Veterinary Behaviour Dog Training Cat Training Horse Training•6 September 2021

How do we influence Behaviour?

How do we influence our animals' behaviour?

Let's start with learning theory.

In the simplest sense, in the moment after occurring, a behaviour is reinforced (meaning more likely to occur in the future) or punished (meaning less likely to occur in the future).

These reinforcers or punishers can be added (called POSITIVE, as in the mathematical sense) or removed (called NEGATIVE).

The 4 Quadrants of Learning Theory:

POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT (R+): Adding in something an animal likes to reinforce a behaviour (e.g. giving a treat when our dog sits).
NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT (R-): Removing something an animal dislikes to reinforce a behaviour (e.g. releasing lead pressure when our dog steps towards us).
POSITIVE PUNISHMENT (P+): Adding in something that an animal dislikes to punish a behaviour (e.g. an electric shock when a dog barks).
NEGATIVE PUNISHMENT (P-): Removing something an animal likes to punish a behaviour (e.g. removing an animal's toy when they jump up on us).

Key point: These consequences have to occur straight after the behaviour for the animal to connect them together.

Every animal has different reinforcers and punishers — my horse finds carrots reinforcing, but the cat really doesn't. Part of our job as animal owners and trainers is to find what we can use to reinforce the behaviours we want!

So how and why do we avoid punishment?

First up, let's review the definition of positive punishment: POSITIVE PUNISHMENT (P+) is adding in something that an animal dislikes to punish a behaviour (e.g. an electric shock when the dog barks).

So why do we want to avoid it?

Punishment tells the animal what they did wrong without giving information on how to get it right the next time.
We may apply what we think is punishment thinking it will reduce a behaviour, but to the animal it isn't! (e.g. growling and banging on top of a dog's crate when they bark. If this doesn't scare the dog, and in fact they wanted your attention, you may have inadvertently reinforced the behaviour!).
Punishment often stops a behaviour continuing, but doesn't result in long-term change (e.g. dog growls, is told off, and then growls again when someone touches them. It can also stop them showing those warning signs and they can skip straight to biting!).
Frequent exposure to low-level punishment changes its effectiveness, leading to an escalation of punishment over time.
Punishment can induce a fear or anxiety response where there didn't use to be one (e.g. a dog that is leash-popped when seeing another dog may associate other dogs with punishment and become aggressive).
If there is already fear/anxiety, it can escalate it, leading to excessive submission or aggression.

In conclusion, positive punishment misuse is common, has serious welfare concerns associated with its use, and can permanently damage the human-animal bond.

So what do we do instead?

Let's think of a behaviour most people don't enjoy, e.g. a dog jumping up on you when you return home!

Jumping up is fun for dogs. It's a normal, excitable greeting behaviour that all dogs do naturally. It is reinforced by getting hands in their face, being able to lick you, and is associated with the pure joy of their human returning!

So how do we stop jumping? By teaching an ALTERNATIVE behaviour. This can be sit, or run to your mat when my human gets home, or whatever you would like, as long as it is hard to jump up when doing it!

Some other examples of alternative behaviours include:

Teaching your horse to stand still at the mounting block instead of swinging their butt away
Teaching a dog to go to a mat when the doorbell rings instead of running barking to the door
Teaching your cat to station on a piece of paper instead of jumping on the counter when preparing food.