1 00:00:03,000 --> 00:00:05,600 Speaker 1: Hey, everybody, Welcome to the Foundation's podcast. I'm your host 2 00:00:05,600 --> 00:00:09,280 Speaker 1: Tony Peterson, and today's episode is all about confidence and 3 00:00:09,320 --> 00:00:18,480 Speaker 1: how important it is to our dogs. There are fundamental 4 00:00:18,520 --> 00:00:21,960 Speaker 1: aspects of being a well adjusted and relatively content person 5 00:00:22,280 --> 00:00:26,080 Speaker 1: that we understand deeply. The right level of confidence, you know, 6 00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:29,160 Speaker 1: not overbearing in your face arrogance, but just real self 7 00:00:29,200 --> 00:00:33,280 Speaker 1: assurance is huge. A been there, done that attitude matters 8 00:00:33,320 --> 00:00:36,320 Speaker 1: and it can shape your interactions with people in many 9 00:00:36,400 --> 00:00:40,400 Speaker 1: positive ways. It's also crazy important to our dogs. And 10 00:00:40,440 --> 00:00:42,400 Speaker 1: while we often think about how a dog needs to 11 00:00:42,440 --> 00:00:45,479 Speaker 1: learn a certain command or behavior or whatever, what is 12 00:00:45,520 --> 00:00:50,200 Speaker 1: intrinsically linked to that is just confidence. A confident Doug 13 00:00:50,320 --> 00:00:52,680 Speaker 1: is generally a better dog to train and be around, 14 00:00:53,040 --> 00:01:03,200 Speaker 1: which is what I'm going to talk about right now. Imagine, 15 00:01:03,200 --> 00:01:07,800 Speaker 1: if you will, a scenario where these things happen to you. 16 00:01:07,800 --> 00:01:11,240 Speaker 1: You get hyper aroused, but not in the way you 17 00:01:11,360 --> 00:01:13,720 Speaker 1: might as Valentine's Day starts to wind down and the 18 00:01:13,800 --> 00:01:16,600 Speaker 1: kids are in bed, but maybe instead in the way 19 00:01:16,640 --> 00:01:19,320 Speaker 1: you might feel when you're walking through your local Applebee's 20 00:01:19,680 --> 00:01:22,560 Speaker 1: and some dude with face tattoos and an ankle monitor 21 00:01:23,200 --> 00:01:26,960 Speaker 1: throws a plate of French fries in your face. I 22 00:01:27,000 --> 00:01:28,959 Speaker 1: don't know, I have no idea why that's my example, 23 00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:31,960 Speaker 1: but just bear with me. Your fight or flight response 24 00:01:32,040 --> 00:01:35,559 Speaker 1: kicks in your brain, which is oftentimes not your friend, 25 00:01:35,959 --> 00:01:39,160 Speaker 1: releases a whole bunch of stress hormones, which in turn 26 00:01:39,280 --> 00:01:43,240 Speaker 1: increases your heart rate, heightens your awareness, and generally makes 27 00:01:43,280 --> 00:01:45,560 Speaker 1: you feel like you could explode at any given second. 28 00:01:46,560 --> 00:01:50,880 Speaker 1: Imagine that shitty, no good feeling, because we've all felt it. Now, 29 00:01:50,920 --> 00:01:53,800 Speaker 1: imagine all of the scenarios in which that can kick 30 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:57,240 Speaker 1: in out of nowhere. Perhaps you're at the zoo and 31 00:01:57,320 --> 00:02:00,600 Speaker 1: a silver back with a toothache breaks free from his enclosure. 32 00:02:01,600 --> 00:02:03,840 Speaker 1: Maybe you're out for a run and a rottweiler that 33 00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:06,560 Speaker 1: looks like a powerlifter decides to take a keen interest 34 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:10,799 Speaker 1: in your presence. Maybe you're standing in front of a 35 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:14,000 Speaker 1: podium and looking out on a couple hundred people who 36 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:18,240 Speaker 1: are all waiting for you to start speaking. Glossophobia is 37 00:02:18,280 --> 00:02:21,840 Speaker 1: the fear of public speaking, and while it's often touted 38 00:02:21,880 --> 00:02:23,919 Speaker 1: as the number one fear of a fair amount of 39 00:02:23,919 --> 00:02:27,200 Speaker 1: the population, I'd guess it's not quite that high on 40 00:02:27,240 --> 00:02:29,520 Speaker 1: the list. I mean, if someone put a gun to 41 00:02:29,600 --> 00:02:32,239 Speaker 1: your head and said give this crowd a seminar or 42 00:02:32,280 --> 00:02:35,160 Speaker 1: I'm going to pull a trigger. You probably choose a seminar. 