Verbal Cue's
Dogs are "observational speakers", which means they primarily communicate through body language. Humans are "verbal speakers", which means we rely most on the spoken word to convey messages.
Its important we work hard to try our best to listen to what our dogs may be trying to communicate to us, just as they do their best to understand what our verbal messages are. There's a couple basics to cover to help set your dynamic duo up for success.
When to name a cue
There is a lot to this one, but well go over a 10,000ft view.
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When you name a cue, you are naming all the nuances that come with it. You are adding a name to any ideal or accidentally unwanted behaviors. For example:
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If your ask your dog to "sit", and he excitedly paddles his feet, and THEN sits, you have named two behaviors in that sit cue. "Sit" you have named as both "paddle your feet, then put your bum down".
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When I name a cue I want my dog to have the term Susan Garrett coined "D.A.S.H". I recommend waiting to name your behaviors until then. It is far easier to get reps of something right the first time, than it is to try to undo reps, and redo them.
Here is a free link to Susan Garrett's "D.A.S.H":
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Poisoned cue's
Markers work because of the value transfer system we discovered through Pavlov. Pavlov would ring a bell before feeding his dogs, after 15-25 repetitions the dogs predicted the food was coming, and their body unconsciously started salivating on the sound of the bell alone. The bell took on the value of the food. This is a "transfer of value".
Once a cue has had a history of reinforcement, the cue itself is reinforcing. (If that cue STOPS getting reinforced all together though the cue will take the value of nothing, its a balancing act throughout time)
When your dogs behavior breaks down, lets say you have a guest over and he is soooo excited to greet, he is jumping all over them.
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You ask him to "sit". ​
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He sits, but the distraction is too hard for him, he wasn't prepared for how exciting your guest is and he breaks his sit, and jumps back all over them. ​
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You cue a "sit" again...This is when the cue can become poisoned. Why?
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Once a cue has had a history of reinforcement, it takes on that value of that history of reinforcement, like Pavlov's bell.
When your dog broke the "sit", you rewarded him by giving him a second cue to sit. There is a scientific deep dive on this one we can't fit on this page. But please do not re-cue behaviors! The most common poisoned cue I see, is the dogs name.
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As a fear free training approach goes, we have many ways to trouble shoot these scenarios without the use of a re-cue, or relying on corrections. Those skill sets will not fit here either. This page is meant to just give you a helpful head start.
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Choosing cue's with salience
Lets brush over cue salience. For a smooth communication system across species, we want to help our non verbal communicator friends to be set up for success. We need our cues to be easy to pick out in the crowd. If cues sound similar, it may confuse your dog on what your asking for.
For example:
If your cue for "lay on your side" is "flop", but your trying to add another behavior like "freeze in position" and call that "stop", you may be setting the dog up for confusion, and setting yourself up for avoidable frustration.
I pick high contrast verbal cues that are a mixture of different languages, and some cues are even just sounds I made up while jogging on the treadmill experimenting while no one was home.
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"Clarity is kind" -Berne Brown
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Here is a list of a few of my cue's for reference, (Some are weird sounds that are hard to spell):
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Basic cue's
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Assis (ah-see)
Couche (coo-shay)
Relax
Post
Hopitup
Out
Chichichi
Rrrrrrrrr
Thrththththth
Prprprprprprrrp
Pretty
Tall
Butt
Hands
Feet
Flop
Dead
Sad
Yipyip
This Way
Chem’ere
Gotoyerroom
Sit
Sphinx Down
Rolled Hip Down
Stand
Climb
Out
Spin Left
Spin Right
Back Up
Emergency Recall
Sit Pretty
Stand On Hind Legs
Bow Stretch
Both Front Paws Target
Both Back Paws Target
Lay On Right Side
Lay On Left Side
Chin Target
Jump Into My Arms
Switch Directions
Informal Loose Leash Position
Kennel
Location Specific Reinforcement Marker (LSRM)
A "location specific reinforcement marker" is a marker that gives your dog a lot of information in a short amount of time.
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There is C.E.R built into every cue we use. In my markers I try to be present to the emotional state I condition. In markers there is a "dead reward" verses an "interactive" reward. "Dead rewards" are lower arousal, think of a cookie brought to your face for a dead reward. An "interactive reward" is more exiting, and has more motion,. Think of when you release your dog for an exiting round of tug with you! These build different emotions into the cues. If your teaching your dog to relax in a bed, you may want to use more relaxing training, vs if you are trying to train your dog to do agility, you will want to build in excitement.
There are two types:
Terminal Marker: The dog is correct and may break position
Continuation Marker: The dog is correct and we would like him to maintain position
The more of these you have the more fluent your training will become. This will take a small deep dive, but I will list a few of my own for brief example:
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Yes: “Continuation Marker”, I will bring you your "dead reward"
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Free: “Terminal” for “Dead Reward”
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Cook: "Continuation", more of a permission to take dead rewards since we build IYC into all behavior
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Search: "Terminal", permission to chase a cookie I throw
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Get-it: "Terminal", permission to retrieve/tug
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Break: "Terminal", permission to release and seek your own reinforcement
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Whatever your cues are consistency is key! If you use the word "yes", commit to it being terminal, or a continuation. If you use the word "yes" for both, your dog may release when you want him to continue, and it would be fair for him to do so. There is a cue I keep muddy on purpose now.
Good: "Praise only"
Niiice: "Praise only"
Supaah: "Praise only"
I used to use this as a muddy marker and got all kinds of confusion. When I was training behaviors where I wanted my dog to move forward out in front of me, and wanted to praise him and said "good", he flipped around to receive reinforcement and canceled running out in front of me. I am currently working on not using that word for anything but to praise them when they are correct.
Just be mindful to not use those words for "cheerleading", the praise comes AFTER the behavior, not before the behavior.
Fuss
Rrrrex
Zziiiip
Here
Sync
Bring-Me
Lock
Abois
Erda
Check
Hike
Woaaah
Louie
Gee
Packen (Pak)
Find Left Side Heel
Find Right Side Heel
Find Center Heel
Find Front Heel
Contact Heel
Dead/Formal Retrieve
Eye Target
Bark
End Bark Cue
Seek Source Odor
Speed Up
Slow Down
Left Turn
Right Turn
Permission To Bite