Do we unfairly manipulate dogs?

Do we make dogs perform human invented tasks for rewards just for our own satisfaction?

What’s in it for the dog?

Overview

There might be an argument that dogs have traded their "wild life/complete agency" to do what they like, for being with and working alongside humans in domestication[1]. We commonly hear the statement “After training, just let your dog go be a dog”. Now on the one hand, we can sort of understand what is meant, but on the other hand, wow – if the guardian is stopping their canine companion from being a dog, they are missing the point of positive reinforcement motivational training and the dog’s life enrichment altogether. There is, in fact, a group of "naturalist" advocates who would go so far as to seek the ban of all dog training and sports on the grounds that it is unnatural and unfair to dogs, robbing them of their true selves - presumably just let them roam the streets unchecked, unvaccinated, etc. I really can't go along with that. Dogs are not wolves in the natural state, despite sharing 99.9% of DNA[2]. Furthermore, dogs (not wolves) that are found “free and wild” do not have a great life, suffering estrangement from conspecifics, starvation and high mortality rates[3].

When I observe working dogs - from police/military dogs, search and rescue, drug detection sniffer dogs, through to kelpies herding sheep (I have made a close study of the latter and talked to a number of famous Australian kelpie breeders and trainers - just because I love that breed) – and, of course, training my Newfie in water rescue - I am struck with the happiness and fulfillment well-handled dogs of these “human invented/required jobs” demonstrate in their full body language and contentment. I have often referred to this as a dog's "willingness" to observe a human's cues ("commands" is replaced by that better word, recognizing the request nature, rather than demand). I believe that this is really a dog just doing what is bred into its instincts, senses and drives coming into full play - and helping it understand how to apply those abilities to perfection. 

Human invented tasks - and what does a willing dog look like?

A good trainer in a trial ring (obedience/tricks/whatever) can readily be distinguished from an ordinary one by the dog and human interactions and responses. When a dog with a great trainer screws up in the ring (i.e. misinterprets the cue) the good trainer laughs and shakes their head (wondering what they did wrong) - and might call the dog a goof-ball and the dog wiggles its bum - but they keep going to complete the full exercise - they don't walk away from the dog's efforts in disgust. The trainers who "leave the ring in a dark mood with a baffled dog" do not really understand motivational training at all.

Some dog trainers – and I number amongst them - so well adhere to the contention about requiring the dogs to perform human invented tasks, that they do not feel the need to compete in trials (despite being able to perform all actions through to the highest grades of competition testing) because they train dogs to do what they were bred to do and because the dogs so clearly love it - they get more satisfaction out of performing a stunt than the trainer does. And, of course, in many cases – police, military, herding stock - there is simply a real “boots-on-the-ground/coal face” job to be done, rather than a competition to be won.

Now, there are, in many dog job roles, a need for some form of certification to demonstrate that they can do the job, be cleared to “go into the field” and continually upgrade their level of performance under testing conditions[4]. There are also those dog trainers who revel in competition and state that winning on a national or global stage is the ultimate proof that they are a great trainer. Well, that’s fine – good for them, if that flips their switches - I have nothing against that and indeed greatly admire their perseverance and achievements. Fantastic! However, there is another school who don't have the requirement or don’t feel the need to prove themselves against a set of rules (at times – at least in some dog sports - somewhat arbitrary and pedantic rules) nor need any more credits and sashes on their CV - and those accreditations, after all, mean nothing to the dog.

A couple of personal examples of observing instinct and willingness in dog training.

So, what are some examples of a dog just doing what is bred into its instincts, senses and drives - and helping it understand how to apply those abilities to perfection – with the dog being “self-actualised” to perform the job rather than doing it for an external reward (such as a food treat)? Observing Kelpies, Blue Healers and Border Collies working stock, one can readily appreciate both the natural instincts and drives of these dogs, refined by the human applied training. These dogs are remarkable in their capacity for “work”, often being out of sight and hearing of their handler but completing the task as if directed by an invisible ever-present trainer. There are many amazing stories of a Kelpie disappearing on an Australian outback cattle drive, only to return a day later quietly herding a dozen cows and calves, which the stockman on horseback was not even aware of, back to join the main herd (viz., their instinct and willingness to get the job done the way they know it should be done). Spending some time with a well-known Kelpie breeder, trainer, instructor and sheepdog trial competitor in SE Victoria (Australia), I asked him what proportion of his dog’s ability to manage sheep was credited to instinct or training – nature or nurture? His answer was simply “100% of both”.

