10 Psychological tricks to train your dog

Dog training is one of the most demanding and difficult aspects of welcoming any new canine to the family. Sometimes, it seems that sit and stay are the hardest tasks known to man or dog. But have you ever tried these psychological tricks to training your dog? It may just turn the whole process to become like a walk in a dog park!

Use Pavlov’s method of classical conditioning to acquire a desired response to a stimulus.

Classical conditioning, which was researched extensively by behaviorist and physiologist Ivan Pavlov, is a process by which a stimulus becomes associated with a specific response. As a result, the response will occur unconsciously any time at which the stimulus is present [1].

Give classical conditioning a try next time you take your dog for a walk. If your pet often seems to need to “go out” immediately after coming inside from a long walk, classical conditioning will encourage your dog to relieve themselves during your walk, solving the “in and out” shenanigans. In a sense, this style of conditioning is similar to that of training small children to go to the bathroom before they go to bed to avoid a bed-wetting incident. After some time, a child will be conditioned to go every night before bed. Similarly, after some time, your dog will be conditioned to go during the walk as opposed to immediately afterward.

Here’s how it works: every time your dog properly relieves themselves outside, ring a bell. After some time of conditioning, the bell will become a conditioned stimulus that will, upon ringing, cause your dog to urinate almost involuntarily. To put your training into action, ring the bell towards the end of your walk once you have conditioned your dog. This will trigger your dog to “empty the tank,” and you will no longer be faced with a constant need to let your dog in and out.

(Ciccarelli and White, 2006, 171-173)

Fulfill one of the Maslow’s basic needs and teach your dog a new trick with primary reinforcers.

According to psychologist Abraham Maslow, most living beings have a hierarchy of needs, often presented in a pyramid. While these needs range from species to species, the base of the pyramid illustrates needs shared by nearly all species- they are known as basic needs [2], and they represent what is necessary for survival, such as food, water, and touch.

The satisfaction of hunger, thirst, and pleasure is a basic need in all animals. As a result, they can be harnessed in operant (voluntary) conditioning to be used as rewards for pet training. To implement a primary enforcer, pet your dog after they do a simple trick, such as sitting down, on their own. Then, begin to pet your dog only when they sit down on command.

As you reinforce their good behavior by filling a basic need, you are conditioning your dog to enjoy the trick and the reward that they receive from it, and after repeated reinforcement, your dog will happily sit on command in order to receive the positive reinforcement of the reward!

(Ciccarelli and White, 2006, 181-182- 351-353)

Supplement primary reinforcement by using secondary reinforcers to see long-lasting pet training results.

While primary reinforcers, such as treats or petting your dog, may be sufficient to initially teach your pet a new trick, it may become difficult to continue the reinforcement without risking negative consequences such as weight gain (from too many treats) or begging (as a result of continuous petting and attention). In addition, there is risk of extinction of the trick if a primary reinforcer is not referenced every time.