The answer
On film the trainers treat a person's body and voice as one of the three kinds of pressure, alongside the leash and the e-collar. Marvin's trainer tells the owners that everything is pressure and release, and that pressure can come from a collar, a leash, "or with social pressure because Marvin's really sensitive to it." Bubba Gum's trainer says a penalty a dog understands is "normally a combination of something social and something physical." Hattie's trainer, at a follow-up after her adoption, says the same of a correction word: it only has power while it is paired with something "real to them and for them real is social and physical", and he shows the family the social kind on themselves - stepping too close, raising his voice in the house.
Used on purpose, it looks like this. Christian, with Max ignoring a down: "you ignored me, so I'm going to add social pressure." He steps in front and asks firmly, and on a later rep that alone is enough: "i didn't push the button or anything i just got in his face." Levi's trainer gives the owner the same move as a bridge until a working collar arrives: step into him while asking for the sit. Bo's trainer gets a whole exercise with no leash and no collar, "all social pressure, which Bo responds really well to." Marvin's trainer explains it through a close talker: someone who stands too close makes you want to step back, and a dog feels the same.
The voice counts too, and so does who is using it. Kelton tells Murphy's family to let the tone slide from firm into disappointed after a correction, "because you guys have a good relationship", using the relationship itself as pressure. Bubba Gum's trainer says the owner's annoyance will matter more to her than his. Two trainers make the point about length: one sentence of being told off is not the same as being yelled at for two or three minutes (Roxy's lesson, Zeus's lesson).
Some dogs are highly sensitive to it: Marvin, Neo, Bo. With Neo, one down came only once his handler added a little more social pressure. Louie's trainer counts being able to handle more social pressure as a sign his nerves have come down. Stormi, a soft dog in her last days before go-home, goes into a down on a 'nope' and "presence over top her body" alone. It does not land on every dog every time: with Nikki, a handler reports that social pressure at the kennel door did not seem to faze her.
It also works in the other direction. Lola kept coming off her cot. The adult in charge did not correct her. He moved the child standing too close: "She keeps avoiding you. That's why she's trying to get off." Roxy and Ramsey's trainer noticed that when the two dogs stand right next to each other, both balk at commands they otherwise know. Ramsey looks at him as if to say he has no room; a couple of steps later he goes down. The trainer says he does not know what that is. The record keeps it as an observation, not an explanation. Strangers exert it too. Whiskey's trainer tells her family that a long stare and a slow approach are what dogs do to each other "if they're trying to like be intimidating", so he asks starers to stop, and a single warning bark at someone who keeps staring gets a 'let's go', not a correction: "that's really your fault".
Across the wider record it is the most ordinary tool in the program. Trainers show it to owner after owner by standing too close to them (Baxter, Bernie, Bun, Max the Goldendoodle, Rocky, Akira, Bandit). They name it as the collar-free answer to a broken place or sit: Kalypso, Thor, Penny and Max the Goldendoodle were put back on the cot with no e-collar, and Kalypso's trainer called it "completely sufficient in this case". Apollo's trainer splits it in two: spatial pressure is just getting into the dog's area, while social pressure is "using your relationship". That is why Sputnik's household is told it lands harder from the owner closest to the dog. A two-finger boop on the nose is taught as a way to amplify it, "not designed" to hurt (Rocky, Bernie, Thor). It has limits on film: Cosmo resists it, Finn's trainer would normally switch to a reward when it takes real pushing, Titan needs a strong tone, and Lunna's trainer warns that a clever dog learns social pressure alone "has no consequence". With frightened dogs the dose is turned down, not up. Daisy gets only a little before release to freedom, the people around Ozzy stop staring at him, and one moment of eye contact unsettles Lucy.
What is inferred: that a dog's breaking a stationary command near a person or another dog is pressure rather than disobedience is the trainers' reading in two cases, not a tested rule.
Angier K9 is a family-owned, play-based Board & Train serving Angier, Raleigh and the Triangle, with three full owner lessons.
What to do
Use yourself before you use equipment: when your dog ignores a command he knows, step in front of him and ask firmly (Christian, Max), and let your tone show you are disappointed after a correction (Kelton, Murphy) - one sentence, not a lecture. But if your dog keeps breaking a stay near a person, move the person first; he may be avoiding them (Lola). Give commands in a normal voice so he learns to answer it.
What the trainers say
So everything is kind of like pressure and release, even positive reinforcement training, pressure and release.
