Fading off the Prompt in Obedience 5.0

Objectives

  • What is fading off the prompt?
  • What is the prerequisite?
  • How to fading from lure
  • Fading from presentations

What is fading off the prompt?

A training process that results in the dog responding to the final desired cue from the handler.

Obedience Checklist 5.0
K9-1 command structure

What is the prerequisite?

How to fade from lure?

The basics

  • Always give the desired cue (voice, pager, whistle, hand signal, etc..) first
  • Then use lure into behavior
    • It is OK to repeat the cue during the process as long as there is a slight pause between each cue.
    • It is a good technique when you are trying "less lure" but misjudge and give "more lure" next time you give teh cue.
  • When the dog accomplishes the behavior, MARK it at that exact moment.
  • Slowly fade away the lure on each new repeatition until you notice the dog responds on the cue only.

First Considerations

  • There are three benchmarks initially.
    • How much you can fade from the lure without the dog needing to consciously move away from the lure to complete the behavior.
    • Getting over the hump of the dog moving away from the lure.
    • Not needing the lure at all. k The dog responds only to the cue
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Second Considerations

  • Once the dog responds to a cue without luring pay attention to additional prompts.
    • Head movements
    • Body postures
    • Body positions
  • Always work on this. Do not confuse with environmental generalization.
  • I suggest keeping good notes to exactly what the dog has accomplished in phase 1.
    • This can be expanded upon in phase 2 with the hekp of the leash.

Did you not use a lure?

  • Differential reinforcement - reward only in the presence of the cue
    • "speak"
    • down
    • bring
    • etc..

Related Articles

Responses

    1. “Prompt” is a broad term that encompasses any technique used to encourag behavior. Luring is a specific type of prompt that describe using something appealing to encourage movement toward it.

      Therefore, if you are using a treat above a dog’s nose to encourage it to move from a down to a sit position you would be luring (and also considered a prompt)

      But, if you were crowding the dog with your body to encourage the dog to shuffle its paws under its body and lift its front end off the floor into a sit position, that would be prompting but not luring. Also, touching the dog’s rear to encourage them to sit would be a prompt (but not luring).

      If you place a piece of tape on a dogs nose, to encourage it to touch its nose with its paw (for a trick) that would also be a prompt.

      So, prompt is just about anything to get the behavior, but luring is specific type of prompt.