Espresso Dog Training

Yes, dear readers, as the title suggests, today I will be talking about the differences between Rewards, Lures, and Bribes.

There are many people – owners and trainers alike – who make the claim that using food in training is “bribery.” Many believe that using food will create a dog who only works – or obeys – when food or treats are present. The truth is, if your dog is only working when you have food, you haven’t actually taught her anything except that she only gets a reward when she knows that you have treats. This isn’t a reflection of using food as a reward. This is actually a reflection of using poor training practices.

Now, this doesn’t mean trainers who don’t use food are poor trainers, and it doesn’t mean that you have to use food. The truth is, you don’t have to use anything when training your dog. However, some tools – like food – are extremely useful. In my experience, food can actually enhance learning, help foster and build engagement, and promote a great work ethic – when it’s used correctly, of course.

So, I’m going to give you a quick run-down of the ways food can be used.

REWARDS
The best way to avoid bribing your dog is to present food AFTER your dog does the desired behavior. This is why using a marker signal like a clicker or a verbal “Yes!” is so powerful. A reward is just a way of reinforcing a behavior that you like. The fact is, dogs do what works – what pays off. Make appropriate behaviors pay off, and your dog will be more likely to repeat those behaviors. In addition, I suggest that all of my clients practice marking and rewarding with food OFF of their body – such as in a container on a shelf or counter – as well as using other types of rewards – such as games, toys, verbal praise, physical attention like petting, and anything else their dog really loves.

LURES
A lure is used to guide a dog into position, and can be useful for behaviors that a dog doesn’t naturally do, like spin, sit pretty, or crawl. A food lure is only used a few times, and then you quickly fade to just your hand, and gradually reduce the “obviousness” of your hand guide. Usually, I add the verbal cue really quickly when I use lures.

BRIBES
Now here’s where it gets a little tricky. A bribe is presented before a reward. In this sense, it does resemble a lure in some ways. However, the biggest difference is, a bribe is never faded, and when the handler tries to fade it, they typically forget to reward the dog with food AFTER the dog has performed a behavior. So the dog learns that her behavior only “works” when her handler actually has food. The handler may then say, “Well, clearly food only works when the dog knows you have it.” The truth is, the food didn’t work in this scenario because the dog didn’t trust the handler to reward it.

QUESTIONS AND CONSIDERATIONS
Of course, if your dog doesn’t care about even the best treats, using food isn’t going to do much good. I’m not suggesting you have to use food, and I’m absolutely not suggesting that not using food is somehow a “failure” on your part, or another trainer’s part. What I am suggesting, is for you to consider why food isn’t working for you. If your dog truly doesn’t care, then of course you should use another type of reward. My point here is not that you must use food, but that, if you do use it, you should use it wisely. Just like any other tool, food can be misused.

Photo copyright CGehlen on Flickr.com