ALL ABOUT BEHAVIOR

I do not have a PhD in dog psychology, nor have I written any books.  I will not make claims I cannot support, however: I promise to dedicate my life to Danes; learning more about them and dogs in general; reading every book available on dog behavior; watching trainers, handlers and owners; attend seminars; and share all that I learn with those who are interested in reading it.

Today I would like to talk about

TEACHING EYE CONTACT*

Visualize going to a show: all Danes are already lined up and stacked so properly while waiting for the judge. The judge approaches the first Dane and, as all judges do, starts examining the head. The judge lifts the Dane’s head up slightly to see the angles of the skull, conformation and the color of the eyes. The Dane that was so majestic a second before freezes up, flattening the ears and tucking the tail: not the picture we like to see. There are other Danes that look judges straight in the eyes, greeting them and even stretching their necks to get closer. Those are the ones that win more often.

Looking in the eyes is not the natural thing for dogs. If you ever watch two dogs approach each other for the first time, they do not come head to head and look at each other each like we do. That’s a human way of greeting. Direct eye contact in the human world is the sign of confidence and is expected when we talk to somebody and especially when we meet them for the first time. If somebody avoids your eyes, it can plants a seed of suspicion and makes the atmosphere somewhat uncomfortable.

In the dog world, the dogs that are respectful to each other would come from the side and sniff the “parts” while learning about each other: the sex, age and even the personality or level of dominance. Only after that do they proceed to sniff ears, lips and look at each other right before playing or losing interest and moving on to something else. The dominant dogs would always try to get in front of other dogs’ heads while lifting their own head high to claim higher status. The more dominance - the more eye contact you would have.

So, what we are asking our Danes to do is not the easiest and most natural thing for them. They have to learn that the stranger who comes straight at them and without any introduction takes their head and lifts it right into their own face while looking into their eyes is a friend.

There are some exercises that can help. And as everything I will share with you, they require patience. Patience is everything. Even if you lose it just like I do (more often than I can care to think about), try to regain it back and tell yourself that you are teaching your dog something that is just not natural to him. Granted, there are many dogs that are by nature friendly, socialized properly, confident in themselves, those that would never think that any evil can come from a human. Those are the ones that will look anybody in the face, give kisses and wag their tails.

As with any exercises, the younger you start the better, but even old dogs can learn these tricks.

1. The first exercise you can do anytime: during commercials while you are watching TV, in-between any household tasks you are doing, just about any time. They key is in frequency. The more you practice the better. If you only have time to do a couple of practices a day, you will not progress very fast. This exercise only takes seconds to do. Try to squeeze a few in the morning before you go to work and a few in the evening. I also like to train right before feeding my dogs. That is when their senses are at their sharpest.
     
   Take a “cookie” that your dog loves. Call his name and bring the cookie to your face. If he does not follow your hands and look up, bring the cookie right to his nose, let him sniff it, and then bring it slowly to you face. Try not to talk or say anything until his nose follows right to your face. As soon as you reach your face say the command that you are going to assign to this exercise such as “look” or “watch”. Give your dog the cookie right away. You might want to upgrade your cookies if your dog struggles. You have to find the treat that will stimulate the most.
   
   The timing in this exercise is critical. The cookie must immediately follow the command. I have heard a lot of references that you have only up to 3 seconds to reward your dog. If you take any longer they might not clearly understand why exactly they are been rewarded since they already forgot what they just did. I think it is a good rule to follow although the more advanced in training dogs are the more they remember, make better connections and understand.
   
   Do this exercise 2 or 3 times per session then take a break.
   
   The other critical aspect (please pay attention to this) is that when you do give your dog a cookie that he so deserves, it has to come from the direction of your mouth. Do not hand him the cookie. Have him get close to your face to get it while you are keeping your hands as close to your mouth as possible. Have him stretch his neck out while you are pretending that you have short “alligator” arms. Do not hand it to him any other way. You are still reinforcing that all the good things come from your face even if it is very close to his.
   
   If your dog is confused about when you are actually letting him have the cookie you can introduce a short command such as “OK” or “take it” to let him take the cookie you are holding.
   
   
2. When you get to the point that your dog lifts his head to your face more eagerly in the anticipation of a treat, try to delay the reward by a second or two. Ideally, you would want to extend it up to 20-30 seconds at a time. It is difficult with Danes, but possible. When you get the cookie to your face, keep telling your dog a few times: “Look, look” and then give the treat. All you are doing is making him work harder for it.
   
