Thread: Paul Huttons -Facts and Fallacies

Interesting reading through this and learning a few things from Paul Huttons thoughts ! Some may or may not agree but always good to have the brain oiled ! Someones opinion Clarke respects as a trainer

http://www.paulhutton.co.nz/facts/index.html



Dogs and their Owners
Facts and Fallacies

Fallacy... Some dogs are untrainable.

Fact... All dogs are trainable. Some just require more skill to control than others because of their 'personality type''.

Fallacy... Older dogs can't be trained.

Fact... Age plays no part in a dog's ability to learn.

Fallacy... Some dogs are more intelligent than others.

Fact... Some dogs are certainly easier to train/control because they are either more biddable or have inherited a desire to work. This does not mean they are more intelligent.

Fallacy... Neutering makes dogs better behaved and easier to train.

Fact... The human influence in a dog's life far outweighs changes made to its hormonal balance. Although some dogs may show some behaviour modification when neutered, the vast majority do not. However, neutering is highly recommended for other reasons.

Fallacy... Neutering stops dogs wandering.

Fact... Contrary to popular belief, it does not. Regardless of training or neutering, a fully fenced section is a must for your dog's safety and your sanity. It is best to fence your dog in a way that allows visitors access to the front door without coming into contact with your dog.

Fallacy... Neutering remedies aggressive behaviour.

Fact... Because aggressive behaviour is a 'learned behaviour', it will not.

Fallacy... Food rewards are necessary to train dogs.

Fact... Offering food to dogs to 'get your way' is simply bribery. It is unquestionably the quickest way to lose respect from your dog. Reliable control, especially 'when it really matters' will never be achieved without the development of respect and this simply cannot happen with 'bribe training'.

Fallacy... You should eat before your dog to reinforce your leader status.

Fact... This theory is nonsense. Because you are not competing with your dog for survival, it makes absolutely no difference who eats first.

Fallacy... Dominance techniques such as scruff shaking, holding down in the submissive position, making eye contact are sometimes necessary to show your dog you're the 'boss'.

Fact... Nothing could be further from the truth. These techniques were naively made popular many years ago on the incorrect assumption that in order to train a dog you need to behave like a dog. Apart from not working, these practices nearly always induce undesirable behaviour such as cringing or aggression, where biting is a real possibility.

Fallacy... Dogs know when they've 'done wrong'.

Fact... Dogs have no understanding of right or wrong, good or bad or other such moral values. All too often, the submissive reaction demonstrated by dogs when they are 'told off' or 'disciplined' is unfortunately misunderstood as 'he knows he's done wrong' when in fact it is only acting submissively in response to its owner's anger, with no understanding of why...

Fallacy... Dogs learn from the 'tone of your voice'.

Fact... The 'tone of voice' method of training is simply verbal dominance. The word 'NO'! (or more recently 'BAH'!) is nearly always used with this type of training, but unfortunately because dogs don't speak English, they only hear them as threatening sounds. Any favourable response induced occurs only because the dog was intimidated or distracted, not because it understood. Undesirable side effects are almost inevitable from the use of 'tone of voice' training. They include submissive behaviour such as cringing or in the case of strong minded dogs, aggressive behaviour where biting can easily occur.

Fallacy... Electric dog collars are a valuable aid to training.

Fact... In the ‘wrong hands’ these are disastrous devices, which can cause severe psychological damage. While there are some situations, with certain dogs (and in the ‘right hands’), where these collars can be useful and humanely effective, they will always be an unnecessary tool for skilled handlers.

Fallacy... Young dogs need to play with other dogs to become 'socialised'.

Fact... Allowing young dogs to interact in a robust, physical manner should be totally avoided. Naively called 'play', this practice in fact teaches dogs the art of fighting. The development of aggressive behaviour as the dog matures is highly likely.

Fallacy... You need a strong authoritative voice to control a dog.

Fact... Such an approach ensures that your dog becomes conditioned to only responding when a certain threat level is reached. As your dog becomes desensitised to the threat, increased threat levels will become necessary. The best results come from using a 'normal voice' in association with psychologically effective reinforcement techniques. The occasional and selective use of an authoritative voice can then be used to your advantage in situations of emergency.

Fallacy... Dogs that kill livestock should be destroyed.

Fact... Although in many cases unacceptable, the natural normal prey chasing instincts that dogs inherit mean that this behaviour can never be considered abnormal. All livestock killing incidents are the result of either inadequate fencing or insufficient control by the owner. Destroying the dog unfairly shifts the blame.

Fallacy... Dogs that bite people should be destroyed.

Fact... Canine aggression, as with all species (including humans) is a natural, normal, instinctive reaction to specific, provocative stimuli. While maybe unacceptable, it is never abnormal. All biting incidents are the result of either poor management or insufficient control by the owner. Destroying the dog unfairly shifts the blame.

Fallacy... Some dogs bite even when unprovoked.

Fact... There's no such thing as an unprovoked attack. Dogs only bite when their natural, normal instincts are activated by provocative stimuli.

Fallacy... Some dogs are naturally aggressive.

Fact... All aggressive behaviour is learnt by experience, regardless of predisposition factors such as breed and personality type. The owner is totally responsible for their dog's experiences.

I'm a big Paul Hutton fan ... we've worked with him on our dogs and he's amazing.

