What is Success?

Define realistic goals for the dog's behavior/skills and remember, it must be something the dog is physically, mentally and emotionally capable of achieving.  In order to achieve success you must:

• Picture - decide what constitutes success for you and your dog, stated as a realistic and obtainable goal. You must have a clear picture of what that behavior/skill should look like and a plan for getting there. In addition you must have a clear idea of what the desired rate of correct performance needs to be - 80% rule for training, higher for the final behavior.
• Physical - communicate to the dog what you want. This includes the ability to manipulate objects and the timing to convey precisely what behaviors you will reinforce.
• Plan - break down tasks into individual pieces and those pieces further broken down into simplest criteria that enables the dog to succeed and have a high rate of reinforcement.

80% Rule --

Eighty percent is a good standard of success for training most dog behaviors. To establish and maintain an 80% success rate in training you must break down each piece of the behavior into the smallest elements or criteria that permits your dog to succeed in a steady progression and with a high rate of reinforcement. If behaviors break down or fall apart as they get more complex, it is a sure sign that the foundation behaviors were not sufficiently and solidly understood by the dog. Each step is an important part of the journey to success, none can be omitted.