So you could be adding more pressure with an e-collar or with a leash or with social pressure because Marvin's really sensitive to it.
condition punisher word which is nope right so i'll say nope but i'll also exert a lot of spatial
going to be a normally a combination of something social and something physical
But if you're annoyed with bubblegum, that's going to make a bigger impact on her because of the relationship.
I go, you ignored me, so I'm going to add social pressure.
like i didn't push the button or anything i just got in his face and he was like yeah you better do it right and he was like okay
slowly into disappointed mode because you guys have a good relationship right
is kind of it's it's a technique it's where you use social pressure to try to
I did not use any kind of physical negative reinforcement. That was all social pressure, which Bo responds really well to.
they are physical but they are also social. Um so as an example um say I got
yell at me um and normally they don't last that long right but if somebody yelled at me for like
He's also very sensitive to social pressure.
give her a little space, okay? She keeps avoiding you. That's why she's trying to get off, right?
no it's like if they're right next to each other like ramsey i'll I'll be like, I'll give him a down and he'll look at me and be like, doc, I don't have room right now. I can't do it now. And I'm like, that ended up like he moves a couple of steps and I'll tell him again and he goes into it.
it only has power insofar as it is paired with a punishment of some kind that is just real to them and for them real is social and physical
like i mean i can make things really socially awkward right now like super easily lots of different ways right um like just by like getting too close to you
stormy down nope i'm just social pressure so i'm just like kind of exerting a lot of like presence over top her body right there
i think of it like essentially three three like three ways you can blend right so you have social pressure you have physical pressure
social correction, I said, nope, nope, you know, and I got really close to her, and I said, that's not right
is that's something that you really should not make eye contact for a long period of time with like approach all slow and awkward towards like any dog because it can trigger a reactivity situation no matter what the dog is
and that's what dogs will do to each other right if they're trying to like be intimidating yeah right they'll stare at each other and they'll walk up and they'll get really weird and still
I'll just do a let's go command instead, instead of a correction, because I'm like, that's really your fault, right, you're not doing anything wrong, this is a normal dog behavior,
legit you're just using your relationship as a way to negatively
pressure right it can be like spatial it can be vocal it can be the tone of your voice all that
was all social pressure so I didn't use the e-collar I didn't do anything I just
the e-collar obviously you can use that um for him the most potent one's actually social pressure
him um or even to cause any kind of physical discomfort it's actually just amplification
pressure the problem with belgians is they're smart enough to know that social pressure has
powerful if it comes from you guys probably especially you um whichever one of you has like
the social pressure to work then i tend to go for something else the problem with him
Um, I didn't go over social pressure a ton with you, but with him, you want to use a little extra
knows with that social pressure just give in as opposed to panicking which I can show off in a minute here
How it looks, dog by dog
Max
At the family park session Christian shows the owners what he does when Max ignores a cue he knows. He steps in front, asks firmly, and adds social pressure. If that is not enough, he says 'uh-uh', repeats the command and taps until the position comes, stopping the moment it does. On a later rep the social pressure alone does it: no button, he just got in Max's face and Max went down.
On film
so I kind of get in front max down okay and I'm firm about okay
I go, you ignored me, so I'm going to add social pressure.
like i didn't push the button or anything i just got in his face and he was like yeah you better do it right and he was like okay
Marvin (Giant Schnauzer)
Marvin's core problem at go-home is resisting leash pressure. His trainer puts social pressure in the same frame as leash and collar: everything is pressure and release, and Marvin is really sensitive to the social kind. For a refusal the owners get 'nope' plus a lot of spatial and social pressure. He explains it with the close talker: someone standing right in your space makes you want to move away. The same sensitivity is why Marvin sometimes freezes on a recall. There the trainer gives encouragement instead, because Marvin needs reassurance, not pressure.
On film
So you could be adding more pressure with an e-collar or with a leash or with social pressure because Marvin's really sensitive to it.
weird like but that's like yeah like gross you know um but that's like a spatial slash social
and so then instead I'm just gonna verbally encourage Marvin come on come right over here right instead of putting pressure because he doesn't need pressure there he needs reassurance
Murphy
At Murphy's go-home, Kelton gives the family a correction with two parts. The physical part comes first. Then the tone slides from 'do not do that' into disappointment, which he calls 'booping'. It works because the family has a good relationship with Murphy: the relationship itself is the pressure.
