by Kay Laurence | Jun 4, 2018
7 min read Just because it is better than it was, does that make it the best we can do? This is part of the “good enough” resolution or avoid-any-more-hard-work ethos. Is time so precious that we cannot invest in doing better? Much of the material we integrate into...
by Kay Laurence | Jun 3, 2018
8 min read The origins of the protocol were first documented over 50 years ago, but it is not a well-known or frequently selected protocol. Susan Friedman explains the original experiment succinctly in her article Clearing the Path to Reinforcement with an Errorless...
by Kay Laurence | Aug 16, 2019
Luring is shaping with guidance The lure is an instruction, or information, as to what response is expected, what to do. How the lure is presented, what speed, where, and with what reinforcement promise (tastiness) are all part of the instructions. Instructions should...
by Kay Laurence | Aug 12, 2019
3 min read Cues are part of our conversation with our dog, giving and listening to cues require skills. One of these key skills is being able to sort the cues that are relevant and signify an opportunity for reward, and those that are just Her being a Person who...
by Kay Laurence | Jul 30, 2019
2 min read Training through positive reinforcement is much, much more than giving a treat. I want you to ask yourself: “How much pleasure is the dog getting”? Eating can be a pleasurable process or mere fuel. If you find yourself eating and not noticing what you put...
by Kay Laurence | Jun 22, 2019
3 min read Early days of exploring the process of reinforcement to maintain or strengthen a behaviour were limited to the simplest mechanism to deliver a pellet. The restrictions of research experiments and absence of other forms, or view, of what may constitute...
by Kay Laurence | Jun 21, 2019
6 min read Selfish training ? I am as guilty as any trainer to use my skills to teach the dogs what I want them to learn. This is often orientated to my needs, what makes my life easier. Most clients reach out to a trainer for assistance in removing annoying...
by Kay Laurence | Jun 21, 2019
3 min read Collies, sheepdogs and all their cousins have become one of the most popular breeds today. I am a lifetime member of their fan club, mostly because I love their behaviours, love to see them in the classic working stance, doing what they love to do. They...
by Kay Laurence | May 6, 2019
3 min read “Experts”. “Specialists”. Are we? It really doesn’t describe us, but “Geeks”, yeah, that’s more of a comfy fleece. “People who have a passion”. “People who talk about it even when they are not doing it, have a hunger to learn more and more …” Yep, I’m...
by Kay Laurence | Apr 20, 2019
3 min read Luring is an integral part of our lives, marketing surrounds us at every turn. When a purposeful opportunity for reinforcement is presented, luring occurs. From delightful smells in the supermarket to bright colours on packaging. From menu descriptions that...
by Kay Laurence | Apr 11, 2019
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by Kay Laurence | Mar 22, 2019
4 min read Teaching duration has become a muddy pool of very mixed creatures. This is partly due to our human understanding in how we use words that are the same but have entirely different meanings. We ask the dog to “Stay!”, meaning don’t move, but also “you stay...
