Victoria Stilwell Positively

Certified Humane

By Lisa Spector, Canine Music Expert, Juilliard Graduate, and co-creator of Through a Dog’s Ear.

I noticed the top of the Brown Cow yogurt I recently purchased. It read "We're Certified Humane". I continued to read, "Our farmers have always treated their cows with kindness. But, now that we're certified humane, you can be certain the ladies enjoy ample space, shelter, gentle handling, healthy food, clean water, and a safe living environment."

I reflected on those words and wondered if that phrase could also be used with dog trainers. Just imagine, if a trainer uses science based, positive-reinforcement training, everything associated them would say, "I'm certified humane." A further expanded explanation could read, "My dogs and the dogs in my training classes and lessons have always been treated with kindness. But, now that we're certified humane, you can be certain that they are treated gently, are encouraged to make good choices and are rewarded well for those choices, are not seen as something to dominate,  are taught very patiently, while their people are supported in building bonding relationships with their dogs."

Of course, if you are a Victoria Stilwell licensed trainer (VSPDT), you will likely have the Positively sign to the right (or something similar) on your website, so it will be obvious. Otherwise, it's not always so clear. I try and be very selective in who I follow on Twitter, and often can't tell what training methods a professional trainer uses by looking at their website. Trainers who use dominate based training methods often use deceptive words that could misguide potential clients. And dog lovers in search of a trainer may not know what science based/ reward based/positive reinforcement training really is all about. And the initials KPA, CPDT-KA, KPA-CTP, CDBC, CDAC might as well be in Greek to some of them.

What do you think? What words could be used to make it clear what kind of training method a trainer uses? Should a trainer that uses dominate based training methods be required to say so? And should there be a certification that would allow trainers to post a sign that says "We're Certified Humane", if they use positive reinforcement training? If you are a trainer, I'd love to hear what words you use to describe your training methods. Thanks for sharing your comments below.

As co-founder of Through a Dog’s Ear, I am offering my readers a free download from our latest release, Music to Calm your Canine Companion, Vol. 3. Simply click here and enter your email address and a link to the free download will be delivered to your inbox for you and your canine household to enjoy.

Because I am a concert pianist, the delightful video above has arrived in my inbox dozens of times. No matter how many times I watch it, it always brings a smile to my face. It is part of the  Volkswagen “Fun Theory,” based on the thought that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behavior for the better. I chuckled when I read those words and watched a few more of the winning videos in their contest, as I realized that is what positive reinforcement dog training is all about.

In summary, instead of correcting dogs for the behavior you don’t want, you reward them for behavior you do want. What naturally happens when you reward the behaviors you want? You get more behaviors you want, of the dog’s own free will, and consequently it’s a lot more fun for both canine and their human counterpart.

But, how does that relate to Volkswagen and their Fun Theory? Well, it’s exactly the same thing, but applied to people. Before the stairs were turned into a musical keyboard, a hidden camera revealed that almost everyone took the escalator. But, when the musical keyboard was installed, people were curious and it became so much more fun to take the stairs than the escalator. They were benefiting from the exercise without even realizing it, because they were just having fun making music while climbing stairs. Most adults are aware that it’s better for their health to take the stairs instead of the elevator, but previously the reward for taking the stairs just wasn’t very enticing without a fun factor. With the musical addition, they are rewarded with music making and fun!

The video above, that won first place in the Volkswagen Fun Theory contest, demonstrates my point even clearer. Kevin Richardson won 1st place with The Speed Camera Lottery video. He knows that the number of people speeding isn’t reduced by giving more speeding tickets. In dog training language that would be the equivalent of expecting a dog’s unwanted behaviors to decrease by punishing those behaviors. It may work in the short term, but rarely in the long haul and often escalates into additional undesired behaviors.

Similarly, when people receive a speeding ticket, they are more apt to pay attention to their speedometers short term, but it’s not sustainable behavior. However, when they are rewarded for their good behavior by being entered in a lottery for keeping the speed limit, they are more likely to continue driving under the speed limit, by their own free choice. And they have fun in the process, because they are being rewarded for their good driving behavior. Where do their lottery winnings come from? The people who were caught speeding! Brilliant!

Can you think of any areas in your life where you’ve been more apt to change a behavior because you were rewarded for your desired behavior rather than corrected for your unwanted behavior? Thanks for leaving your reply below.

As co-founder of Through a Dog's Ear, I am offering my Positively readers a free download from our latest release, Music to Calm your Canine Companion, Vol. 3. Simply click here and enter your email address and a link to the free download will be delivered to your inbox for you and your canine household to enjoy.