On film
slowly into disappointed mode because you guys have a good relationship right
And then I call it booping.
Bubba Gum
At handover the trainer tells Bubba Gum's owner that a penalty a dog understands usually combines something social with something physical, and that the owner's version will work better than his. He can be annoyed with her and she cares a little. If the owner is annoyed, it lands harder because of their relationship.
On film
And for you, your social penalty is going to be more effective with bubblegum than mine, right?
But if you're annoyed with bubblegum, that's going to make a bigger impact on her because of the relationship.
Levi
At the follow-up after Levi went home, the owner's e-collar turns out to be far too loose to feel. While that is sorted, the trainer gives the owner a technique that needs no equipment: step into Levi as you ask for the sit, using social pressure to push him into it.
On film
another thing you can do too is you can kind of like step into it and like this
is kind of it's it's a technique it's where you use social pressure to try to
Bo
Bo's trainer gets an exercise done with no leash and no collar: the marker and his presence were the whole of the negative reinforcement, which Bo responds really well to. At the owner lesson he is told to add a little spatial pressure when Bo will not settle, because it works with him.
On film
I did not use any kind of physical negative reinforcement. That was all social pressure, which Bo responds really well to.
enough, right?" And use a little spatial pressure because it's effective with
Neo
Neo's handler calls him very sensitive to social pressure and uses it when he breaks commands on impulse in a crowd. In the session where the handler set out to get the down without food, one down came only after adding a little more social pressure.
On film
He's also very sensitive to social pressure.
just had to social pressure into it a little more
Nikki
On her first place work the trainer adds a little social pressure by stepping in, to see whether she falls back on her growl-and-plant pattern. She handles it. Eleven days later (filmed 28 Sep) a handler records a growl when she was being put back in her kennel and corrects it socially, with no e-collar on: 'nope, nope', stepping really close and telling her that's not right. Recapping in the second part, a handler says the social pressure did not seem to faze her that time, though she went in and did not try to run out. On this dog, at that moment, social pressure alone is reported as not landing.
On film
adding a little bit of pressure a little bit of like social pressure with that and stepping in
social correction, I said, nope, nope, you know, and I got really close to her, and I said, that's not right
face at all she didn't care um but she went she went in
Roxy
Two things, at the owners' home. At the second owner lesson the trainer explains that a penalty can be physical or social, and that a social one grows with duration: one sentence of being told off is very different from being yelled at for two or three minutes. He also says he now gives commands much more quietly, after Christian pointed out that his loud training left clients unable to get the same response. Earlier, he had noticed that Roxy and Ramsey both balk at commands when standing right next to each other. Ramsey acts as if he has no room; a couple of steps later he goes down. He does not know why.
On film
and saying that one sentence and then that's it. Versus, have you ever had
like messed people up. So, I do now train with a much low like I train with
i did notice that like both of them have this thing where if they're like right near each other they have like a weird thing about like doing the command like if they're out of space or something i don't know what that is
down I think he was just trying to figure well i think too like roxy was in front of him so i was i think he might
Lola
Lola, shy and nervous, keeps coming off her place cot while Archie holds his. The adult in charge does not correct her. He moves the child standing too close, twice, and on the second time says why: she keeps avoiding you, and that is why she is trying to get off.
On film
give her a little space, okay? She keeps avoiding you. That's why she's trying to get off, right?
Zeus
At Zeus's second in-program lesson the trainer makes the same point about duration as Roxy's trainer. Most people have been yelled at, and it normally does not last long. Several minutes of it is far more pressure, even if the volume never changes.
On film
yell at me um and normally they don't last that long right but if somebody yelled at me for like
Bullet
Bullet's trainer sets up place by sitting with him and using a little social pressure as the teacher. Bullet hangs his head off the cot to sniff, and the trainer says he will not get mad at that.
On film
we're gonna do that by using the place cut and I'm just gonna chill here with him and use a little bit of social pressure
Good, he hangs his head off and sniffs, I'm not gonna get mad at him for that.
Louie
For Louie, a nervous dog, social pressure is a measure of progress rather than a tool. His trainer reports that his nerves have come down a lot and he can now interact better and handle more social pressure.
On film
some of the obedience with the distractions his nervousness has definitely gone down a lot
Dolly
Dolly is nervous of strangers. Her trainer builds play that avoids direct pressure: a toy on a line that moves away like prey, so she can bite without confronting him. He names the triangle game, for bringing a person the dog is unsure of into a game she already plays with someone she trusts. He explains it but does not use it on film.
