 Barked: Mon Dec 3, '12 5:02pm PST |
 | |  | | Moving on when your dog hits 4/5 correct is a good theory, but it is just as hard to apply in real life as everything else. If I am a new dog owner and I'm working on getting my dog to look at me when I say his name, you might advise me to add distance, duration, or distraction when he does it 80% of the time (or whatever) in one circumstance. You might even tell me to work on the D's separately, so that when I say his name from one step away, I start back at no distractions and only expecting a quick glance. But this still requires that I understand the level of distraction, which is not really that easy. Yes, I can toss a toy or sit food on the ground, but then there's a quantum leap when we go through the front door. Walking around the apartment complex with no particular distractions might be 40% distracting, but if Smokey sees a cat under a bush, well then it's 80% distracting. And if he sees a cat under my car, then it's 100% distracting. And that same cat under the same bush might also be 100% distracting if 5 minutes ago he saw a skateboarder and hasn't fully recovered from it, or if the air smells like pizza. I'm probably a little more than your average joe schmo in understanding dog behavior, and I am still nowhere near being able to accurately determine my dog's level of distraction all the time. So, while granted it's ideal to tailor the training so that you're not calling and having your dog ignore you, I think there is enormous value in exercises that don't require judgement and can be done in real life instead of in engineered setups. |  |  | |  |
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says 5 out of 5 before you increase distance or duration. Here's a rundown from a blog post: 