43 00:02:36,160 --> 00:02:39,080 Speaker 1: This is still a real fear, a big one, and 44 00:02:39,120 --> 00:02:42,120 Speaker 1: the prevailing theory on why it is so profound is 45 00:02:42,160 --> 00:02:45,480 Speaker 1: that not that long ago in human history, when we 46 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:48,440 Speaker 1: spent our lives in small tribes, if you were in 47 00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 1: front of a group and speaking, you had set yourself 48 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:54,800 Speaker 1: apart somehow. This might not seem like a big deal, 49 00:02:55,160 --> 00:03:00,160 Speaker 1: but that tribe back then was literally your life. If 50 00:03:00,160 --> 00:03:02,080 Speaker 1: you are making the case and why you should stay 51 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:05,080 Speaker 1: in that tribe, you are making a case for your 52 00:03:05,120 --> 00:03:08,200 Speaker 1: own survival because you weren't going to make it on 53 00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:10,800 Speaker 1: your own. Now. I know you think you might have 54 00:03:10,919 --> 00:03:14,359 Speaker 1: been fine alone, but that's not how it worked. There 55 00:03:14,440 --> 00:03:17,040 Speaker 1: is a reason we ended up working together in small 56 00:03:17,040 --> 00:03:20,280 Speaker 1: groups for a couple hundred thousand years and honestly, probably 57 00:03:20,360 --> 00:03:24,120 Speaker 1: quite a bit longer than that. Think about it another way. 58 00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:27,800 Speaker 1: Once fish figure out how to school and why that 59 00:03:27,880 --> 00:03:31,480 Speaker 1: means their species should survive, you know some level of 60 00:03:31,880 --> 00:03:35,000 Speaker 1: expected predation. You don't see a lot of those fish 61 00:03:35,040 --> 00:03:37,360 Speaker 1: suddenly break out of the school and swim out across 62 00:03:37,400 --> 00:03:40,840 Speaker 1: the open ocean, because they'll become a snack in no time. 63 00:03:42,080 --> 00:03:45,640 Speaker 1: So we have this hold over fear, just like fear 64 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:48,720 Speaker 1: of snakes or spiders, although most of us are in 65 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:51,880 Speaker 1: very little danger of either one. When something has the 66 00:03:51,920 --> 00:03:54,800 Speaker 1: time to establish roots gene deep in us, we don't 67 00:03:54,800 --> 00:03:57,440 Speaker 1: suddenly lose it because that threat isn't the same thing 68 00:03:57,440 --> 00:04:01,560 Speaker 1: any longer. Anyway, most folks would rather not speak in 69 00:04:01,560 --> 00:04:04,000 Speaker 1: front of a crowd, and I don't blame them, but 70 00:04:04,040 --> 00:04:06,360 Speaker 1: I know from personal experience that there are ways to 71 00:04:06,400 --> 00:04:09,320 Speaker 1: get over the fear, and if you do, the trajectory 72 00:04:09,360 --> 00:04:12,800 Speaker 1: of your life might change. It did for me when 73 00:04:12,840 --> 00:04:15,560 Speaker 1: I first got asked to speak at smaller outdoor shows 74 00:04:15,600 --> 00:04:19,200 Speaker 1: a long time ago. It wasn't fun, but it taught 75 00:04:19,200 --> 00:04:22,000 Speaker 1: me a lot like that I needed to speak about 76 00:04:22,080 --> 00:04:25,239 Speaker 1: stuff that I knew really well. I had to prepare 77 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:28,760 Speaker 1: and rehearse and well just go through the reps. At 78 00:04:28,760 --> 00:04:30,560 Speaker 1: one point in my life, I did a fair amount 79 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:33,839 Speaker 1: of public speaking engagements and it suddenly became something that 80 00:04:33,880 --> 00:04:36,000 Speaker 1: I didn't dread and I actually