BAT session #1 - Behavior Adjustment Training

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12 жыл бұрын

Dimma is a 4 year old female border terrier. Her aggression towards other dogs started around the age of 1 years and has been increasing since. About 1 and 1/2 years ago she attacked a sharpei bitch and caused several skin injuries that needed stiches. This was the first and only time she ever caused an injury to another dog. Since then we have tried to avoid other dogs, except playing occasionally with two or three male dogs that she loves and can be trusted with.
Now it's about time to try to work on this problem, and I've decided to try BAT - behavior adjustment training. I will videotape this journey of ours, and hopefully it will be a success!
In sessions 1 and 2 the decoy dog is a yellow male labrador. This is a comfortable place to start, since Dimma's aggression is mainly towards female dogs and brachycephalic dogs like bulldogs (and other dogs with wrinkles, like sharpei).
This first session went pretty well, although there is room for improvement, for example:
* I think I should go further back each time and wait a bit longer before moving towards the decoy again
* I think I should try each distance several times before moving closer
* I need to get used to not using food reward during setups
* Perhaps it is better to have the camera stationary on a tripod, since it is difficult for a camera person to follow the dog and keep the camera still (the camera person in this video was not used to this video camera which explains the shaking and zoom problems that came up occasionally)
Feel free to comment if you have other suggestions!!

Пікірлер: 29

@isasamp 12 жыл бұрын

I did enjoy to see how you well you did this BAT session. The comments are very precise. Thanks for posting.

@carlosbarragan6729 3 ай бұрын

Thank you!!!!

@miominn 12 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for the comment. It was my impression from reading the BAT book that stages 1 and 2 were more intended for situations where you don't have control over the stimulus, like on every day walks. But try to use stage 3 as often as possible. But I guess you are right, you can use all three in a setup as well :-) I really love the idea of BAT, and also the fact that you can mix it up with other things, like clicker training and DS/CC. I hope it will help Dimma :-)

@RumoAutodidata 2 жыл бұрын

Girl! Are you a so good trainer dog! Congrat! Kisses from Brazil!

@miominn 12 жыл бұрын

Thanks for your encouragement... I will definitely keep going :-)

@suhaylett 10 жыл бұрын

Hi, Just come across this video, I'm a trainer and have been studying BAT over about the last 6 months, I can't go to seminars due to having a dog on medication 4 times a day. I'm now learning about BAT 2.0 and watching Webinars. A friend has just completed the Instructors course. I love the slowed down footage, brilliant camera work, thank you. I would be interested to know how Dimma is now nearly 2 years on.

@miominn 10 жыл бұрын

Well on the upside, Dimma is now friends with this decoy dog, she loves playing with him. On the downside, she is no better with dogs in general. Not because BAT isn't working, but because I haven't got time. I did about 8 sessions that summer with different dogs, but then life got in the way. I got another baby and now busy with work and two young children it seems impossible at the moment. But I'm hoping I can take some time off work next year and do some intensive training.

@suhaylett 10 жыл бұрын

Freyja Kristinsdottir Hi, This is the problem I find that clients just do not have the time to arrange set ups etc. Thank you for replying, life seems to be so hectic yet with all the time saving gadgets we have time always seems to be at a premium. Have you seen all the BAT 2 new information, it is easier to sort when just out for a walk and may help Dimma. I have always found terriers more difficult to read than a lot of other dogs, this is where the slow motion video really helps.

@miominn 9 жыл бұрын

suhaylett Thanks :-) Yes I did an online course with Grisha a few months ago and learned about the new BAT 2.0. It was great to get all the new info. I will have more time next year and will definitely keep on working with BAT 2.0.

@suhaylett 9 жыл бұрын

Freyja Kristinsdottir Hi, that is great, thank you for letting me know.

@orcamexiwie 3 жыл бұрын

All experts have spoken here. I would only suggest to get the camera person to not savage the takes because it doesn't make a pleasant watch of a video you're supposed to pay attention. I had to go back to understand because of the visual noise. Thank you for sharing your session. Indeed there's always opportunity to improve with pups.

@jeanregenwether4879 7 жыл бұрын

This is a very good technique, but it is a technique or very similar to some techniques I was taught many years ago to work with reactive dogs. I also do not use a long leash for quite some time when doing this. I use a standard leash and work very slowly to the long leash.

@Luculencia 7 жыл бұрын

The long leash is the tool for BAT training but I think you are supposed to have trained your dog to follow leash pressure already before starting BAT (so you never have to drag your dog away, just pull gently and get them to follow you). I guess that means you're doing it right? :)

@joebarnes1089 6 жыл бұрын

you said you liked the calming signals and later you said you moved further away because she did calming signals .you also mentioned she was wagging her tail , that means she is in a a heightened strait and does not mean she is happy

@elenacodanunziante7375 3 жыл бұрын

I'm no canine expert, but my dog freezes when she sees another dog, so having a wagging tail like that, to me, would mean she's in a better state of mind than freezing/tensing up

@joebarnes1089 3 жыл бұрын

@@elenacodanunziante7375i am a dog expert and Dogs can wag their tail before they fight, do you think is a good state of mind ?

