@iamwillatherton: A lot of dog training gets made far more complicated than it needs to be. You’ll hear trainers talking about positive reinforcement, operant conditioning, negative punishment, reinforcement schedules and all sorts of terminology. And yes, those things matter if you’re studying behaviour at a professional level. But most owners don’t need to get lost in the language. They need to understand the principle underneath it. Dogs repeat what works. They drop what doesn’t. If jumping up gets attention, they’ll jump more. If pulling gets them where they want to go, they’ll pull more. If ignoring you has no consequence but coming back is valuable, they’ll start making better choices. That’s the part I want owners to focus on. Be awesome to your dog. Communicate clearly. Make the right choices valuable. Stop accidentally rewarding the behaviours you don’t want.

Will Atherton (MSc)

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Wednesday 08 July 2026 08:38:25 GMT