On film
it's called the triangle game I play with the dog so she already knows me she
because you got to think like what do they want out of the play if the dog's too nervous to play
Hattie
Two ends of one dog. Her earlier record describes a dog for whom a soft no did most of the work: at a spring fair Kelton says that what works with her is mostly just a soft no. At a follow-up visit after her adoption, prompted by trouble with the family's cat, her trainer explains why the family's verbal interrupter works on small things and not on big ones: a word has power only while it is paired with a consequence that is real to the dog, and for a dog 'real is social and physical'. He illustrates the social kind on the owner herself - getting too close, putting his face right in hers, raising his voice in the house - and says social pressure can go from low to high very fast, 'same thing with the dog'. The physical kind, for this family, is the e-collar. Here social pressure is one of the two things that charge a word, not a technique used live on the dog.
On film
that works great not even that hard honestly I don't just mostly just like a soft no
it only has power insofar as it is paired with a punishment of some kind that is just real to them and for them real is social and physical
like i mean i can make things really socially awkward right now like super easily lots of different ways right um like just by like getting too close to you
could bring social pressure from where it is down here to like up here really fast and so same thing with the dog right
Stormi
Stormi's trainer describes pressure as a blend - social, physical and collar pressure mixed in proportions he adjusts rep by rep. In her last days before go-home he shows the social ingredient on its own: 'Stormy down', a 'nope', and then nothing but presence over the top of her body. She goes down and is praised.
On film
i think of it like essentially three three like three ways you can blend right so you have social pressure you have physical pressure
stormy down nope i'm just social pressure so i'm just like kind of exerting a lot of like presence over top her body right there
Whiskey
The other side of social pressure: what strangers do to a dog. In a store session her trainer tells viewers not to hold eye contact with any dog for long or approach slow and awkward, because it can trigger reactivity whatever the dog. At the first in-program owner lesson he tells the family that a long stare reads to a dog as predatory or intimidating - what dogs do to each other - and that a mature dog will probably always be uncomfortable with a stare of more than about 30 seconds. So he advocates for her ('she's nervous don't stare at us'), walks her away if the person keeps on, and does not correct a single warning bark at a starer: a light tug and 'let's go' instead, because 'that's really your fault'.
On film
is that's something that you really should not make eye contact for a long period of time with like approach all slow and awkward towards like any dog because it can trigger a reactivity situation no matter what the dog is
I was like hey like she's nervous don't stare at us
but an older dog already mature has a lot of life experience she'll probably always get a little more uncomfortable if somebody's like this yeah for like more than 30 seconds
and that's what dogs will do to each other right if they're trying to like be intimidating yeah right they'll stare at each other and they'll walk up and they'll get really weird and still
I'll just do a let's go command instead, instead of a correction, because I'm like, that's really your fault, right, you're not doing anything wrong, this is a normal dog behavior,
Akira
On Akira's first day the trainer names social pressure as the next step when she resists a sit she has already worked out; at her evaluation he explains it to the family as closeness, tone of voice and moving into the dog's space, and says it works on dogs as it does on people.
On film
Sit. Sit. Akira, sit. So I'm going to put a little social pressure. Akira, sit. Sit.
pressure that works on dogs too right so things like tone of voice things like
Apollo (the Sharkie)
At Apollo's go-home lesson the trainer separates the two kinds. Spatial pressure is just getting into the dog's area, which works on Apollo but not especially well. Social pressure is using the relationship: a rebuke from someone who matters lands harder than one from a stranger.
On film
Social pressure, spatial pressure. Spatial pressure is simple. It doesn't work
legit you're just using your relationship as a way to negatively
Astro
With Astro the trainer says he can teach the out through social pressure alone. At a later evaluation he describes what a never-again punishment would have looked like: a pop and a collar tap, then social pressure - getting into his space - held until Astro's face shows he has got the point.
On film
I can just teach him the out via social pressure.
and tapped the e-collar and then i would have also used what's called social pressure i would
have just gotten into space and be like don't you ever do anything no never do that yeah and
Bandit
In a September session Kelton tells Bandit's owner that pressure reaches a dog by two routes, social and physical, and that the social route covers space, voice and tone. The one kind of social pressure a dog cannot get is a rational conversation.
