Reward Value

When you use positive reward based training, the quality and type of reward you use is very important. Several factors influence the value of the rewards you use, such as:

1. How much does the dog like the reward you are offering? Is it desirable enough to overcome distraction? Is it motivating enough for harder tasks?
2. How often does the dog get that reward?
3. What schedule of reinforcement are you on, fixed or random?
4. What size is the reward? How many does the dog get at one time?
5. How are rewards delivered?

While we talk here about food rewards, you also want to consider using play, touch, and other physical rewards.

Gimme here: I love food, all kinds of food. My person has a veritable treasure trove of yummy things for me to eat. And sometimes, she surprises me and pulls a toy out to play with. I never know what I'm going to get for my efforts, but I do know its always something good. I have my person very well trained. I'm just saying…

How much does the dog like the reward you are offering? Is it desirable enough to overcome distraction? Is it motivating enough for harder tasks?

When you train in a new place, around distraction or if the training is harder than usual, you need better than average rewards. Maybe your dog is tired, while its not the best time to train, sometimes that is all you have. Make sure you have better than average rewards available.

When my boss called me and wanted me to leave my dinner to come to the office to solve his computer problem or help him find things – he knew to make it worth my while. My boss understood how to motivate me to a special effort. Our dogs are much the same, though fortunately for us, their wants are much simpler.

How often does the dog get that reward?

You need to know what your dog's opinions are about the treats you use. Even if you totally love chocolate, if you get it in several forms in each and every meal and for every snack and drink – after awhile even chocolate will lose its allure. For Gimme, the A-number-one-never-fail reward is peanut butter. I protect its value by saving it for those times when I want a special effort.

Quality of reward - On an ever improving scale of delectability there's kibl, commercial treats, hot dog pieces, French fries, pizza bones, homemade real dog cookies, popcorn, refrigerator jerky, garlic steak, braised chicken hearts, teriyaki turkey, peanut butter... you get the idea. Since I don't ever use commercial stuff, hot dog is the lowest value treat I use. Remember, the scale of delectability may be very different for your dog.

When I'm training I have a mix of great stuff and regular stuff, so my dog doesn't know what she'll get. Your dog should think that you can always pull another incredible delectable edible out of thin air... Your dog should be thinking all the time about what he can do to make you deliver those incredible delectable edibles.

What schedule of reinforcement are you on, fixed or random?

You always want to move to a variable reward schedule, since that creates the strongest behaviors. Varying rewards is multi-faceted. When we speak of "schedule" we mean how often the dog gets rewarded.

Think of it like this: A soda machine is a fixed schedule and you only put money in the machine when you are thirsty. You never put money in a trash can, because you never get anything out - its on a fixed schedule of zero.  Las Vegas slot machines are a variable schedule and the tycoons that run them know exactly how often a person has to get a payoff to keep them playing. People will play their paycheck into those machines month after month with an occasional small payoff, because they are addicted to the possibility of a huge payoff.

Does your dog get a reward every time they perform, every other or every third time, or on a random schedule. If its not every time, consider giving greater reward to keep the dog's interest up. Variable schedule rewarding creates strong persistent behaviors. That's what you want.

What size is the reward? How many does the dog get at one time?

Does your dog get a tiny treat for minimal effort? Does he get a bigger treat when he does especially well? Does he sometimes get a huge treat? How many treats does he get? One for average effort or more for greater effort? A jackpot for a stellar effort? All of these are ways to influence your dog's response to the reward you are using.

How are rewards delivered?

We usually just hand a treat to our dog. Maybe we toss the treat to the side to reset the dog for the next repetition. Other than that, we can be pretty boring about how we deliver the goods.

There are many ways to increase the value of rewards by using our delivery to make the reward seem more exciting.

• If you are giving more than one treat or a jackpot, deliver them one at a time, counting out loud with a bit of flourish thrown in. Three treats delivered this way will have more impact than 6 to 10 treats gobbled out of your hand all together.
• Run to where the treats are. Sometimes my dog does something great in the yard when I'm out of treats and running with me into the house to get goodies really makes her eyes shine with excitement. After a good agility run, my dog got a small reward right outside the ring and then we ran to the car for the big payoff.
• Let your dog get the treats "gobble style". I often train with popcorn (use rice krispies tossed with jerky dust for tiny dogs), which I keep in a big bowl. I also have a paper bag that I put a couple handfuls of popcorn in. If my dog does especially well, she gets to stick her head in the bag and grab all she can get in one good gobble. That's a great motivator.
• A variation on the gobble is to let my dog stick his face in the treat pouch, while I provide resistance pulling up on the strap (envision a horse's feedbag).
• Another variation of the paper bag gobble is to put some treats in a paper bag (a recycling idea for all those used fast food sacks), wad it up and let your dog tear it up to get at the treats.
• When I make refrigerator jerky, most of the treats are bite sized and I stop drying while they are still somewhat moist. But, I also make some that are long strips of meat, which I over-dry, making them really tough. My dogs get extra reward value by playing tug with me over these jerky sticks... tearing off pieces and coming back for more, until the piece is so short it pulls out of my hand.