Grace is essential during phase 3 obedience training. If you feel a dog may be confused or has missed a command at any point, you may start from the beginning to clarify the command structure. Here are some examples of how to implement grace effectively. It’s important to note that there is never a good reason to give a dog motivational punishment for disobedience if there is a reason to believe the dog is confused.
Here is an example of some considerations:
- You say the dog’s name and then the command:
- The dog obeys - praise
- The dog disobeys
- Clearly disobeys - follow command structure
- Tries but makes a mistake
- Say “no.”
- Obeys
- Tries again, but still makes a mistake - Repeat name and command with more clarity if possible
- Does not try but seems confused - Repeat name and command with more clarity if possible
- Dog obeys
- Dog disobeys - troubleshoot with formal training.
- Say “no.”
- The dog seems confused or didn’t clearly hear the command
- Repeat name and command with more clarity if possible
- The dog obeys
- The dog disobeys
- The dog still seems confused - troubleshoot with formal training.
- Repeat name and command with more clarity if possible
By using grace, you can ensure that the dog understands the commands clearly, leading to better obedience and a stronger bond between you and the dog.
What does ‘more clarity’ mean? Tone of voice? Louder (w/o yelling)? Deeper tone of voice? Slower? etcetcetc. Imo, ‘clarity’ can mean a few different things; it’s up you u the trainer to figure out how be clearer to a particular dog in a particular situation.
P.S. – ‘Grace’ is a great word re: using e-collar in LIMA fashion. It’s powerful tool. Like a hammer and chisel, you can do wonderful things with it or make a huge mess.
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Everything you said is true. Once a trainer has worked their way through phase 2, it is important to self-evaluate and use judgment calls about the many ways that the dog may simply be confused and whether it is appropriate to repeat the command structure in a way that they are sure the dog should understand and/or further evaluate why?
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I love this. Grace is something we all desire to have in our lives and our dogs appreciate it and benefit it from it also.
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Fabulous!!! I love it!
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