JD - CH.25 - Barking Flashcards
How should you think about barkin in training terms?
Think about antecedents and consequences of barking episodes.
Antecedents = Influential events before.
Consequence = Events immediately following.
Is the usual claim “Barking works bc mailman left.” true?
Also barks when guests let into house? Points to behavior being primarily antecedent driven.
So the barking sounds an alarm - announce presence of intruder.
How can one claim that barking often has dual purpose?
Intruder alert + Info to intruder that detected.
Useful trait and self-reinforcing. It’s completion is the reward. Behavior happens regardless of visitor staying/departing. Has served it’s function if triggered by right antecedent.
Which training strategoies could you use to get watchdog barking under control?
Bring it under operant ctr or do counterconditioning.
What other strategy could or should you also use to ctr the barking?
Address antecedent, manage environment.
How exaxctly can you bring self-reinforcing antecedent driven avctivity under OP?
Elicit behavior and pay handsomly. Must trump intrinsic reinforcer. Until dog expects being payed for delivering behavior.
Explain this training theory in practice with an ex from the human world.
Ex. Hockey player as kid for fun(intrinsic). Go professional. Significant salary. Behavior under OP. If money become insufficient, demand more or streik.
Now explain the same theory in the dog training context.
Here is where teaching bark comes in. Teach bark-stop-bark-stop as trick. Use in watch dog context. Lots of treats when barking at doorbell. Then stop treating, dog goes on streik (in theory).
How could you use counterconditioning to get the barking under control?
Stimulus rewarding. Competing stimulus rewarded that then confines barking. Easiest to give heavy rewarding when in watch dog mode.
How could you get the barking under control with the strategy of addressing antecedents?
Turn antecedent of visitor into cue for dog to engage in another behavior which is mutually exclusive to barking. Watchdogs often fetch maniacs.
BEFORE any fetch game, ring doorbell. Dog should not see you do this. Will then learn to discriminate between play doorbell and visitor doorbell. Make sure most doorbell rings results in dog having to go to back door, sit and then go outside to play fetch.
Also when visitor, prompt to wait at back door,open door, let dog out,play briefly.