kind of started to 81 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:41,640 Speaker 1: enjoy it, mostly because I developed confidence in my ability. Now, 82 00:04:41,960 --> 00:04:44,239 Speaker 1: if I'm in a setting where someone needs to talk, 83 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:46,800 Speaker 1: and there are lots of people who clearly don't want to. 84 00:04:47,120 --> 00:04:49,400 Speaker 1: I usually just go for it, and I think that 85 00:04:49,480 --> 00:04:51,760 Speaker 1: has literally helped me in my life and definitely in 86 00:04:51,800 --> 00:04:54,880 Speaker 1: my career. I think about this a lot when I 87 00:04:54,880 --> 00:04:57,400 Speaker 1: think about one of the biggest problems I encounter in dogs, 88 00:04:57,880 --> 00:05:01,599 Speaker 1: which is confidence, or should I say a lack of confidence. 89 00:05:02,640 --> 00:05:05,920 Speaker 1: A confident dog is an adventurous dog that will generally 90 00:05:05,960 --> 00:05:08,880 Speaker 1: show up for work and generally be a pleasure to 91 00:05:08,960 --> 00:05:12,320 Speaker 1: be around. Those are both characteristics that we should all 92 00:05:12,320 --> 00:05:14,840 Speaker 1: want in our dogs, and it's worth it to not 93 00:05:14,920 --> 00:05:17,840 Speaker 1: only understand that, but to actively try to foster that 94 00:05:17,920 --> 00:05:21,880 Speaker 1: in our dogs, from puppies on up. Here's the rub 95 00:05:21,920 --> 00:05:25,479 Speaker 1: with dogs in confidence, though, we have to understand what 96 00:05:25,520 --> 00:05:29,120 Speaker 1: we are looking at. An easy example is a well 97 00:05:29,200 --> 00:05:33,520 Speaker 1: trained Labrador Retriever that sits quivering next to its handler 98 00:05:33,760 --> 00:05:37,240 Speaker 1: and watches with intensity as his handler tosses a bumper 99 00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:41,000 Speaker 1: into the lake. The dog is released and it charges 100 00:05:41,040 --> 00:05:44,159 Speaker 1: into the water, grabs the bumper, and swims back to shore. 101 00:05:44,839 --> 00:05:48,760 Speaker 1: Simple that dog knows what he's supposed to do, he 102 00:05:48,880 --> 00:05:52,440 Speaker 1: loves what he's supposed to do, and understands the whole process. 103 00:05:53,040 --> 00:05:55,400 Speaker 1: That's easy stuff. But that is a dog that has 104 00:05:55,440 --> 00:05:58,800 Speaker 1: already developed confidence in a specific task, and not a 105 00:05:58,839 --> 00:06:01,920 Speaker 1: situation where the dog doesn't know what it's supposed to do, or, 106 00:06:01,960 --> 00:06:04,520 Speaker 1: to put it another way, what is expected of it. 107 00:06:05,320 --> 00:06:08,400 Speaker 1: So things get a little muddy here. I recently fell 108 00:06:08,400 --> 00:06:10,240 Speaker 1: into a training gig where I met up with a 109 00:06:10,240 --> 00:06:13,600 Speaker 1: woman who was gifted a King Charles Spaniel. If you 110 00:06:13,640 --> 00:06:16,200 Speaker 1: don't know what that is, imagine a little, i don't know, 111 00:06:16,279 --> 00:06:21,360 Speaker 1: fifteen to maybe twenty pound dog, predictably adorable as Spaniels are, 112 00:06:22,279 --> 00:06:24,880 Speaker 1: with a snout that is about half the length you'd expect, 113 00:06:25,200 --> 00:06:27,520 Speaker 1: as if they are built from mostly pretty good parts 114 00:06:27,600 --> 00:06:29,840 Speaker 1: until the end, and you just threw on a nose 115 00:06:30,040 --> 00:06:31,960 Speaker 1: just to finish the job and go home for the day. 116 00:06:33,440 --> 00:06:37,159 Speaker 1: The owner said, the dog has been re homed three times, 117 00:06:37,800 --> 00:06:41,440 Speaker 1: is a barker, recently became somewhat of a biter or 118 00:06:41,440 --> 00:06:46,839 Speaker 1: at least a nipper, and was, in her words, extremely stubborn. 