Episode #199 How Dogs Learn Through Patterns and Repetition

As we gear up for our landmark 200th episode, let's celebrate the journey of learning and love that we’ve shared. This week, I share how observing and analyzing behavior patterns can foster a better understanding between you and your dog. You'll learn to create predictable sequences that your dog can rely on, thus enhancing their learning experience. With a special surprise brewing for next week, now is the perfect time to tune in and enrich your dog's training process.

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Speaker 1 0:00

This is the Puppy Training Podcast , episode 199 , how Dogs Learn Through Patterns and Repetition . This podcast is designed to help you on your journey of becoming best friends through love and learning , as you train your own dog from home , and I'm here to help you every step of the way . This is the Puppy Training Podcast and I'm your host , amy Jensen . Hi everyone , thank you for listening . Today we are talking about patterns of behavior , how dogs learn in patterns , and what that means for you , what that means for your dog , how it can help us both . But first , can you believe this is episode 199 ? That means 200 is next and we are super excited about it . So check in next week for our 200th episode . There might be a surprise involved . Just going to say my team and I have been brainstorming on how we can make this a special episode and thank all of you for being part of the show , so stay tuned . Now let's talk patterns . Do dogs actually learn in patterns ? Yes , yes , they do , and you guys are getting really good at pointing out the patterns . If you spend time in my program with me , I help you think of things that way . So your dog's doing a behavior . I have you look at the pattern of the behavior . What happened before the behavior ? What's the actual behavior ? What happened after the behavior ? And then we start to analyze behavior right , why the dog's doing it , what happens when they do it , do they like that , do they not like that , these kinds of things , and what will they do in the future , based off of current behavior ? So it's a fascinating topic to me . But dogs tend to respond to predictable sequences because these routines provide them with clear expectations about what will happen next . When a particular set of actions consistently leads to the same outcome , dogs are likely to remember that and they respond to it . So we call this process associative learning , where dogs connect specific behaviors or stimuli with rewards , punishments or neutral outcomes . Even Now , the patterns in these associations shape how dogs behave and respond to cues as well . So let's just talk some specifics . Let me give you some examples , right ? I love examples . I'm more of a hands-on kind of learning person myself . So , uh , examples of dogs learning the behavior via patterns . Let's talk about potty training . When I'm teaching a puppy to go outside to go potty , uh , we often create a pattern by taking the dog outside at regular intervals . So after meals , when my dog first wakes up from a nap , I take this puppy outside to a designated potty area . When the dog goes potty there , I praise it , I mark , yes , I pay it a reward . We have a little party and then over time my puppy learns that the sequence of I eat and then we go outside and I go to the bathroom and I get a reward for that is a good pattern . So I go outside and I go to the bathroom and I get a reward for that is a , is a good pattern . So , uh , I go outside , I potty in the grass . Amy says , yes , she gives me a food reward , I like that . And so they start to associate that .

Speaker 1 2:52

Now we teach our dogs to ring bells to go outside . This would be similar . They learn the pattern of oh , I ring the bell , the door opens . I go outside , I go potty , I get paid for that . Now , in the beginning you know it's cute because we'll have clients that will say my dog , uh , is just ringing the bells to play , and I have to remind them . Well , yeah , the dog doesn't know that the bells are actually called potty bells . We know that , but they don't know that and it's going to take several weeks of repetition for the dog to connect all of the dots . So the first dot the dog connects is I ring the bells , the door opens . I ring the bell , the door opens . I ring the bell , the door opens right . And so they understand that concept pretty quickly . That's the first concept they grasp onto . And then the pattern increases . So I ring the bell , the door opens , we go outside , right to the potty area . Right , I ring the bells , we go outside to the potty area . And soon they start to associate oh , I ring the bells , we go potty . Um , and that pattern becomes developed . But that takes time and a lot of repetitions to get there . Uh , but they learn it because it's a pattern . So patterns can be super useful . And again through repetition , the dog associates oh , I go outside , I get paid . Or I ring the bells , we go outside , I go potty , I get paid . And all of that becomes a larger pattern .

Speaker 1 3:58

Okay , another example would be the sit cue . So if I'm training my dog to sit , maybe I um , you know , have a treat or a toy . I hold it in front of my dog's nose , I lure it up and over their head until they're looking up at the ceiling and then their little rear end touches the ground , at which point I can say yes , and then pay them . After we've done several repetitions of getting the behavior . I can say the cue . So I say , sit , the dog sits . I say yes , I pay them . That becomes the pattern . I say sit , the dog sits . I haste mark yes , I pay them , right . So the dog learns . Oh . And Amy says sit , I sit down , I get paid . And they learn that pattern and so it's worth it to them to sit oftentimes because they know they'll get paid for it . And when I'm training puppies , you guys , I'm rewarding them frequently . So we talk about intermittent reinforcement later in our program , but in the beginning , when we have a young puppy , every behavior they do , we want to pay them for it because we're establishing these patterns of behavior . Okay , so keep that in mind .

Speaker 1 4:53

Um , third example I'll give you would be leash walking . So dogs start to learn certain cues like uh , they see me pick up the leash , and then they see me put on my shoes , and then they start to anticipate oh , it's time for a walk , right . And how do they learn that ? They learn that because that becomes the pattern over time . Uh , every time they go on a walk . Those are kind of the precursors , that's the the things that are happening before the behavior of going on a walk that they start to pick up on . And it becomes this pattern , this expectation of oh , amy's grabbing the leash , she's putting her shoes on must be walk time . So even before behavior happens they're learning things that can predict other behavior because of the patterns that we've chosen or established over time .