On film
pressure flows in all directions and it motivates behavior so with a dog
pressure right it can be like spatial it can be vocal it can be the tone of your voice all that
Bane
In Bane's protection session the owner is coached through the out: step in, and if Bane does anything, tell him out, pop the collar and tap the e-collar, then add a little social pressure and say it like he means it.
On film
And then do just a little bit of social pressure and tell him to get out, seriously.
Baxter
At Baxter's first private session the trainer defines negative reinforcement as pressure and release. He shows the owner what social and spatial pressure are by standing too close to her, and says these are among the kinds a dog understands best, alongside physical pressure.
On film
from me. Like if I stand too close to you, right? That's pressure, right? That's just social
for a dog the ones that they understand the best are physical social and spatial
Bernie
At Bernie's go-home lesson the trainer shows the family social pressure on themselves, then adds the nose boop as a way to amplify it. The point is not physical pressure on the nose but getting into his space, then sliding into disappointment. In an off-leash session, fake-out sit breaks are put right with a little social pressure and the conditioned punisher.
On film
another way or another really useful way to like amplify social pressure is just to, if you don't
on the nose it's not trying to hurt him it's more that i'm getting in his space and doing like this
did was use a little bit of social pressure and the conditioned furniture to say and put them back
Bun
In Bun's session the trainer stands uncomfortably close to the owner to show her what social pressure feels like. He then lists how it reaches a dog: tone of voice, volume and how close you are.
On film
it's social social pressure um so social pressure i i can give you an example of it this is an
respond to that kind of stuff too right so you can put social pressure by tone of voice by how
Cosmo
On Cosmo's first day his trainer finds him resistant to social pressure on the sit: Cosmo tries to avoid it rather than give in, so the trainer locks the leash and makes him sit.
On film
hey come on you got this so he's really resistant to my social pressure too
which is interesting he's trying to avoid so we gotta we gotta make him sit
Daisy
With Daisy, who is nervous, the trainer uses only a little social pressure for the sit. He pairs it with release to freedom: she is held in one spot until she does it.
On film
sit and sit sit so with her she's kind of nervous so social pressure for her
for her sit for her if i just for like a little bit of social pressure and release the freedom
Deuce
Deuce's trainer uses social pressure in several ways. A look finishes one refusal, and he says he was about to use the e-collar and did not need to. Pulling up on the leash he calls 'that thing with the social pressure'. With a strong dog he uses social pressure to get him halfway into a sit, then pulls him into the down without ever saying sit, so the two commands are not confused.
On film
look. I didn't use the e-collar. I was about to.
I'm gonna do that thing with the social pressure
you probably use some form of social pressure so you just want to apply that
Dutchess
Around high distractions, Dutchess's sit still has to be finished with release to freedom plus social pressure. Her trainer also names his own presence as a confound: dogs behave differently with him because they know what he expects.
On film
So, see, I really have to do a combination of like release to freedom
plus social pressure currently.
like my presence does affect dogs
Finn
On a Home Depot trip Finn refuses a sit he knows, and the trainer pulls up on the leash as 'a social pressure thing'. He says that when social pressure takes real pushing, he normally switches to something the dog likes. With Finn he has not yet found what that is.
On film
All right, so we're gonna do a social pressure thing here
the social pressure to work then i tend to go for something else the problem with him
Josephine
At Josephine's go-home lesson the family is told that, because she is very socially sensitive, a firm 'enough, chill out' and space will do most of the work in stopping over-the-top play, with a collar only if necessary.
On film
this with her hey enough chill out she'll be like oh right like because
she's very socially sensitive right whereas like some dogs are like oh I'm
Kalypso
On the place cot the trainer waits for Kalypso to actually step off, then fixes the break with voice and by guiding her back. No e-collar is used. He calls it all social pressure and says it was completely sufficient here, though some severe cases do need more.
On film
was all social pressure so I didn't use the e-collar I didn't do anything I just
e-collar for something like this social pressure it's completely sufficient in this case right so
Lucy
At Lucy's evaluation the visiting trainer makes eye contact for a moment and it unsettles her. He notes it as the thing he had been avoiding, which is the same pressure the Whiskey and Ozzy sessions describe in a stare.
On film
activated now and she's sniffing me but I just made eye contact with her
for a second and that freaked her out all right have you shook hands in front of her
Lunna
When the e-collar's battery dies mid-session, Lunna's place is proofed without it, which the trainer calls trickier and far slower. He adds a limit: some dogs may need nothing more than social pressure, but a clever dog - he names Belgians - learns that it carries no consequence.
