Let’s Talk Calmness: Part 3 - Two Essential Games
Key Topics
Calmness is key to your dog’s well-being
Two essential foundation games
How to play the games
Introduction
In my two previous posts, I talked about growing calmness in your dog, talked about what causes over-arousal and gave you a variety of games and strategies for building calmness.
In is the third and final installment on building calmness in your dog, you will learn two essential games for growing calmness.
Calmness is key to your dog’s well-being
Think how tiring it would be if you were constantly in an over-aroused state and couldn’t settle down. You would be tired, overwhelmed, irritable, and unfocused. This is what many dogs live through day in and day out.
If your dog can’t settle, they are likely in a similar state. If they are always ‘on alert’, it is difficult to relax and get enough sleep let alone be still enough to focus on you and learn without jumping, mouthing, and being still.
Growing calmness and calm behaviours are key to your dog’s well-being.
A dog who can access calmness can:
Empty their bucket and keep it from overflowing
Make great choices
Quickly recover when over-stimulating or worrying events happen in their life
Two essential foundation games
The next two calmness foundation games are essential to helping your dog learn to relax. If you and your dog can master these, you will have a dog who learns that:
The world is none of their business
They can self-regulate their arousal and exhibit self-control when exciting things happen around them
These two key games are:
Distraction Mark Treat (DMT)
Boundary Games
How to play the games
1. The first game is: Distraction, Mark, Treat (DMT)
This game is taught in my foundation classes: Confident Puppy, Becoming Adolescent, Reactive Dog Fundamentals, and 90 Days to a Well-Behaved Dog and my own dogs.
This game will teach your dog that exciting things in the environment are none of their business, and when they notice ‘stuff’ going on, they should check in with you for a positive outcome. See a squirrel, stay calm and check in with you for a treat. See a car, another dog, people walking, cars driving by, sheep, birds, you name it, they are none of your business.
As your dog learns to disengage from all the exciting things they see ‘out there’, they will be able to calmly navigate the world. If they can be calm when out and about, they will be able to make better decision and will be better able to respond to you.
The basics of this game are:
See a distraction
Use a calm marker
Deliver a treat
Watch me teaching a shelter dog the basics of DMT (Distraction Mark Treat).
2. The second game is: Boundary Games
This game is taught in full in 90 Days to a Well-Behaved Dog with ‘how to information’ in all other foundation classes.
Teaching your dog to choose to rest calmly on their bed or any designated area is the goal of boundary games. There are many games where boundary games are a key component but using a boundary to teach calmness, self-control and provide you with a portable calm zone is indispensable.
A dog who can chill on a boundary in your house regardless of what is going on can chill on that same boundary in a friends house, a hotel, or your vehicle.
Check out this video where I teach a shelter dog the first two layers of boundary games:
1) There is value on the boundary,
2) Good things happen when you get on the boundary
Conclusion
Two additional pieces of the calmness puzzle are Distraction Mark Treat, and Boundary Games. By adding these to the repertoire of skills you teach your, the better able your dog will be to empty their bucket, access calmness, and make better decisions.
Reminder to watch for and celebrate those moments when your dog exhibits calmness. Over time, those small moments will accumulate until one day you notice that your dog has grown into an overall calm dog!
Reference
Adapted from the Calmness ebook by Absolute Dogs.
Additional Resources
Help! My Dog podcast Ep 21: Calmness Training that Fixes Barking, Reactivity, Jumping Up, Not Settling & So Much More!
Sexier Than a Squirrel Podcast “Calmness is King! Here's Your Key to a Calm K9!”
YouTube Absolute Dogs “How to Teach Your Dog to be CALM and SETTLED!”
YouTube Absolute Dogs "Pro Tips On Growing Calmness In Your Dog, Try Them Today!"
YouTube Absolute Dogs "My Dog is Struggling With Calmness"
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