   Do not forget that once in a while you will have to take a step back in the progress to refresh the basics. If you dog starts looking away too frequently, shorten the time you make him wait and then increase it again.
   
   
3. When you know that your dog understands that “look” means “cookie is coming from the direction of the face” (sorry for the lack of eloquence), you can start introducing small corrections. When he looks at your face but then glances away you can verbally correct. The best way is to have a short verbal correction, not a sentence or even a word. Something that will just get your dog’s attention back to you. I try to say short “Ah”. As soon as he looks back to you, and I will even repeat – as soon as the dog looks back at you (critical timing) tell him “good look” and reward the heck out him. Praise like you never praised before. You got his attention back and that is priceless.
   
   You can also say ”look” every time he looks away but I prefer not to nag at the dog.
   
   
4. Before you proceed to other exercises, try doing the first one in a different part of your house with commotion around and distractions, then take is outside, and do it at shows, too. Please remember to shorten the “wait while looking” in the new place or a setting. You dog will probably not perform as well as in the comfort of your home. Shorten the time he looks you in the face and build it up again.
   
   I am one of the many people that consistently forgets that while training we have to give our dogs a chance to win. When they win - they build confidence. That is why we sometimes need to take steps back when training. There is a fine line between letting your dog win and letting him get away with things. Danes are known for figuring out how to pull our strings and learning quickly how they can get out of doing something we are asking them to do. This fine line is for you to find as every dog is different.
   
   You would want to get to the point when your dog looks directly in your eyes every time you say “look” before proceeding further.

5. The next exercise is the derivative from the first one except requires two cookies. At this time I would highly recommend upgrading the treats to something new and better than you used before. You have to keep your Dane eager and on his tows. Once he knows the task you can downgrade to your regular treats.
   
   Take the two cookies and bring them to your face (by the way, I should have specified before that bringing the cookies to your mouth would be the best). Continue to remind your dog to “look” while moving the cookies horizontally away from your face. The reason for horizontal movement is that our breed is so tall, and if they do not know any better while your hands are going down – they will think you are handing treats to them. Do not blame them at this point for the mistake since we have not yet explained to them what we are doing.
   
   You do not have to get your hands very far from your face. Probably, your dog will continue following the trajectory of the treat instead of your face. Tell him “look” and if he does not look at you - give him a quick verbal correction, which if you used it before, will snap him out of his “cookie trance” and force him to give you a quick glance. Praise right away after you reinforce “good look”. Once again, timing is critical.
   
   
6. You would want to get to the point that you could stretch out you arms and your dog would continue looking at your face. With other breeds it is recommended to put the dog in the sitting position right in-between you legs while you yourself are sitting down. This gets him closest to your face. If your dog does not know “sit” or if you prefer not to teach your dog to sit (which I regret to hear) you can always stand in from of him. If you are average height - your Dane is probably tall enough to lick you on your nose by just stretching his neck.
   
   
7. Now when your dog knows the “look” command thoroughly – the sky is the limit in your training. Try adding more distractions: wave your hands with the cookies; get them close to his nose and head; have him look at you when he is at your side. The only way he gets the cookies is when he looks you in your face and your eyes.
   
   
8. Have people you trust do the basic exercise (paragraphs 1 and 2 only). The reason is that you have to have them do it exactly like you do it and reward immediately. Somebody who is doing it only half way correctly would cause more bad than good to your training, especially while you are building your Dane’s confidence of looking in other peoples’ faces.
   
   
9. Once he is comfortable with those you trust, invite strangers to give your dog a cookie while they are holding it in front of their face and telling your dog to “look”. These persons can stretch out their hands to give your dog the cookie. He does not have to be as close to their faces as he does to yours. All he has to do is to look in their face after the command.
   
   Please know your dog’s limits. If you are aware of any signs of aggression or excessive fear, please do not jeopardize others’ lives and health. Please do not do this exercise with strangers if you cannot trust your dog being close to people. We are teaching your dog to look in the eyes which should be done after proper socialization and only after you know that your dog unconditionally loves people and enjoys their company.
   
   Hopefully, the next time the judge looks your dog in the eyes; your dog will wag his tail.

Good luck!

Lena Skov
Noble Legacy Danes
www.NobleLegacyDanes.com

* The techniques covered in this article were obtained from the Attention Class of Linda and Mike MacDonald from HY-BAR Training Center in West Salem, OH. I apologize for any possible misinterpretation of their technique on my part and relieve them form any responsibility as a result of this article.
Most of the behavior information has been collected from multiple reading materials with no specific one in reference.

January article: Socializing puppies at dog shows.