Stop Teaching Your Dog Bad Habits
- 15 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Most owners assume their dog just picked up bad habits, but in reality, the owner usually taught the behavior without realizing it. The owners are reinforcing unwanted behaviors and not reinforcing the good behaviors. Dogs learn from consequences, not intentions. Owners think they are correcting, comforting, or managing their dog, but the dog is simply learning what works.
Examples of Reinforcing Bad Behaviors
The dog jumps up on you, and you give it attention by pushing it down and saying “Down,” or “Off.” That puppy's getting attention; therefore, in the puppy's mind, they're thinking, “Oh, they're giving me affection. They're giving me attention. They're talking to me. I must be doing something right, so I'm gonna keep doing it.” That's reinforcing the jumping.
The dog barks, and you talk back to it while it is barking. You're having a conversation with your dog. You're telling the dog to be quiet. You're telling the dog to shut up, and they are barking more because they think it’s fun. The proper way would be not to reward the barking, but to reward them when they're not barking and calm, because puppies are going to do more of what they're being rewarded for.
The dog pulls on the leash and eventually reaches what it wants, whether it's another dog or a person. You're pulling back on the leash; they're pulling forward. It's a tug-of-war, and the puppy's winning because they're getting what they want: to move forward. The best thing to do would be to stop, call them back to you, and put them in a sit. Make them wait to stop the pulling. You could also do a U-turn. Go in the opposite direction from what they want. Then they get confused, and they stop pulling.
It's also easy for owners to reinforce separation anxiety. What happens is that when the dog has anxiety? It knows you're leaving. You try to comfort it by saying, “It's okay. I’ll be back in a little while.” You give the puppy attention when they're anxious instead of teaching them independence, confidence, and calm, which I have discussed in other articles.
Why does unintentional reinforcement happen?
Mostly because owners react emotionally rather than teach intentionally, most people have simply not been shown by a professional dog trainer how dogs actually learn. When I start working with a new dog owner or talk to them on the phone about getting started, I tell them the training isn't even for the dog. The training is for them. I'm the coach, and I'm going to teach them how to raise that puppy correctly and how to reinforce good behaviors and not reinforce bad ones. This method helps reduce stress and frustration when raising this puppy.
Remember that dogs repeat what works. If they're getting attention from you when they're doing something wrong, they're going to keep doing it. It's very important for owners to have consistent rules and boundaries for the puppy so that they know exactly what you want. I've talked about this in a recent article: Is the dog being disobedient, or is it confused? Often, the dog is confused because they don't know the rules. You haven't implemented them. There are no consequences.
Timing also matters more than most owners think, because there's a split second between when they do something wrong and when they do something right. For example, if the puppy's in a sit and you go to give a treat to the puppy for being a good dog and sitting, and they get up from the sit, jump up to get the treat before it gets down to their mouth, and you give them that treat, you are rewarding them for jumping. We call this feed for position. We get the puppy in a sit. We reward that position with a yes, which serves as the marker, and the food reward, which serves as the reinforcer.
How to flip the script.
Instead of reacting to bad behavior, owners should start rewarding the behavior that they want. Focus on the outcome that you want. Stop overcorrecting or nagging the puppy when they're not doing something right, and focus on the behaviors you want.
Here's how you do that.
Reward calm greetings. Instead of reacting to jumping when you come home and the puppy's overexcited, ignore the puppy for a few minutes until they calm down, sit or lie on their bed, and reward that behavior by giving a bully stick, something to chew on, or some treats.
Reward quiet instead of responding to barking so they know you want them to be quiet. This is done when they are calm, and you also have to be calm.
If your leash training and your puppy's pulling, you stop moving. When the puppy's pulling and the puppy's getting out of control, just stop. Put them in a sit. Put them in a drawer. Make them wait. Make them learn patience. Make them learn frustration tolerance and impulse control.
The mindset shift
Focus on what you want. Don't focus on what you don't want. Make sure that you are teaching the dog something and that they're learning something in that moment. Your job as the dog's owner is to set the puppy up for success and teach the puppy. It’s not about constantly correcting and nagging.
Imagine you had a new job, hadn't yet been trained on the software or the company's policies and procedures. The employee trying to train you is constantly telling you, “No, you're doing things wrong, ” or “Stop that. Don't do that.” They’re nagging you. You're probably going to get frustrated and move on to another job because they just don't know how to handle new employees. It is the same way with your puppy. You have to be very patient and tolerant and focus on what you want the puppy to learn, not constantly correcting them on what they're not doing well.
Ask that one question: “What is my dog learning from this moment?” Then you will get very far with raising your puppy.
These are just some simple tips on how you can go from reinforcing bad behavior to reinforcing good behavior. It's a very subtle timing with your communication to the puppy, your vocal cues, your corrections, and your body language. You have to have the timing right to reinforce good behaviors. This is what puppies want. This is how puppies thrive.
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