119 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:50,560 Speaker 1: The dog that she showed up with was a high energy, 120 00:06:51,200 --> 00:06:55,520 Speaker 1: soft and pretty trainable one year old dog. Now he 121 00:06:55,560 --> 00:06:58,600 Speaker 1: has focus issues, as one year old dogs do. Now 122 00:06:58,640 --> 00:07:01,920 Speaker 1: he has some adopt to dog issues, too, like resource 123 00:07:01,960 --> 00:07:05,039 Speaker 1: guarding and an intense desire to protect his owner against 124 00:07:05,080 --> 00:07:07,400 Speaker 1: any threat, and he has some other stuff going on. 125 00:07:08,480 --> 00:07:11,560 Speaker 1: It became pretty clear that he needed more exercise, more 126 00:07:11,600 --> 00:07:13,840 Speaker 1: of a challenge in his day to day life, and 127 00:07:14,000 --> 00:07:16,600 Speaker 1: just maybe a little more structure. He didn't know what 128 00:07:16,640 --> 00:07:19,040 Speaker 1: to do with himself, so he did what he wanted. 129 00:07:20,040 --> 00:07:23,000 Speaker 1: It took only a handful of treats, a check cord, 130 00:07:23,240 --> 00:07:25,760 Speaker 1: a place board, and a little bit of time to 131 00:07:25,760 --> 00:07:28,640 Speaker 1: get him to not only place but sit there study 132 00:07:28,760 --> 00:07:31,600 Speaker 1: for maybe ten or fifteen seconds at a time, and 133 00:07:31,720 --> 00:07:35,800 Speaker 1: he generally showed me he's willing to work. This was 134 00:07:35,840 --> 00:07:38,040 Speaker 1: a dog that I expected to be a lost cause, 135 00:07:38,720 --> 00:07:42,200 Speaker 1: but he's not. He exhibits traits you'd think of his confidence, 136 00:07:42,680 --> 00:07:46,320 Speaker 1: maybe over confidence, like barking at dogs that could swallow 137 00:07:46,400 --> 00:07:50,600 Speaker 1: him whole, or chasing cars. But what he needs is 138 00:07:50,640 --> 00:07:54,680 Speaker 1: confidence in the little jobs, the little tasks, and direction 139 00:07:55,080 --> 00:07:58,000 Speaker 1: on how to behave so he can earn the rewards 140 00:07:58,040 --> 00:08:01,120 Speaker 1: he needs. On top of that, he has a ton 141 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:04,440 Speaker 1: of natural hold and carry and was very happy to 142 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:07,720 Speaker 1: receive praise. Now, if you look at that little spaniel 143 00:08:07,760 --> 00:08:11,800 Speaker 1: one way, you see somewhat of an adorable demon. If 144 00:08:11,840 --> 00:08:14,880 Speaker 1: you look at him another way, and you know he's 145 00:08:14,880 --> 00:08:17,560 Speaker 1: on his third home in a year and hasn't had 146 00:08:17,600 --> 00:08:20,720 Speaker 1: any help developing into a decent dog. You can still 147 00:08:20,800 --> 00:08:23,559 Speaker 1: see that all the ingredients of a decent dog are there, 148 00:08:24,360 --> 00:08:27,680 Speaker 1: and this is often the case, and they just need 149 00:08:27,720 --> 00:08:43,199 Speaker 1: to be pointed in the right direction. This is why 150 00:08:43,240 --> 00:08:45,800 Speaker 1: all of the best hunting dog trainers you've heard of 151 00:08:46,360 --> 00:08:49,200 Speaker 1: all work to get dogs into different environments with ever 152 00:08:49,280 --> 00:08:52,880 Speaker 1: increasing levels of distraction. They condition dogs to not only 153 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:55,760 Speaker 1: be comfortable in new places with new people and new 154 00:08:55,840 --> 00:08:58,120 Speaker 1: sense and all of that, but it also helped the 155 00:08:58,120 --> 00:09:01,720 Speaker 1: dogs calm themselves down and think through new scenarios. That 156 00:09:01,800 --> 00:09:03,960 Speaker 1: might seem like a stretch. But let me try to 157 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:06,960 Speaker 1: frame this up. I grew up in a family where 158 00:09:07,000 --> 00:09:09,680 Speaker 1: we didn't have a ton of money. We weren't destitute, 159 00:09:09,679 --> 00:09:12,319 Speaker 1: but we weren't on vacation in Paris during the holidays, 160 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:15,320 Speaker 1: if you get my drift. Despite being raised to hunt 161 00:09:15,320 --> 00:09:18,080 Speaker 1: and fish like fiends in parts of my home state, 162 00:09:18,480 --> 00:09:21,160 Speaker 1: you know, close to home parts, it never occurred to 163 00:09:21,200 --> 00:09:24,920 Speaker 1: me to travel to hunt anywhere else. Then in high school, 164 00:09:25,000 --> 00:09:27,559 Speaker 1: my dad read an article in Field and Stream magazine 165 00:09:27,880 --> 00:09:31,720 Speaker 1: about turkey hunting in Missouri, and we went down there 166 00:09:31,800 --> 00:09:34,800 Speaker 1: to camp and hunt longbeards, which was a huge thing. 