Capturing to Get Behaviors

Use capturing for behaviors that your dog already does in a more or less complete form. Such as: sit, sit up and beg and down. Each dog has its own repertoire of things it does frequently. Capturing is not effective for teaching the dog to do something that he is unlikely to do naturally.

Capturing can be used in conjunction with classical conditioning to put some behaviors on cue that you might not normally think of - such as pottying.  Its very handy when traveling or during bad weather.  You can do it just like Pavlov did when he put the involuntary drooling response on cue by pairing drooling with the ringing of a bell.  Remember Pavlov presented meat powder to the dog to make it drool and then rang the bell.  You can do the same thing with pottying.  If you say your potty cue every time the dog is squatting to pee, over time the word will be come classically conditioned with the urge to go.  Then you start picking times when you can see the dog is about to go (so already feeling the urge), maybe because of a certain sniffing behavior that they do beforehand, and say the cue then.  Over time you can take your dog out on lead, say the cue word and if they have any need to go, they will feel the feeling and bim bada boom - peeing on cue.  Do not use the clicker when attaching a cue to this kind of behavior, since you don't want to end the behavior.

I do recommend that you use care when selecting the cue.  It should not be a word you would use in casual conversation.  Years ago a puppy buyer of mine taught her dog to perform to the word "potty".  Her son came home from school and mom said, "Get the leash and take Mindy out to potty" and the dog immediately squatted to pee, with great relief.  Fortunately the owner had the good sense to instantly realize the dog was not wrong for peeing - also fortunately it was in the kitchen on linoleum.  I use, "bizness", as in, "do your business". 

You must simply be prepared with clicker and treats to catch your dog doing the action you want to capture. Sometimes this is done while watching TV, but this will vary according to when your dog is most likely to do it. When you see it, click the clicker during the behavior and give the dog the treat. Timing is important. Think of the clicker as a camera marking the instant the dog is doing the right thing.

Your dog will probably leap up and come running to you for that treat and it may be awhile before he does it again. Be patient and wait.

If you are trying to capture something you want the dog to continue without stopping then you may not want to use the clicker, since click ends the behavior. An example might be capturing calm behavior. In that case just quietly reward the dog for the desired behavior without clicking and continue to reward it as the behavior is continued. For instance, you may reward calmly laying down when you first see it, then again in a minute and every minute for awhile, then gradually increase the time between rewards. You would also want to gradually change the type of reward, such as going from a treat to gentle stroking.

Gimme here:  My person gives me "pennies from heaven" for being a good quiet girl.  I'd much rather play 100% of the time, but she says I need my rest too.  So in the beginning I got treats for laying down and quietly chewing my bone.  Now I get petting for the same thing.  She often turns off the overhead light to encourage me to settle down and that helps.  As much as I like to play, which is a LOT, I also love our cuddles on the couch. 

To expand on this – keep in mind that you are capturing behaviors all the time, whether you intend to or not. All behavior is "under the control of its consequences". If a dog tries a behavior and something good happens for the dog, then it is likely to be repeated.  From a survival point of view this makes perfect sense; it wouldn’t promote survival for a dog to waste energy doing something that didn’t get it "good stuff".

Capture a Trick
I recommend capturing a trick for your dog.  That is a good way to practice a training method so you can relax and enjoy the process, before you use capturing for something important.  Remember, "important" is a human point of view; its all tricks to your dog.  Speaking of tricks, here's a list of possible tricks to capture:

spin or chase the tail
sneeze "do you like my perfume?"
yawn "are you tired"
scratching "do you have fleas?"
carry leash in mouth "go take yourself for a walk"
chin on your knee "do you love me"
pawing at ears "how was that joke?"
laying down with a specific paw pose to become "say your prayers"
rolling on the back "be a cockroach"

stretching "take a bow"

shaking (like when wet)

carrying anything that could be stylized as a trick, such as a light plastic lunchbox with dog treats in it for "lets go to work"

shaking head yes or no

barking "whadya think?"

quiet ruff for whispering "shssssh"

quiet growl "be a mean dog"

moaning

Remember:  You are limited only by your own creativity.

Overall Training Plan

Stages of Learning
Effective training follows a pattern of "stages".  There are six stages of learning for you to work through if your dog is going to be well trained and reliable.  People who are training with canine performance goals in mind, should aim to train through all six stages.  Those who simply want an great companion who is a joy to live with, may not need to go that far.  Do realize, some behaviors don't even have all three of the last stages as components.

Once you teach your dog several behaviors and go through the 6 Stages of Learning for each, you notice your dog understands the pattern and knows what comes next.  With reward based training, your dog becomes a willing partner who is eager to learn.  So, the more you train the faster and easier it gets.  Be careful though - reward based training is so much fun that it can be really addictive.

The 6 Stages of Learning are:

1. Get the behavior
2. Add the verbal cue
3. Wait for the cue
4. Add distraction
5. Add duration
6. Add distance

Get the Behavior
In order to reinforce a behavior, you must first "get the behavior". You cannot reinforce what is not happening. There are five general methods to get a behavior: Capturing, Luring, Free Shaping, Targeting and Modeling.  Each will be discussed in detail in a separate blog entry.  They each have advantages and disadvantages.
 
People tend to have preferences about which they use the most. I have noticed many dogs seem to have preferences or at least differences in their learning style that make one or another more effective for them.
 
Your goal should be to have a working understanding of all five methods and know when to best use each.

In this blog you will notice that I speak of "shaping" a behavior and also "free shaping" as a method to get a behavior.

• Shaping refers to the process of gradually changing the behavior you are getting to get closer to a final version of the behavior.
• Free shaping as a method to get behavior refers to using shaping only with what the dog offers to you (i.e. not using capturing, luring, modeling or targeting to prompt the behavior).

Capturing is most effective for behaviors your dog already does in a more or less complete form. Such as: sit, sit up and beg, down and potty. Each dog has its own repertoire of things it does frequently. Capturing is not effective for teaching the dog to do something that he is unlikely to do naturally.

Luring is best used for getting the dog to move or assume a position, such as luring into a sit or down, or luring them to walk alongside you.

Free Shaping is sort of an advanced form of "capturing" and is used well for behaviors the dog does not offer or do naturally as a complete thing. It develops your dog's creativity and confidence and makes learning into a cool game for the dog.

Gimme here:  I especially love free shaping games.  I'm very clever and creative and I have oodles of confidence, so I can really shine when we play this game.  I'm not bragging, it's the truth.


Targeting is best used to get your dog to move somewhere or when a behavior involves a specific place. Your dog can be taught to target a margarine lid, target stick, your hand, his leash or his bed (or any thing for that matter).

Modeling/Molding involves physical manipulation of the dog into a position or place. It can be effective for simple behaviors with some dogs. Many dogs seem to resent being physically manipulated into position or are uncomfortable with being touched or held in certain ways.