Apparently, Charlie – a dachshund dog – saw a whole different use for this mat other than the use his guardians had gotten it for. That is ok. Look at what fun shaking his mat was giving him! This is an outlet for him to do natural behaviors for him as a dachshund. And he was persistent. Instead of fighting it, I used his drive for shaking his mat as a reinforcer in teaching him to come. I explain below.
If they didn’t like his choice (and even if they did), it is important for his guardians to give him opportunities to get this need for him met.

Shaking this mat was clearly very important to him.
Calling him away from an activity that valuable has the potential to be very punishing for him BUT there is a way to use that activity to add value to coming when called.
The first part of this story:
When I called him over – and he came – his guardian picked up the mat.
He very quickly did a whiplash turn and was ONLY focused on figuring out how to get it back. This was an important lesson to his guardians that taking his possession away when he leaves it only causes him to feel unsafe leaving it again.
We did not want that!
Second part of the story:
Charlie’s guardians place the mat back on the floor and he returned to shaking it.
However, the next time I called him, he was reluctant to come.
He did eventually come to me.
This time he got extra treats from me.
And THEN, I sent him back to play with his mat.
After that, his delay in leaving the mat to recall to me was less.
After that, his movement to me was quicker and without hesitation.
He was always sent back to play with his mat.
NOW, this became a fun game to him
because he always had access to his most prized reinforcer
and the consequence of his coming to me meant not only
yummy treats but also the opportunity for more mat fights.
The Premack Principle
This strategy involves something called the Premack Principle. This means that I was making the less probable behavior (leaving Charlie’s mat to come to me) more probable by teaching a contingency of *if* you do this, *then* you get the opportunity to do *what is most valued or most likely*.
Here are some ways I have used the Premack Principle on my own behavior.
Right now, *IF* I finish this blog post, *THEN* I get to go for a walk.
*IF* I eat my meal, *THEN* I get ice cream for desert!
Here are some contingencies I have taught dogs:
*IF* you sit at my feet with your head held neutral, *THEN* you will get a leash attached.
*IF* you do a behavior I ask you to do, *THEN* you will get to play with your toy.
This also involves giving my learner choice and control (also known as agency) during this game. Charlie was free to say NO at any time. My job was to teach him that saying YES gave him lots of fun.
And FUN is what gives this boy purpose!