167 00:09:35,760 --> 00:09:37,920 Speaker 1: It was like going to Mars for me, even though 168 00:09:37,960 --> 00:09:40,280 Speaker 1: we were close enough to the Iowa border to practically 169 00:09:40,320 --> 00:09:44,160 Speaker 1: see it, and for my geographically challenged listeners. Iowa is 170 00:09:44,200 --> 00:09:46,880 Speaker 1: the only state between Minnesota and Missouri, and it's not 171 00:09:47,040 --> 00:09:49,760 Speaker 1: very tall as far as states go, but it was 172 00:09:49,800 --> 00:09:52,720 Speaker 1: like another world. And I still remember seeing a honey 173 00:09:52,720 --> 00:09:55,320 Speaker 1: locust tree for the first time. If you don't know 174 00:09:55,360 --> 00:09:58,760 Speaker 1: what that is, it's a diabolical satan level tree with 175 00:09:58,840 --> 00:10:03,080 Speaker 1: extremely sharp and way oversized thorns on its trunk. I 176 00:10:03,160 --> 00:10:05,240 Speaker 1: have a friend who traps a lot in Kansas, and 177 00:10:05,280 --> 00:10:08,080 Speaker 1: she frequently sends me pictures of bobcats and coyotes she 178 00:10:08,160 --> 00:10:12,240 Speaker 1: is skinned that have those thorns in their paws. It's 179 00:10:12,320 --> 00:10:16,400 Speaker 1: gnarly as hell. Now, just that six hour drive to 180 00:10:16,480 --> 00:10:19,200 Speaker 1: a new type of habitat to hunt the same turkeys 181 00:10:19,200 --> 00:10:23,000 Speaker 1: we have at home was intimidating, and I've never gotten 182 00:10:23,120 --> 00:10:26,040 Speaker 1: over it. As I've traveled to many different states in 183 00:10:26,120 --> 00:10:29,080 Speaker 1: so many different environments to catch fish and chase gritters, 184 00:10:29,640 --> 00:10:32,040 Speaker 1: it's always a little shot to the ego to realize 185 00:10:32,080 --> 00:10:35,080 Speaker 1: you're not confident to hunt in the big woods because 186 00:10:35,080 --> 00:10:39,160 Speaker 1: you're used to the deciduous forests or whatever, or the 187 00:10:39,200 --> 00:10:42,000 Speaker 1: immense feeling of being over your head and unprepared when 188 00:10:42,040 --> 00:10:43,959 Speaker 1: you decide to trade in your white tail tag at 189 00:10:43,960 --> 00:10:46,200 Speaker 1: home for an elk tag and you show up in 190 00:10:46,240 --> 00:10:49,520 Speaker 1: the mountains with all your brand new backcountry gear and 191 00:10:49,600 --> 00:10:51,920 Speaker 1: you get your shit ready at the trailhead while breathing 192 00:10:51,960 --> 00:10:54,120 Speaker 1: air that just doesn't quite have the kick the air 193 00:10:54,200 --> 00:10:56,920 Speaker 1: does at home, and you realize that you're about to 194 00:10:56,920 --> 00:10:59,480 Speaker 1: go into country that has several degrees more wild than 195 00:10:59,520 --> 00:11:02,920 Speaker 1: you're used to. But by the third trip it's all different. 196 00:11:03,640 --> 00:11:06,199 Speaker 1: You know, the drill in your confident. So think about 197 00:11:06,200 --> 00:11:09,440 Speaker 1: this from a dog's perspective. At maybe I don't know, 198 00:11:09,520 --> 00:11:11,880 Speaker 1: two feet tall. Doing a bunch of training in the 199 00:11:11,880 --> 00:11:15,000 Speaker 1: soccer fields is great, But will your dog only hunt 200 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:18,439 Speaker 1: pheasants in mode grass? Probably not, or I hope not. Anyway, 201 00:11:19,000 --> 00:11:21,800 Speaker 1: they're going to hunt crp and thick stuff and cattails 202 00:11:21,840 --> 00:11:24,600 Speaker 1: and cover that is way different from the typical training grounds. 