Speaker 1 5:34

Training a dog to walk loosely on a leash also involves patterns where we consistently reward calm behavior or we redirect pulling by turning in a circle or doing a U-turn . We stop and wait for the dog to put slack in the leash and then we continue forward . So they learn through this consistency that oh , pulling doesn't work . If I pull , amy stops , we put on the brakes , I don't get to go anywhere , right , I don't get to get to the push that I want to go smell . So that pattern , if it is a good , consistent pattern , can help my dog choose in the future to walk with a loose leash , because then we get to where they want to go . Now , if I'm fickle , or some of the times pulling works and some of the times pulling doesn't work , then my dog can be confused a little bit about . Okay , well , there's not really a consistent pattern here . I'm not really sure the rules of leash walking , so it's very helpful if we can be consistent with it .

Speaker 1 6:23

Okay , now what if your dog has a behavior that you don't love ? You're like , I really really don't like that . They bark out the window at the birds , right . Or every time the mailman pulls up , they bark at them . Pick something , right . We all have maybe that one thing that we Some examples for you that I'll throw out there that I'm sure you have already thought of .

Speaker 1 6:45

But jumping on people or barking excessively , right , these behaviors are things that we want to change , and anytime you want to change a behavior , we can do that by looking at the pattern that has been established by our dog or possibly by us . Sometimes we inadvertently create these patterns that we don't mean to be creating . So it's good to look at the whole picture and really assess what's happening here . Why is my dog barking ? What's the antecedent , what's the precursor to the behavior , right ? What's the actual behavior that's happening ? And then what's happening after ? What's the consequence ? And is this whole picture working for my dog ? Is this whole picture working for me ? Where can we change things so that the behavior changes .

Speaker 1 7:22

Now , remember , the dog gets to choose the behavior . So on our end we get to play with the antecedent and the consequence and figure out how we can make those work for better behavior down the line . Okay , so again , antecedent a I just call it ABCs . A is easier , easier to remember , right , but the antecedent is a trigger or cue that causes behavior , so kind of like the leash walking . When I pick up the leash or I start to tie my shoes , my dog might think , oh , the next behavior is we're going on a walk , right ? So the antecedent was what happened before the walk . If the dog jumps on guests when they enter the house , then the antecedent would be the guest arriving . Okay , the behavior is again what the dog chooses . So we can influence behavior by setting our dogs up for success with the antecedent , and we'll talk about that . The consequence would be what happens after the behavior .

Speaker 1 8:10

This is where we get into a little bit of trouble , so we can accidentally create an unwanted pattern . So , for example , my dog jumps , they get off of me . I say yes , I mark , or I mark yes , I pay them , and then I go on with my day and so they're like huh , I jumped , I , I pay them and then I go on with my day . And so they're like huh , I jumped , I got off , I got a treat . Can you see how that might become a future pattern ? So if I want a treat next , I'll just go try to jump on Amy . Let's see what this happens again . So I jump on Amy , she says get off , I get off . Uh , I get paid .

Speaker 1 8:41

So now I'm not saying that your dog getting off is bad , because that's good . That's what we want to have happen . We do absolutely want to teach the dog oh , if you're already jumping on me , I do want to interrupt and redirect my dog and reward them for redirecting . But it's really important that now I get out in front of the behavior so that that pattern of jumping , getting off and getting a food reward is not the new pattern , right ? I don't want jumping to actually be part of the pattern . So what I need you to do is we got to get out in front of the jumping .

Speaker 1 9:08

I see my dog coming to me . I'm going to start to anticipate he's probably going to jump on me and instead of waiting for him to jump on you , I'm going to ask him for that sit or that down , or that I go to bed or whatever I want to redirect him towards before the behavior of jumping happens . I'm going to ask him for a different behavior . That will then become the pattern . Oh , I come to Amy , I lay in this bed . Now she feeds me , right ? Can you see how that's a better pattern in my from my point of view , versus the dog comes , jumps on me , gets off and gets a treat . So that only happens if we start to pay attention to the antecedent , or the a part of the behavior .

Speaker 1 9:41

You guys I could talk about this for hours . I love the ABCs of dog training , um , but that'll give you a little insight into , yeah , any behavior . You guys want to change any behavior . Set a goal this week . What behavior do my dog and I want to work on , especially now that we're headed into some colder months , colder weather , we're indoors more often . This is when I start to set a new training goal . Maybe I've gotten a little lax . Bella's nine months now . Can you believe it ? She's nine months old and things are going pretty smoothly . So , uh , you know there's a couple of things that I'm like yeah , we need to work more on that or this needs some work over here . So I'm starting to set some goals of okay through the winter , the next few months . This is what we're really going to focus on . So so I think it's a good time to just assess what are my dog's patterns of behavior , which ones are working for us , which ones are not working for us , and then can I set goals to change those .

Speaker 1 10:25

And if you guys need help , please reach out to us . It is what we do . We love coaching people on how to train their puppies . We want you guys to be successful . We want you to love having a dog in your home . So please join our program , go through our courses . We have do it yourself programs . We have classes and courses you can join live via zoom from the comfort of your living room . You can also watch all of our classes and courses on demand . They're pre-recorded , ready to go with printable homework in case you need a checklist , like me . Okay , you guys have a great rest of your week and happy training . We'll see you next week for our 200th episode . If you have a question about anything you heard on this podcast or any other puppy training question , visit my site , baxter and Bellacom , to contact me .