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How
Strong An Influence Written by George Chapman
in 1606 was “How strong an influence in well-placed words.”
In Proverbs in the Old Testament is “Pleasant words are as a honeycomb,
sweet to the soul, and health to the bones”. You may ask what the
above has to do with dog training, but words of praise given appropriately as
well as the tones you use can be of benefit to the proper training of your dog. You have all heard
persons bellow out their commands to their dogs who are sitting right at their
side. You have been in a parking lot
at a field event and can tell by the pitch of a person’s voice (without seeing
the performance) that they are having trouble on a blind.
You have seen some dogs cringe and hit the deck when their handler uses a
certain tone of voice. Other
dogs become overjoyed when their handler uses upbeat and happy tones of praise. Remember when your mother
would call your name---by the tone she used you could often tell if you were in
trouble, if she had a chore for you to do, if she was happy or pleased with you,
or just what her mood was. Well,
your dog is just as perceptive as you were (or maybe still are!). I have a great friend,
who has good running dogs, but he cannot give a command in a voice that is
softer than a low flying plane. Even
sending his dog on an “easy” bird is given in an extremely loud voice.
The dog has good hearing and is sitting right next to him.
I feel he is misusing some very valuable training or handling tools. Some of the best and
smoothest handlers I have seen, speak quietly and often release their dogs with
such a soft voice, you almost don’t realize they have done so.
With a soft voice, you can indicate to your dog that it is an easy bird.
A louder send can indicate it is a push bird.
If the marks are very tight, you want to be careful not to send too
loudly to prevent your dog from flaring. You
can talk your dog into a bird he is a little vague about by using the right
tones. You can calm a nervous dog
and excite a phlegmatic one. If you
are shouting up close, what voice level do you use when your dog is way out
there and you wish to drive him with a loud “Back”.
Your loud “back” may be the same volume as the voice used for that
close in check down bird. When handling on a blind
and you are worried, don’t let that worry show in your voice.
We have all heard a handler (even some of those big, tough guys) whose
voices go up many octaves and become squeakier and squeakier.
If you can hear their panic, obviously, so can their dog.
Years ago I attended an
obedience clinic given by Diane Bauman in which she described a sound she made
which she described as a “Jewish seagull”.
It was great, and I use it to this day---sort of a gargling
awwwwkkk noise. It basically
means, “don’t do that!” I have
used it when one of my dogs is about to cheat water---when they hear that noise,
they dive right in! I have used it
as a correction for a variety of offenses (remember what might be an offense in
my eyes is not necessarily one to my dogs) and it has proven to be extremely
effective as a method of correcting them without undue harshness.
You can modulate the volume on this sound based on the severity of the
crime committed by your dog. For praise, dogs can tell
when you really mean they are wonderful and when you are just going through the
motions. A “good dog” said in a
perfunctory manner with little lilt to the voice, just doesn’t cut it.
A “good dog” said with happiness in your voice and at the appropriate
time can be a wonderful positive reinforcement.
By telling your dog “good dog” when it is standing over a bird or is
walking in from a retrieve hoping to encourage it to do the right thing, gives
out the wrong message. The dog is
not good until it has picked up the bird and has delivered it to you-----the dog
knows this and so should you! Try to listen to yourself
and the voice you use. Are you
getting effective responses to your volume, tone, and timing?
Ask a good training buddy to “tactfully” critique you.
If you have always been
loud, talked to your dog in a monotone, or never praise, it might take a little
time for your dog to readjust to your change in methods.
Put yourself in your dog’s paws and think how you would feel if you
were spoken to as you speak to your dog. |
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