You may not agree with everything he writes, but if you ever get to meet him you will recognise his instant Mana with the four legged friends and I've never met anyone who better can see life from a dogs point of view ...

kiwi I am sure you are correct and we could all learn from his years of professional experience ! I may one day shout myself a course to understand dog psyche alot more .. we should always keep an open humble mind -dont have to agree always but never shut the eyes to sound methods

Trying to determine his method is difficult. He seems to denounce a few methods and reading between the lines and from all reviews he knows, and trains dogs very well. However I hear he is moving away from it nowadays.

Therefore trying to research how one should train their dog is hard, Koehler's methods are hated in the media, Clicker training and treat based training seem to be the most 'sold' online.

I am just reading Gundog Sense and Sensibility by Wilson Stephens for an insight into how dogs think. I have Dog Whisperer, have Koehlers book on order, and would be interested if you know any good books on the topic.

i myself do not have any training specific books as such . i do have Leon Mortenson's book of his life history dogging

training fads and fashion are like boys bands and fashion....come in for a while and then get taken over by something new, and always have an encore 10 years down the track.

professional dog trainers in this country are pretty much the same, even the cold hard facts trainers like paul hutton.
clicker training, positive enforcement and the dreaded food methods, are just that, fads, a bit of each already gets used in some form with traditional training methods.
there are books and dvd's out there for the spaniels and retrievers which can just about map out and complete a trained dog, however some basic common dog sence needs to be installed to the budding trainer first, it's a shame paul hutton is scaling back as I think he could have done well with a road show circuit a few times a year.

yes ! first the trainer needs to be trained .I agree with you Kawhia , Paul could have done a profitable road show for sure !

Originally Posted by kawhia

training fads and fashion are like boys bands and fashion....come in for a while and then get taken over by something new, and always have an encore 10 years down the track.

professional dog trainers in this country are pretty much the same, even the cold hard facts trainers like paul hutton.
clicker training, positive enforcement and the dreaded food methods, are just that, fads, a bit of each already gets used in some form with traditional training methods.
there are books and dvd's out there for the spaniels and retrievers which can just about map out and complete a trained dog, however some basic common dog sence needs to be installed to the budding trainer first, it's a shame paul hutton is scaling back as I think he could have done well with a road show circuit a few times a year.

So what is a non fad traditional training method? And how would one learn about this to train the trainer?

the formats are there for those that want to learn, you can only get so much from a book.
look outside the square go to where dogs are being used in a competitive or working environment, it don't have to be gundog related.
I'm currently getting a lot of experienced advice from the police dog and shultzhund people for instance, it's all part of the learning curve.

Originally Posted by sAsLEX

So what is a non fad traditional training method? And how would one learn about this to train the trainer?

To train the trainer would come two fold I believe .Firstly trained by reading and understanding a proven trainers methods -mentality and character one needs to employ while going about ones training -secondly the field test that the training is working in the the field which shows in your team work with your dog . The variables come into the situation also with a dogs intelligence or lack there-of .

trainers become trainers through experience and each dog they own gives them that.
an understanding on the finer points of what makes one dog easy to own and train over another similar type or even breed can only be gained by first hand experience not a book.

for any new dog owner be wary taking anyones advice or opinion too seriously when they them selves are on there first or second screw up.

Trainer training this gadget this gizmo...all very snazzy and impressive...but you must know DOGS...and every breed marches to a different drummer...

Fact... Offering food to dogs to 'get your way' is simply bribery. It is unquestionably the quickest way to lose respect from your dog. Reliable control, especially 'when it really matters' will never be achieved without the development of respect and this simply cannot happen with 'bribe training'.

It is only bribery to us...the dog does not comprehend the bribery notion...all it knows is that if it complies with the command it will be rewarded with food (the old Pavlov equation), usually something like a cheerio or cheese which the dog has a very great liking to...yeah, I'll retrieve the stupid dummy if you give me that cheese...

I did a little test of my young dog...he was a natural retriever and we worked up to canvas dummies...I offered him pieces of schmackos...he then starting dropping the dummy about three feet or more from me...schmackos put away, retrieved to hand again...they are not stupid!!

Originally Posted by kawhia

the formats are there for those that want to learn, you can only get so much from a book.
look outside the square go to where dogs are being used in a competitive or working environment, it don't have to be gundog related.
I'm currently getting a lot of experienced advice from the police dog and shultzhund people for instance, it's all part of the learning curve.

Paul Hutton does not think much of the NZ Police dogs at all and has asked them to give him a public demonstration of how they can call a dog off someone if they find it is the wrong person. They declined.

NZ Police dogs are trained fulltime....time the everyday NZ hunter does not have.

Originally Posted by kawhia

the formats are there for those that want to learn, you can only get so much from a book.
look outside the square go to where dogs are being used in a competitive or working environment, it don't have to be gundog related.
I'm currently getting a lot of experienced advice from the police dog and shultzhund people for instance, it's all part of the learning curve.

Understood that only so much can be gained from a book, but it is a good head start, and difficult to get out with dogs whilst deployed.

Gundogs Sense and Sensibility is giving some great information on how to communicate with dogs, which will apply across all breeds, training methods etc.

Originally Posted by el borracho

.Firstly trained by reading and understanding a proven trainers methods

Which are?