@elenacodanunziante7375 3 жыл бұрын

@@joebarnes1089 lol i don't know what you mean by 'dog expert'. Anyways like i said the tail wagging alone isnt enough. My dog wags her tail when she sees someone she wants to greet (like me or a dog she knows well and likes). She has never wagged her tail when she saw something that made her uncomfortable/anxious (like a dog while on leash), rather she stops walking tenses up and might even growl. Dog tail wagging can mean different things by my understanding, yes they wag their tails when attacking, they even wag their tail to demonstrate dominance, but all these tail wags are different. If you know how to read your dog you should be able to tell the difference. Even a still perked up tail is a sign of being in an excited state (not necessarily negatively), so wagging tail alone imo isn't enough to determine the state of mind of your dog. Gentle wagging tail with a relaxed body and a non intense looking (rather than staring down) could indicate a good state of mind. Other things need to be read to determine the state of mind of the dog. Also calming signals are good, but excercising too many calming signals means your dog is trying to defuse the situation (which is good but also indicates your dog is a little uneasy) so that explains why she would move away

@joebarnes1089 3 жыл бұрын

@@elenacodanunziante7375 i am surprised that you do not know what I mean by "dog Expert" as you was the one that word in your posting.Dog expert means some one that has studied and qualified in a subject and then in my case worked full time for more years than you have been on this planet as a qualified dog behaviourist.

@elenacodanunziante7375 3 жыл бұрын

@@joebarnes1089 yea i was asking what you meant by dog expert because even a dog groomer could call himself a 'dog expert'. But yeah as a dog behaviorist you certainly are more competent in analysing the situation

@justagirlandherdogs615 4 жыл бұрын

What are calming signals

@miominn 4 жыл бұрын

Calming signals was first described by Turid Rugaas, a norwegian dog trainer. You can read about it here: en.turid-rugaas.no/calming-signals---the-art-of-survival.html# . But other dog trainers might call it something else, like canine signals... or some other terms that I cannot think of at the moment.

@P1rate20 6 жыл бұрын

So was the BAT successful? I also have a same sex aggressive dog. I have the impression BAT works for minor fear based behavior, but have my doubts about dominance biased same sex aggression.

@miominn 6 жыл бұрын

Hello, sorry I didn't see your comment until now. Yes I agree with you, I think BAT works much better on fear based behavior than same sex aggression. Dimma has a little bit of both, which means BAT works well for her to get to used to a male dog that she is fearful of. Like with this labrador in this video, in session 2 she got over her fear and started playing with the dog. However, I doubt that it would work with same sex aggression. I have totally given up on trying to get Dimma to accept another female dog. Dimma is 10 years old now, she is a fantastic family dog, great with people, and I have decided to love her the way she is. She doesn't need to be dog friendly for me to love her. As for BAT, I love the idea. This video is old, and shows the old version of BAT. Grisha has changed the method now, and f.ex. there is now something called "ninja-BAT" which is a cool idea, and much easier to use in everyday life. But I didn't go through with training BAT to the extent of seeing a huge change in Dimma. But it did give me a lot of tools to manage Dimma's behavior on day-to-day basis.

@blackdogxx 9 жыл бұрын

Why is the border terrier not walking at the handler's side? Basic training is to get the dog to walk along side of the handler reliably. With a dog trotting in front of the handler, the dog cannot see or pay attention to a handler. The dog is pulling on leash and not following the handler because the handler is not even giving commands. And the dog is jumping up on the handler.

@miominn 9 жыл бұрын

Thanks for your comment. It's impossible to answer your question in full here in a short comment. I suggest your read the book by Grisha Stewart - Behavior Adjustment Training. By reading that book you will understand BAT better and your will get the answer to your questions. My dog knows perfectly well how to walk on a loose lead or heel for that matter if I give her the command. See my other video: Heel position with clickertraining - But that is not what BAT is about. It's not about obedience training. It's about letting the dog learn to behave non agressively and reward the dog when it shows signals like turning the head or licking. Obedience is not important here, but I certainly teach my dog obedience and use it when I need it.

@rcannon100 8 жыл бұрын

+Freyja Kristinsdottir But in this video the student dog is NOT on a loose lead. The dog is pulling forward??

@Luculencia 7 жыл бұрын

Dog is probably too overexcited to walk calmly, it may have just come out of the house and not been walked enough prior to training. If I were doing this with my dog I'd tire her out first with a lengthy running / fetching session and then try when she's more likely to wander nearer my side and follow me rather than look at her environment. She can't give her dog a heel command or loose lead command because that defeats the purpose of the training. You aren't meant to command the dog at all, dog is meant to make his / her own choices (good choices are rewarded). Or that's what I understood of the BAT theory anyway :)

@GSDXephyr 5 жыл бұрын

This is not "basic training" or "obedience" training. It's clear you are not familiar with this protocol.