A personal example that comes to mind is that I taught my Newfoundland (“Nemesis - Nemi”) scent discrimination - picking one rag which I (or a guest) had handled out of 6 or so exactly similar but untouched rags. Nemi sniffs and "taste tests" all the rags and when she has "the one" she absolutely explodes in the air, does a 180-degree airborne turn and bounds back to me with the correct rag in her mouth, laughing as if to say "I did it - you can't do that - give me a harder one to try". I have never treat rewarded her for this performance (apart from some whooping, laughing and hollering, of course) - it is all self-actualization and pure joy at demonstrating the skill – and we share the joy of that achievement. From that start, we moved on to the Obedience Trial regulation leather, wood and metal objects – more challenging, but Nemi understood the game with the same result – absolute joy at succeeding at this more difficult test. Training was obviously done with thought and patience, starting with just one or two objects and leaving the distasteful (for many dogs) metal objects as the last hurdle. Then repeating the exercises in a different location and randomly varying the order of whether the touched object was leather, word or metal[5].

A second personal example is training Nemi in water rescue. This was achieved with a special comfortable harness on the dog – the harness has bright coloured rescue loops on each side for the drowning swimmer to grab hold of – much better for training than grabbing a handful of the dog’s fur or their tail – the latter being a natural drowner’s target, which the Newfoundland needs free moving for steerage[6]. Now, Newfoundlands have a strong instinct to retrieve objects from the water – especially people – and are naturally powerful swimmers with their big deep chests, webbed feet and “breast stroke style” swimming action (very different to the standard “dog paddle”). So, just a few practices, with me walking out with Nemi to the “drowner” or “adrift boat” and Nemi had it figured out and just turns in the water, as soon as the person grabs the harness loop, or she has the boat rope handed to her in her mouth, and powers back to shore – no swimming or paddling of the rescued required. At shore there are no food treats – just a lot of congratulations at saving another life (heh, heh). Did this training all go perfectly smoothly? Of course not. You can find a couple of funny examples on my YouTube channel in which Nemi swims part way to the “drowner” and either decides that she already rescued that one in the last run, or it’s just too far and she is tired at the end of a long training session[7]. So, in those cases she obviously received lots of help, direction and encouragement to complete the job. No giving up and walking away disappointed – by human or dog.

Now, when I am walking along a (dog friendly) beach and there are small children playing in the water, splashing and squealing with delight, I have trouble containing Nemi because she is sure they need her help to be rescued (you can imagine the parental fright as 50 kg of four-legged fur hurtled at 20 km/hr towards their child to “rescue” them). On one occasion a teenage boy lifted his girlfriend up and carried her into the water, threatening to drop her in – all in good fun – and, of course, the young girl screamed appropriately between laughing and wriggling. That young man came close to a bit of a surprise, as Nemi was absolutely sure this time that she was really needed, to both stop the “attack” and rescue the girl from the water. I only just contained her in time!

Rewarding to manipulate the dog to do distasteful tasks - or a symbiotic relationship?

On the question of rewarding an action which is distasteful - I don't actually do that, nor do I advocate such actions. Well, the closest I might come to this is that when I have visitors and my dogs (Nemi in particular) are turning themselves inside out with joy and excitement, of course I manage the behavior and finally reward them by allowing the greeting. But, again, I moderate this control of greeting all people with pleasure. This is a general line of thought for me, but in Nemi's case, I don't want to be at the beach one day when a person really is drowning (as opposed to the training set up I run with helpers "drowning" or “stranded in a boat adrift”) and I release her to save the person (as is natural and refined by my training) but she thinks "Nope - I'm not really supposed to go near strangers - I'm supposed to just sit still and look away so I’ll get a food treat - so let them drown - that's what you taught me!"

So - I look to providing intrinsically positive experiences and empathy as the priority in managing and training strategies - and just plain sharing time with the dog. It should be equally rewarding for both parties.

As for rewards, I commonly come across dog trainers who bemoan the fact that their dog doesn’t work for food rewards (nor a game with a toy) and is focussed anywhere but on the task at hand. I definitely don’t start with food deprivation to activate the desire for treats – although I appreciate that is an option to consider later - I firstly try to understand the breed, its natural instincts and drives, upbringing and personality - its age, of course - then try to find exactly what the dog is interested in – what is its motivation? I then suggest linking an exercise/activity the dog loves with exercises the guardian aspires to teaching and they feel will help the overall performance and dog satisfaction, as well as the relationship and bond between guardian and dog. The concept I follow in this is to demonstrate and instil not that "you have to do this distasteful action first or you don't get any pudding!" but rather that sense of "whatever I ask you to do is going to be fun, beneficial and lead on to even better stuff – I know what you love and I will deliver - for both of us together enjoying life and developing your special skills".