On film
proved a place without an e-collar, which
but like like you're trying to prove commands and you're like i'm gonna just do it off social
pressure the problem with belgians is they're smart enough to know that social pressure has
Max (Goldendoodle)
On Max's first day, breaks from the place cot are answered with just social pressure and a 'no, place'. In a later home session, a paw off the cot is put right with social and spatial pressure and no e-collar. At go-home the trainer points out that the owner's own 'uh-uh' with a step toward him was exactly that.
On film
punished it each time with just some social pressure no place right and so it doesn't have
off really badly, and that's why he took a paw off, and I just used a little bit of social
Or like what you did here is you went uh-uh,
That's facial pressure and social pressure, right?
Oscar
In a recall Short, Oscar turns pressure off by finding the down. The trainer names two sources: very light e-collar taps, and social and spatial pressure coming from him.
On film
times super light pressure there was also some social pressure right like um some some spatial
Ozzy
Ozzy arrives terrified, so on day one the people avoid staring or eye contact, which the trainer says can make it worse. Weeks later social pressure is the main tool: he can be pressured into a sit and has learned to give in rather than panic, while the e-collar waits until he is ready.
On film
know eye contact or staring at him and stuff like that like i am right now uh that can make it a
knows with that social pressure just give in as opposed to panicking which I can show off in a minute here
no i'm saying with that though like that's all social pressure right
Penny
When Penny starts to leave the place cot with a cat in view, Kelton gives her some social pressure and then the 'good girl, good place' cue.
On film
and i gave her some social pressure and gave her the natural reinforcement cue which is the
Phoebe
In a lesson with Phoebe the trainer gets a sit by doing nothing but walking toward her, and names it spatial pressure.
Piglet
In Piglet's first in-program lesson the trainer uses a human example - being angry at someone who was not where you expected - to show that getting mad or getting close is social pressure. That is the penalty side of free-shaping a calm liberty window.
On film
and you punished it you penalized it right um because getting mad like that that's like social
pressure right if I yelled at you right now or if I like got like super like
Rocky
For Rocky, his trainer says, the most potent tool is social pressure. Moving into his space makes him suppress, then sit to appease. A two-finger boop on the nose is taught as a way to amplify social pressure, not to cause pain or even physical discomfort.
On film
the e-collar obviously you can use that um for him the most potent one's actually social pressure
suppressed a little bit and then he just like did something to kind of appease me and sat okay buddy
him um or even to cause any kind of physical discomfort it's actually just amplification
Shadow (German Shepherd puppy)
With the owners watching, Shadow avoids a sit while she is hyped up, and Connor adds 'a little social pressure'. He then holds her in place under release to freedom until she does it.
On film
okay come on shadow sit sit I'll do a little social pressure okay so what I
Simba
On Simba's first day the trainer gets a down by pressuring him into position without saying sit, so the down never comes to depend on a sit first.
On film
sit every time but it's just you can social pressure into the position and
Sputnik
In the private lesson for Sputnik's household, the trainer's tone moves from firm to disappointed after the boops. He says that is social pressure, and that it is more powerful coming from the owner with the tightest relationship. At go-home he steps into the space of Bear, the household's third dog, to show the family how a dog's whole face changes under it.
On film
right because they do respond to that that's social pressure for them especially it's more
powerful if it comes from you guys probably especially you um whichever one of you has like
from me um so dogs feel that too so if i go up to bear and i go hey hey you see how his whole face
Thor
In Thor's home training a break from the cot is fixed with mostly social pressure and a flat-collar tap, no e-collar. At go-home Kelton gives the family the collar-free version: social and spatial pressure plus a two-finger tap on the nose, which 'adds a little more social pressure'.
On film
him there. That was mostly just social pressure and just kind of like tapped him with the flat
it adds a little more social pressure okay right um because you can think like same thing with me
different way okay right um just use social pressure and spatial pressure and just kind
Titan
At Titan's go-home lesson the family is told that Titan needs a little extra social pressure: tone matters with him. That means not yelling, but a strong tone, where some dogs need only the word before the collar.
