Nobody ever tells you about this dark side. I'm going to step up and warn everybody who is tempted to encourage engagement in their dog.
See this face? I call it the happy face. Aside from our regular training, I rewarded him a few times for looking at me with this expression. Seems harmless, right? BIG MISTAKE.
He will sit nearby and stare at me with this face for an hour or so at a time. He'll stare at my back, my ear, whatever is facing him. Every time I turn around, that's what I see. It's creepy. Eventually I have to run to the kitchen and give him a treat so I can run back and close the door before he catches on. A few precious moments of peace!
He will lay right outside the door, making a 'peep' every once in a while until I break down and let him back in, restarting the cycle.
We have that same face, except he virtually never lays down. Sometimes the stare is accompanied by a barley perceptible whine. I call it out 'now what' or 'Lets go DO something' face.
Reg: 12-01-2005
Posts: 70
Loc: Northern California
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Oh yes The Face. I remember being so creeped out by C when he was a baby. He was always staring at me! I took him to work - 30 mile commute each way and it was unnerving to glance over and ALWAYS find him looking at me. Now I'm just used to it.
Tresa Hendrix Webboard User Reg: 05-08-2008
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Loc: Alaska
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My dutchie stares at me like that too...he's laying there smiling but sometimes he can't take it and he charges me with a bone in his mouth trying to start some silly game. Kennel time. Its creepy how he is breathing normal and then it stops, his mouth is still open but he isn't breathing...then he looks crazy and makes weird noises attacking the bone or runs to me.
A tired dog is a good dog, a trained dog is a better dog.
Ashley Bond Webboard User Reg: 07-22-2008
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lol my boerboel will do this too. though if she is that serious about things for about 15 mins i know she is about to loss it and jump on my lap. eww thats bit to much at that point its time for a game of fetch or a training session to run off some energy for sure lol
Reg: 12-06-2010
Posts: 721
Loc: British Columbia, Canada
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Thanks for bringing this up. I will put Jethro in a Down, and then he lies there looking expectantly up into my face. We are practicing extending the Down, and it takes awhile before he stops staring at me, waiting for the release. I guess I should be grateful, because this was a pup that *would not* make eye contact with me for months after we adopted him. Now he is offering it all the time. Do I keep rewarding it? Or can I let it happen without comment now (at least not for every instance of checking in?).
I wonder because this morning there was a fresh scent of raccoon at the corner and Jethro went off his nut. I got him far enough away to Focus - but he definitely was not able to give it to me under that extreme level of distraction.
I might have answered my own question. I keep rewarding it, but pay attention to the circumstances and keep pushing him to give me Focus when we are getting into the zone of distraction that is more challenging for him.
Well, at least I'm not alone with this burden! My dog drives me to distraction with this ploy. I try not to encourage it but seriously, who can ignore this face for long? You guys cracked
me up!
The thing is, he does it more the more I do with him. It's not like I can tire him out and get relief. The more I work with him, the more he makes the face. Oh my.
Jenny, sounds like you are doing a great job. I try to reward my dog whenever I can for listening to me. I figure, once I made the decision to cut out most of the negative rewards given our situation, I would keep the rewards coming. I think it depends on what you plan for your dog. I don't plan on trialing him now, so I don't see the need to vary my reward schedule. It's easy for me to always have a reward with me, so why not do it?
The one time I vary my reward schedule is when I am pushing him to try harder. This does work for us, but it's not the norm, I would say.
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The Dark Side of Engagement Training (just fun)
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