Examples of the application of this approach have commonly come up with guardians trying to teach their dog obedience – essentially “household manners” through learning basic cues and directions (heeling; automatic sits; downs; stays; etc.). The challenge of motivation and reward is surprisingly common with stock guardian breeds, such as Asian Shepherds, Maremmas (Maremmano-Abruzzese Sheepdogs) and Pyrenean Mountain Dogs (Chien de Montagne des Pyrénées or Patou). Under standard “obedience training” regimes, such dogs have a tendency to act distracted, constantly sniffing the ground and checking the horizon or nearby bush, finding it difficult to pay attention to their handler. They are, of course, not being “naughty”, “blowing-off” or “dominating” their trainer, nor failing to focus, they are very focussed on checking for the passage of wolves or bears (not often encountered in Australia, so it must be a bit confusing, ha, ha) and looking for the location and safety of their wards. The aim then is to figure out how to use the “sniff-and-search-to-protect-the-herd game” as the reward for following a few basic “obedience” cues, devising such games as “find it”; “track the toy bear”; etc., always staying aware of the dog’s body language and responses to judge the amount of time to spend on training versus reward game - and whether the devised reward is hitting the spot. If the trainer understands the reward and devises the reward-game well, the dog continues to learn, honing its skills and enhancing its willingness to engage.

I have always trained immediately before a beach walk, a swim or a meal for the dog. There might be no treats during training, just marking success and praise/patting, then follow-up with the "big reward" (walk/swim/tracking/whatever works for that dog). Yes, maybe a sort of attenuated bribery - but I think it's not only legitimate, but adds to the sense of "whatever I ask of you is going to work out well for both of us - and will build towards even greater fun and satisfaction, because you will learn new ways to think". My dog might be thinking “Yeah, I get it already – let’s get on with the training, because the anticipation is killing me!”

Discussion and conclusion

Going back to the domestication issue - which has taken roughly 10,000 to 20,000 years to get where we are now. All breeds have been "designed", it is true, for a purpose - protection, herding, search and rescue, companionship, etc. Humans have taken on a role as provider and protector - but I see this as a sort of symbiotic relationship - both sides benefit. This links to why I teach "being your dog's best friend" (reversing the old saying – see “Zen and the Art of Dog Training” article on this site). This presents a platform for all training and interactions as "Would you behave that way to your best friend? Would they still be your best friend after you did that?" I shy away from the "fur baby" and "pet parent" labels as being misaligned with a dog's true value in life (although I understand how it works for some folks).

The dog companion training path is one of providing intrinsically positive and empathetic experiences for the dog, which far overshadow any manipulative nature of the training process. I think of it as building thinking, intelligence and hence free will in the dog, rather than manipulating them into doing what I want.

References

[1] This article was prompted by questions from a friend – a devoted and excellent trainer of her German Shepherd – who found that her dog enjoyed (and excelled at) scent discrimination, but showed considerable ambivalence about any other form of “obedience” training. This guardian described her concerns that maybe we manipulate dogs through rewards into performing “distasteful” (to the dog) obedience/trick/etc. tasks, just so they will perform human invented and convenient jobs and displays. Don’t pass this thought off – I think it is a wonderful expression of someone who really wants to be her dog’s companion and best friend. So, I have shared my thoughts (and experiences) on the subject here.

[2] Morell, V. (2015) How Wolf Became Dog; Scientific American; Originally published with the title “From Wolf to Dog” in Scientific American Magazine Vol. 313 No. 1 (July 2015), p. 60; now available at URL https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-wolf-became-dog/ .

[3] Boitani, L. et al (2017) The ecology and behavior of feral dogs: A case study from central Italy; pp. 342 – 368; MacDonald, D. W. and Carr, G. M. (2017) Variation in dog society: Between resource dispersion and social flux; pp. 320 – 341; both in Serpell James (Ed) (2017) The Domestic Dog its Evolution, Behavior and Interactions with People; 2nd Ed. Cambridge University Press; 416pp.  

[4] Sterling, D., Training Beyond Certification by Training for Failure; United States Police Canine Association; and Stickney, C., Testing for a proper Police dog; PDF articles at URL https://www.uspcak9.com/k9-training-articles  

[5] See Nemi learning scent discrimination and tracking; Training scent work and tracking - can a Newfoundland do this?   at YouTube https://youtu.be/9gre1XebapM

[6] See Nemi demonstrate the use of the Newfie tail rudder; Newfoundland dog TAIL RUDDER - REALLY?  at YouTube https://youtu.be/LqDMdwH2Vls

[7] See the training process NEWFOUNDLAND WATER RESCUE TRAINING 102 at YouTube https://youtu.be/AticPtFbe_A?si=rNYJV62FraYChJGL and NEWFOUNDLAND WATER RESCUE TRAINING 103 at YouTube  https://youtu.be/rggKtg8Oub4