203 00:11:25,240 --> 00:11:27,760 Speaker 1: Would you expect them to be as good in that 204 00:11:27,920 --> 00:11:33,040 Speaker 1: environment as they are in a simple mode grass training environment. Now, 205 00:11:33,080 --> 00:11:35,640 Speaker 1: a dog that has been pheasant hunting varied habitat for 206 00:11:35,640 --> 00:11:39,559 Speaker 1: a long time, say prime age dogs so to speak, 207 00:11:39,800 --> 00:11:42,160 Speaker 1: it's a different story. They're not going to be shy 208 00:11:42,320 --> 00:11:44,360 Speaker 1: and hang out around the edges and pretend to look 209 00:11:44,360 --> 00:11:46,480 Speaker 1: for a rooster in the thin cover that most hunters 210 00:11:46,559 --> 00:11:49,040 Speaker 1: want to walk in. They're going to dive into that 211 00:11:49,080 --> 00:11:52,520 Speaker 1: cover because they're confident, you know, they're confident in themselves 212 00:11:52,760 --> 00:11:55,040 Speaker 1: and the belief that the birds are going to be there. 213 00:11:55,720 --> 00:11:58,440 Speaker 1: So take this another way. Have you ever tried to 214 00:11:58,520 --> 00:12:01,120 Speaker 1: train a dog to do more than retrieve at a time. 215 00:12:02,320 --> 00:12:05,520 Speaker 1: We start out with easy, single retrieves in situations where 216 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:08,960 Speaker 1: the dog can clearly see the bumper from start to finish. 217 00:12:09,240 --> 00:12:12,160 Speaker 1: But eventually we can move into a different cover. But 218 00:12:12,200 --> 00:12:15,959 Speaker 1: the dog has a single mark to work and has 219 00:12:16,040 --> 00:12:19,640 Speaker 1: probably developed the confidence and basic retrieves. So the step 220 00:12:19,760 --> 00:12:22,640 Speaker 1: up process here is pretty easy and straightforward most of 221 00:12:22,679 --> 00:12:26,920 Speaker 1: the time. Now, the moment you toss one bumper, don't 222 00:12:26,960 --> 00:12:31,160 Speaker 1: send him, and then toss another one, the wheels generally 223 00:12:31,240 --> 00:12:35,000 Speaker 1: fall off. They'll run to one or the other, or 224 00:12:35,040 --> 00:12:37,080 Speaker 1: pick up one, then run to the other and drop 225 00:12:37,120 --> 00:12:40,680 Speaker 1: the first one and do some kind of ambitious attempt 226 00:12:40,679 --> 00:12:42,920 Speaker 1: to try to grab both. At least some dogs do 227 00:12:43,640 --> 00:12:45,360 Speaker 1: because they know what they should do with one, but 228 00:12:45,440 --> 00:12:49,559 Speaker 1: two is just suddenly a totally different story. It takes 229 00:12:49,600 --> 00:12:52,560 Speaker 1: baby steps adding in that second retrieve and time for 230 00:12:52,600 --> 00:12:55,480 Speaker 1: the dog to understand that his job is to mark 231 00:12:55,520 --> 00:12:59,560 Speaker 1: and retrieve one, then retrieve the other. Now that seems 232 00:12:59,559 --> 00:13:02,000 Speaker 1: so simple to us, but you won't get a dog 233 00:13:02,040 --> 00:13:05,560 Speaker 1: to master doubles in a single training session. He's going 234 00:13:05,600 --> 00:13:08,760 Speaker 1: to take time. I think this is an important point 235 00:13:08,800 --> 00:13:11,559 Speaker 1: to drive home here. That woman with that King Charles 236 00:13:11,600 --> 00:13:14,760 Speaker 1: Spaniel had made up her mind that her dog was this, this, 237 00:13:14,920 --> 00:13:17,959 Speaker 1: and this. Now he was some of the things she thought, 238 00:13:18,559 --> 00:13:20,400 Speaker 1: but he was also a lot of the things that 239 00:13:20,440 --> 00:13:23,240 Speaker 1: she didn't think about. So if you decide you have 240 00:13:23,360 --> 00:13:26,400 Speaker 1: a stubborn dog, you might not train him to be 241 00:13:26,520 --> 00:13:29,320 Speaker 1: confident in some task because it's going to be too hard. 242 00:13:30,240 --> 00:13:31,880 Speaker 1: Or if you decide you have a dog that is 243 00:13:31,960 --> 00:13:34,600 Speaker 1: just too high energy for a certain drill, then it's 244 00:13:34,679 --> 00:13:37,360 Speaker 1: easy to write them off because after all, they're not 245 00:13:37,400 --> 00:13:39,560 Speaker 1: going to get it. But you can get a dog 246 00:13:39,600 --> 00:13:42,960 Speaker 1: to understand an awful lot about what you want out 247 00:13:42,960 --> 00:13:45,400 