On film
Um, I didn't go over social pressure a ton with you, but with him, you want to use a little extra
to like yell and scream at him or anything but it needs to be a strong tone I'll do it in a minute
Why it works
As the trainers explain it: pressure is anything the dog wants to end, and the handler's body, closeness and tone are pressure the same way the leash and collar are; release when he complies is what teaches (Marvin's trainer, Christian with Max). Its weight depends on the relationship - the owner's displeasure lands harder than a stranger's (Bubba Gum, Murphy) - and on duration as well as intensity (Roxy, Zeus). Sensitive dogs feel it strongly enough that it can replace physical pressure (Bo, Neo, Marvin), and nervous dogs can be pushed off a command by it (Lola) or freeze under it (Marvin's recall), which is why the same trainers take it away when it is the cause. A wider reading of the session record adds the trainers' own split between the two: spatial pressure is simply entering the dog's area, social pressure is the weight of the relationship behind a rebuke (Apollo, watch 26:30, 26:59), and a nose boop is 'amplification' of social pressure rather than pain (Rocky, watch 16:38). Why a clever dog stops responding to it is stated once and not tested: it learns that social pressure alone has no consequence (Lunna, watch 11:17).
On film
So everything is kind of like pressure and release, even positive reinforcement training, pressure and release.
But if you're annoyed with bubblegum, that's going to make a bigger impact on her because of the relationship.
a few like a few minutes like several minutes of yelling that's more that's a lot more there's a
give her a little space, okay? She keeps avoiding you. That's why she's trying to get off, right?
it only has power insofar as it is paired with a punishment of some kind that is just real to them and for them real is social and physical
and that's what dogs will do to each other right if they're trying to like be intimidating yeah right they'll stare at each other and they'll walk up and they'll get really weird and still
legit you're just using your relationship as a way to negatively
him um or even to cause any kind of physical discomfort it's actually just amplification
pressure the problem with belgians is they're smart enough to know that social pressure has
Inferred
Why two dogs standing shoulder to shoulder both stall on commands is not explained on film; the trainer says he does not know. Reading it as social pressure between the dogs is the map's placement, not a trainer's claim.
Where the trainers differ
Add social pressure, or remove it?
One view
Step in, get firm, let the tone carry disappointment: social pressure to get compliance
On film
I go, you ignored me, so I'm going to add social pressure.
stormy down nope i'm just social pressure so i'm just like kind of exerting a lot of like presence over top her body right there
Another view
Move the person away; a nervous dog breaking a command near someone is avoiding them
On film
give her a little space, okay? She keeps avoiding you. That's why she's trying to get off, right?
and so then instead I'm just gonna verbally encourage Marvin come on come right over here right instead of putting pressure because he doesn't need pressure there he needs reassurance
I was like hey like she's nervous don't stare at us
How to read it
Not a disagreement between trainers but between dogs and moments: the same pressure that finishes a refused command in a confident dog is the cause of the break in a nervous one. An owner needs both halves.
Loud or quiet commands
One view
Train quietly so the client's normal voice works
On film
like messed people up. So, I do now train with a much low like I train with
Another view
Get firm in front of the dog when a cue is ignored
On film
so I kind of get in front max down okay and I'm firm about okay
How to read it
Roxy's trainer says he used to train loudly and Christian pointed out it made clients' quieter commands fail; he now trains quietly, raising his voice only at distance. Christian's own method with Max is to get firm when ignored. Both can be true - quiet by default, firm when ignored - but no one states that on film.
Common owner mistakes
- Standing or letting a child stand too close to a nervous dog on a place cot, then reading the break as disobedience.
On film
give her a little space, okay? She keeps avoiding you. That's why she's trying to get off, right?
Watch at 8:47 ↗ - Telling the dog off at length; several minutes of it is much more pressure than one firm sentence.
On film
somebody like yell at you for more than like 20 seconds? Have you ever had
Watch at 3:24 ↗ - Using a loud voice as the normal command voice, so the dog stops answering an ordinary one.
On film
made me aware of this a while ago. I used to train where everything I did was
Watch at 3:55 ↗ - Correcting a single warning bark at a person who keeps staring at the dog. Whiskey's trainer treats that bark as the person's fault and answers it with 'let's go', not a correction.
On film
I'll just do a let's go command instead, instead of a correction, because I'm like, that's really your fault, right, you're not doing anything wrong, this is a normal dog behavior,
Watch at 10:28 ↗
Questions owners ask
What is social pressure?
Your body and voice used as pressure: stepping into the dog's space, standing over him, a firm or disappointed tone. Marvin's trainer puts it alongside the leash and the e-collar as one of the three ways pressure is added, and says some dogs are really sensitive to it.
