GENERALIZATION

Generalization means your dog has fully learned the meaning of a cue and can reliably perform the behavior in any location, even with distractions.

When we start training together, notice how I’ve asked you

To change hands to reward
To change positions, if you were sitting, I may ask you to stand
To change tone of voice
To change rooms
To change places to go

We are generalizing slow and steady.

For example, a dog that hasn’t generalized a cue might perform a behavior perfectly in the living room but act as if they’ve forgotten everything the moment they step outside. This happens because the cue hasn’t been generalized. To help your dog succeed, it’s important to practice each behavior in various locations, using treats and rewards, rather than assuming they’ll automatically understand what you want in a new setting.

Why Context Matters

Dogs are context-dependent learners, meaning changes in their environment can disrupt what they’ve learned. Imagine walking through your neighborhood and encountering holiday decorations. This sudden change can throw your pup off balance, making it harder for them to focus or follow cues. Even something small—like a new plant in a yard—can have a big impact on their behavior. Remember, dogs experience the world differently; their powerful noses detect countless changes we can’t even perceive.

Analogy: Making Tea in a New Kitchen

Learning in a new or distracting environment is like trying to make a cup of tea in someone else’s kitchen. At home, you’re a tea-making ninja—grabbing cups, tea bags, sugar, and boiling the kettle is second nature. But in a new kitchen, it’s a different story. Where are the cups? Is the sugar in this jar or that one? And how do I turn on this UFO-shaped kettle? What’s normally an effortless process suddenly feels awkward and stilted.

The good news? With a few practice runs, you’ll master tea-making in the new kitchen. The same is true for your dog. Practice shaping new behaviors and introducing cues gradually in different areas until your dog truly understands what you’re asking—no matter where they are.

Remember to –

Set Your Dog Up for Success:

When introducing behaviors/cues in new environments, don’t ask too much too soon. Break down the task and build on small successes.

Match Rewards to the Challenge:

As distractions and context changes increase, so should the rewards. When you’re asking more from your dog, give them greater motivation with higher-value treats or praise. What gets rewarded gets repeated.

Progress Gradually:

Once your dog has generalized a cue across environments and responds quickly, you can begin to reduce the frequency of rewards. Done at the right time, less rewards will actually strengthen the behavior, we’ll get to that in a few weeks or months! Move to new areas at a pace that works for your dog.

MARKERS

When it comes to dog training, what is a marker?

A marker can be a sound or a gesture that we use to tell our Pups the exact moment they did something right. 

Examples of markers include a word (like “Yip!” or “Yes”), a click (using a clicker device – more on that later), or even a gesture (like using a thumbs up for a deaf dog). Regardless of your specific marker, all markers do the same thing: they tell your Pup that they did something right, and a reward is coming. 

A successful exchange with a marker might look something like this when training sit: 

1. Pup is about to sit.
2. You wait and mark by saying “Yip!” the second Pup’s hind end touches the ground.
3. AFTER you MARK, you deliver a treat. 

Now your Pup knows the exact moment in time that something earned a reward.
One of the key elements that will help you get and keep your Pup’s engagement with you is the use of markers. 

Learning new skills can be difficult for both you and your Pup during training. Marking is one of the key concepts that will speed up the learning for your dog… it may slow you down just a bit as you learn so it is optional to use them. Once you know how, you can go faster and be more precise.

If we mark, we reward. 

We often focus on the reward as the most powerful component of training our dogs, but MARKING is important if we are going to train them at a distance or with complex behaviors. 

REMEMBER - What gets rewarded gets repeated. 

What if I accidentally mark the wrong thing? 

That’s okay. There will be plenty of opportunities to help clear up what you actually want; the important thing is that you treat EVERY time you mark, even if you made a mistake. Even if there are times where you mismark as you are learning. Rewarding your dog even if you mess up, means that they will never, ever be confused about the meaning of the marker. They might be confused about the exact behavior but you can adjust this. 

Choosing a Marker

Verbal Markers: Your chosen marker word should always be the same word or sound. It needs to be a short, sharp sound, like “YIP,” “YEP,” or “YES;” not a slow, drawn-out “Yeasssss.” This helps ~~make it clear exactly what and when you are marking.~~ ~~with clarity~~ 

I recommend “YIP!” as a marker, because it is a short sharp sound that you aren’t likely to be using at other times when you AREN’T trying to mark behavior. It makes a good “secret handshake!”

Clickers: Clicker devices are typically plastic or metal with a button or surface that makes a sharp “click” sound when pressed. The sound is very precise, but also requires having extra equipment on-hand and cannot be adjusted in volume. I recommend starting with a strong verbal marker.

You can advance to a clicker if you: 

• Want to teach your dog complex tricks
• Participate in obedience competition or sport
• Have a service dog 
• Have a behavior issue that needs more support 

When and How Do I Mark? 

You want to mark at the exact moment your Pup shows a desired behavior. This can be a behavior you requested or cued, or it can even be a new behavior you see and like. In either situation, we are clearly and succinctly telling our Pup “THAT! I liked that. Here’s a reward.” 

As soon as you see what you like, mark the behavior, then deliver the treat to your Pup. That’s it! Always mark, then move your hand to deliver a treat.
Mark, THEN move.

MARKING can establish new behaviors faster, we fade the mark when fluent.

A marker is not a remote control for attention or interruption... but as usual there are exceptions to this rule, you can use a MARK as you advance to get attention under distraction (engage / disengage)