Speaker 1: of them if you build up their confidence enough to 248 00:13:45,480 --> 00:13:49,840 Speaker 1: understand one thing, one command, whatever that is, or one 249 00:13:49,880 --> 00:13:54,439 Speaker 1: set of commands that all coalesce into a certain behavior, 250 00:13:54,600 --> 00:13:57,920 Speaker 1: a certain ask, and this isn't something that is a 251 00:13:57,920 --> 00:14:02,240 Speaker 1: one off deal. I have twins and one has kind 252 00:14:02,280 --> 00:14:05,800 Speaker 1: of unreal confidence in herself and the other one has 253 00:14:06,000 --> 00:14:09,200 Speaker 1: not that much. And the one that is nearly overconfident, 254 00:14:09,600 --> 00:14:12,839 Speaker 1: she's a social butterfly. She's in all kinds of activities 255 00:14:13,080 --> 00:14:15,679 Speaker 1: and she's just kind of a natural leader. The other 256 00:14:15,720 --> 00:14:17,559 Speaker 1: one is in a lot of activities too, But if 257 00:14:17,600 --> 00:14:21,960 Speaker 1: she can hide, she will. My confident daughter will have 258 00:14:22,000 --> 00:14:24,560 Speaker 1: an easier life than her sister, and it's something I 259 00:14:24,640 --> 00:14:28,120 Speaker 1: work on with them all the time. But confidence tends 260 00:14:28,120 --> 00:14:30,760 Speaker 1: to breed confidence. And while we as people have been 261 00:14:30,760 --> 00:14:34,000 Speaker 1: conditioned to sort of view confidence as another form of arrogance, 262 00:14:34,280 --> 00:14:37,120 Speaker 1: which it can be, it doesn't have to be. It 263 00:14:37,160 --> 00:14:40,880 Speaker 1: can be a pure good thing, and that pure good 264 00:14:40,960 --> 00:14:44,120 Speaker 1: thing can feed into many aspects of life. The same 265 00:14:44,240 --> 00:14:47,080 Speaker 1: holds true for dogs. When you give a dog a 266 00:14:47,120 --> 00:14:50,400 Speaker 1: problem with two choices. For example, you know, like I 267 00:14:50,400 --> 00:14:53,360 Speaker 1: don't know, working the stay command, that dog will break 268 00:14:53,480 --> 00:14:56,240 Speaker 1: because all dogs break at the beginning. And that's okay. 269 00:14:56,600 --> 00:14:58,120 Speaker 1: But if you get the dog to start to sit 270 00:14:58,160 --> 00:15:01,040 Speaker 1: and watch you for a release command, and it makes 271 00:15:01,080 --> 00:15:04,880 Speaker 1: that choice to do something unnatural stay for a reward, 272 00:15:05,520 --> 00:15:08,280 Speaker 1: whether that's treat or praise or whatever. It's learning that 273 00:15:08,320 --> 00:15:11,760 Speaker 1: it can make choices that result in a reward. A 274 00:15:11,800 --> 00:15:14,560 Speaker 1: dog that learns that and understands the connection of its 275 00:15:14,680 --> 00:15:17,840 Speaker 1: choices to your reaction to them and what you want 276 00:15:17,880 --> 00:15:20,240 Speaker 1: to see out of them is a dog that will 277 00:15:20,280 --> 00:15:23,760 Speaker 1: take to tasks easier as you ask more of them. 278 00:15:24,400 --> 00:15:26,240 Speaker 1: It's kind of like how college used to be viewed 279 00:15:26,280 --> 00:15:29,760 Speaker 1: as an institution designed not to just fill young men 280 00:15:29,760 --> 00:15:33,280 Speaker 1: and women's brains up with facts, but to teach them 281 00:15:33,320 --> 00:15:37,240 Speaker 1: how to think. The value and a degree used to 282 00:15:37,240 --> 00:15:40,160 Speaker 1: be that you had someone who had likely learned how 283 00:15:40,160 --> 00:15:43,040 Speaker 1: to think through problems. Maybe that's still a case. I 284 00:15:43,080 --> 00:15:45,320 Speaker 1: don't know, it's been a minute since I was a 285 00:15:45,360 --> 00:15:49,000 Speaker 1: college student. But that same line of thinking applies to dogs, 286 00:15:49,160 --> 00:15:52,160 Speaker 1: and it matters. You want to ask your dog to 287 00:15:52,240 --> 00:15:56,600 Speaker 1: do something, guide it to that behavior, reward it, and 288 00:15:56,680 --> 00:16:01,280 Speaker 1: set higher expectations as the whole thing cements their smooth brains. 