On film
So you could be adding more pressure with an e-collar or with a leash or with social pressure because Marvin's really sensitive to it.
Do I need the e-collar if my dog listens when I step toward him?
For sensitive dogs the trainers often start there. Christian steps in front of Max before any tap, and on a later rep that alone was enough. Bo's trainer did a whole exercise on social pressure alone. When it is not enough, Christian adds the collar and stops the moment the dog complies. On the place cot several trainers say outright they did not need it: Kalypso ('I didn't use the e-collar'), Thor (mostly social pressure plus a flat-collar tap; the trainer says no e-collar was necessary) and Max the Goldendoodle. Lunna's session is the counterpoint: proofing place without the collar was possible but slower, and some dogs learn to ignore pressure that is never backed.
On film
like i didn't push the button or anything i just got in his face and he was like yeah you better do it right and he was like okay
I did not use any kind of physical negative reinforcement. That was all social pressure, which Bo responds really well to.
was all social pressure so I didn't use the e-collar I didn't do anything I just
him there. That was mostly just social pressure and just kind of like tapped him with the flat
off really badly, and that's why he took a paw off, and I just used a little bit of social
proved a place without an e-collar, which
My dog keeps getting off his bed when my child is near. Should I correct him?
Lola's handler did not. He moved the child and said why: she was avoiding the child, and that was why she kept getting off. Check where the people are before you correct.
On film
give her a little space, okay? She keeps avoiding you. That's why she's trying to get off, right?
Does it matter who tells the dog off?
Yes, say two trainers. Bubba Gum's trainer tells the owner her annoyance will matter more than his because of their relationship, and Kelton tells Murphy's family to use theirs, letting the tone fall into disappointment after a correction.
On film
And for you, your social penalty is going to be more effective with bubblegum than mine, right?
so you can use your relationship with him as social pressure where you can
A stranger keeps staring at my dog and she barked. Should I correct her?
Whiskey's trainer says no. A long stare is pressure in dog terms - predatory or intimidating - and a mature dog will probably always find a stare of more than about 30 seconds uncomfortable. He asks the person to stop, walks her away if they keep on, and answers a single warning bark with a light tug and 'let's go' rather than a correction, because the bark is the person's fault.
On film
and that's what dogs will do to each other right if they're trying to like be intimidating yeah right they'll stare at each other and they'll walk up and they'll get really weird and still
I'll just do a let's go command instead, instead of a correction, because I'm like, that's really your fault, right, you're not doing anything wrong, this is a normal dog behavior,
Does social pressure work on every dog?
Not every dog and not every moment. Hattie's earlier record describes a dog for whom a soft no does most of the work; Stormi goes down on presence alone. With Nikki, at the kennel door, a handler reports that social pressure did not seem to faze her. Hattie's trainer gives the general reason a word or a look stops working: it only has power while it is paired with something the dog finds real, and that means social or physical. The wider record adds more limits. Cosmo resists it and tries to avoid it rather than give in. Finn's trainer says that when it takes real pushing he would normally switch to a reward. Titan needs a stronger tone than most. Lunna's trainer warns that a clever dog can learn social pressure alone has no consequence. For the most nervous dogs it is dosed down: Daisy gets only a little, and nobody stares at Ozzy.
On film
that works great not even that hard honestly I don't just mostly just like a soft no
stormy down nope i'm just social pressure so i'm just like kind of exerting a lot of like presence over top her body right there
face at all she didn't care um but she went she went in
it only has power insofar as it is paired with a punishment of some kind that is just real to them and for them real is social and physical
hey come on you got this so he's really resistant to my social pressure too
the social pressure to work then i tend to go for something else the problem with him
pressure the problem with belgians is they're smart enough to know that social pressure has
sit and sit sit so with her she's kind of nervous so social pressure for her
The lesson
The goal
The owner can use their body and voice as pressure to back a known command, and can recognise when their presence is the pressure making a nervous dog break.
Learn first
The drill
As run by Christian with Max: give a known cue; if it is ignored, step in front of the dog and repeat it firmly; if still ignored, mark and add the next level of pressure until he complies, and stop the moment he does. As run by Levi's trainer for an owner without a working collar: step into the dog as you ask for the sit.
Watch out for
- Lecturing for minutes rather than one firm line.
- Leaning on a nervous dog who is breaking because of your closeness.
- Using a raised voice as the everyday command voice.
Check yourself
Your dog breaks a down every time your partner walks past. Before correcting him, what do you change?