Positive reinforcement training without using food

In this episode of The Vet Blast Podcast presented by dvm360, Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, and Christopher Pachel, DVM, DACVB, CABC (IAABC), examine food as a primary reinforcer, noting its efficiency due to high palatability and ease of use. They define positive reinforcement as the introduction of a reward to strengthen a specific behavioral response.

Throughout the episode, Pachel emphasizes that the efficacy of reinforcement is heavily dependent on timing, advocating for immediate delivery to solidify the behavioral association. Furthermore, he explores the utility of non-food reinforcers and the implementation of secondary reinforcers like clickers or verbal cues to act as a "bridge" between the desired action and the reward.

Below is a partial transcript, edited lightly for clarity

Adam Christman, DVM, MBA: Now, I know some people out there like, well, food is the only driver to give positive reinforcement, and there's not. There's some creative solutions that are out there. So share with us what that may look like.

Christopher Pachel, DVM, DACVB, CABC (IAABC): Yeah. So the easiest way to think about this, and I have to tell you, every time I use these examples, every time I give a lecture, I'm talking to a pet owner, and I'm saying, okay, and then they did the behavior, and then we click, and we treat and we do the things. Every. Single. Time. I get this question that says, But what if I don't want to use food or what if my dog isn't food motivated, or she's already a little heavy I'm a little bit concerned, or she's got pancreatitis, what do I do right? These are all reasons why we might want to be more creative about that.

And so the next question that I always ask is, okay if we gave your dog your AmEx, if we gave your dog your Visa, and the opportunity to buy any sort of thing or experience, what would they buy? Is it a walk in the woods? Is it a new squeaky toy? Is it quiet time in front of the fireplace? Is it a chin scratch? Is it what? What would your dog do? And we can, obviously, we're not going to give them your visa and turn them loose on the shopping network, but you can watch them and say, if we turn them loose in the world, what do they do? Do they run? Do they sit still? Do they interact? Is it social? Is it environmental? Those are the things that light your dog up.

Anything that lights your dog up can potentially be leveraged as a reinforcer. Now I want to be very clear before we get into some of the nuts and bolts of this, I want to be very clear that I'm not saying we have to withhold all of the good stuff and we only give your dog good things when they've done the right behavior. This is not withholding. This is not restricting. This is not any sort of archaic means of, I'm the alpha and I control your world. This is simply saying, I'm going to give you all that stuff anyway, can I just be more intentional and more mindful of when I do it, when I time it, the consistency with which I deliver it, so that I'm doing 2 things, your love and life, and so we're enjoying that, and the leveraging of those positive, enjoyable things strengthens the behavior that I want to see more of as we go forward together in that collaborative learning model.

Want to hear the rest of this conversation, including what Pachel uses on his own dogs, then check out the full episode here or where ever you listen to podcasts!