Salient.
I noticed that I’ve been using that word more in my training…to describe cues, behavior markers (used immediately after a behavior), and environmental triggers.
Why is that word important to dog training (or training any other animal)? To begin my answer, let’s look at the dictionary definition. According to Merriam-Webster, one meaning is – to stand out conspicuously.
Think about that for a minute. If something stands out from the rest of the environment, you have a much higher likelihood of it drawing your attention. That is very relevant to creating success in training. If your dog can’t see or hear your cue or marker, or it just blurs in to the rest of what is going on around you, your dog is less likely to respond. Learned irrelevance can also set in, meaning your dog has learned through repeated exposure that the cue is of no significance.
Confused?
Here are a few examples.
When teaching a dog nose targeting (after practicing this by presenting your first or other object up close first), backing up while holding your fist out or moving your fist behind your back and then presenting it again makes that fist stand out more. When teaching a dog to target a mat, picking the mat up and then placing it back down makes the mat more noticeable and interesting.
When I was teaching Dawson to nose target a sticky note, I used prompts in the beginning to show him where I placed the note. First I taught him to touch his nose to the note when I held it in my hand. That was easy. When I stuck it to a cabinet, that was more difficult. By my pointing to it, he was able to find it easier. With practice, I no longer needed that prompt.
When using event markers to train behaviors, if those markers can not be seen/heard/felt (depending on the learner) they can not effectively communicate that THAT behavior is the correct behavior. This is just one reason why clickers are powerful tools. Inside or outside they are very distinguishable from the surrounding noises of the environment.
I learned from Dr. Lora Haug in her lecture on classical conditioning at the Lemonade Conference that time lapse between exposure to a trigger matter. If, for example, the presence of a man in a uniform causes your dog to bark/lunge/growl and you have set up a trial to teach a new emotional response in your dog; while working at a distance that your dog can continue to have loose body muscles, in a 15 minute session, it would be better to have the man in uniform appear 10x rather than 40x because that time lapse between exposures will make the presence of the man more salient. It is easier for your dog to learn, ‘when’ the man appears, ‘then’ great treats appear. (NOTE that there are other factors involved in classical conditioning success. Salience is just one.)
My question to you is this: How can you make your dog training lesson more effective by making your cues, markers and triggers more effective?