289 00:16:01,920 --> 00:16:04,600 Speaker 1: You want a dog that recognizes the situations where it 290 00:16:04,680 --> 00:16:08,080 Speaker 1: is likely to be rewarded and make that positive association 291 00:16:08,200 --> 00:16:10,480 Speaker 1: to the whole thing, and then choose to give you 292 00:16:10,600 --> 00:16:14,760 Speaker 1: the behavior so that they'll get something out of it. 293 00:16:14,760 --> 00:16:18,120 Speaker 1: It's that simple, but generally hinges on us doing our 294 00:16:18,160 --> 00:16:21,040 Speaker 1: part to introduce controlled scenarios where they can develop into 295 00:16:21,200 --> 00:16:25,080 Speaker 1: confident dogs, because otherwise they'll just default to being plain 296 00:16:25,160 --> 00:16:28,520 Speaker 1: old dogs, and plain old dogs, as great as they are, 297 00:16:28,960 --> 00:16:30,840 Speaker 1: tend to be the same dogs that jump up on 298 00:16:30,840 --> 00:16:34,000 Speaker 1: your house guests and take off after squirrels through traffic 299 00:16:34,040 --> 00:16:37,000 Speaker 1: while we scream like lunatics in our bathrobes and are 300 00:16:37,080 --> 00:16:40,840 Speaker 1: generally not that much fun to be around. When they 301 00:16:40,880 --> 00:16:42,760 Speaker 1: get to that stage, we tend to go the other 302 00:16:42,800 --> 00:16:44,840 Speaker 1: way and write them off. Is not so good, not 303 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:47,920 Speaker 1: so trainable, and not so much fun to own. And 304 00:16:48,000 --> 00:16:50,920 Speaker 1: the difference between the two, which in reality is a 305 00:16:50,960 --> 00:16:54,200 Speaker 1: hell of a lot, often boils down to us conditioning 306 00:16:54,280 --> 00:16:56,920 Speaker 1: the dogs to be confident in their ability to make 307 00:16:56,920 --> 00:16:59,760 Speaker 1: it through a situation in such a way that we 308 00:16:59,800 --> 00:17:03,720 Speaker 1: are happy with them. This cuts down on stress for 309 00:17:03,760 --> 00:17:07,880 Speaker 1: them and us, creates a better working relationship between us 310 00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:10,880 Speaker 1: and them, and produces dogs that are just generally more 311 00:17:10,920 --> 00:17:14,040 Speaker 1: fun to own and be around. It's actually pretty amazing, 312 00:17:14,480 --> 00:17:16,840 Speaker 1: but it has to be intentional on our parts, and 313 00:17:16,880 --> 00:17:19,480 Speaker 1: we have to recognize the long game with this stuff. 314 00:17:20,000 --> 00:17:23,960 Speaker 1: It's not easy, but man, is it worth it. So 315 00:17:24,119 --> 00:17:26,480 Speaker 1: think about that and think about coming back in two 316 00:17:26,480 --> 00:17:28,560 Speaker 1: weeks because I'm going to talk about the other side 317 00:17:28,560 --> 00:17:31,840 Speaker 1: of this topic, which is confidence in ourselves to lead 318 00:17:31,920 --> 00:17:37,120 Speaker 1: our dogs in a good direction through our training. That's 319 00:17:37,160 --> 00:17:39,159 Speaker 1: it for this episode. I'm Tony Peterson. This has been 320 00:17:39,200 --> 00:17:42,240 Speaker 1: The Fundation's podcast as always, Thank you so much for 321 00:17:42,320 --> 00:17:44,479 Speaker 1: listening and for all your support. We just wrapped up 322 00:17:44,520 --> 00:17:47,679 Speaker 1: Dog Week a little bit ago, and it was amazing 323 00:17:47,760 --> 00:17:50,880 Speaker 1: the photo contest that you guys showed up for all 324 00:17:50,960 --> 00:17:54,719 Speaker 1: the content, the Pheasant film that I dropped, just incredible 325 00:17:54,760 --> 00:17:57,560 Speaker 1: to see you guys show up and just consume that content. 326 00:17:57,920 --> 00:17:59,600 Speaker 1: I truly want to thank you from the bottom of 327 00:17:59,680 --> 00:18:01,639 Speaker 1: my heart. If you want to see that stuff, or 328 00:18:01,680 --> 00:18:04,320 Speaker 1: you want to see the content that we drop every day, 329 00:18:04,880 --> 00:18:07,840 Speaker 1: from articles to podcasts to films, do you name it. 330 00:18:08,520 --> 00:18:11,280 Speaker 1: The mediator dot com has you covered. Go check it 331 00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:11,680 Speaker 1: out there.