgressions: Instead of punishing for sealing food of the counter, teach your dog to go to their bed when food is being prepared. When in doubt, ask for a down and reward your dog for remaining calm in the down position.