Sonja's Dog Training

03/29/2025

This article addresses over arousal but there are also potential physical concerns that arise from what I refer to as "mindless games of fetch." Absolutely, playing with your dog and most importantly engaging when you do, is critical to their welfare. Incorporate some control. Make it more about hunt than chase to work the mind (holding the dog back and throwing into deep grass) - this also prevents the dog from excessive twisting and jumping when going after a ball which can lead to serious injury.

There is a question I get asked constantly:

“Bart, should I play fetch with my dog every day? He LOVES it!”

And my answer is always the same:
No. Especially not with working breeds like the Malinois, German Shepherd, Dutch Shepherd, or any other high-prey-drive dog, like hunting dogs, Agility dogs, etc.

This answer is often met with surprise, sometimes with resistance. I get it—your dog brings you the ball, eyes bright, body full of energy, practically begging you to throw it. It feels like bonding. It feels like exercise. It feels like the right thing to do.

But from a scientific, behavioral, and neurobiological perspective—it’s not. In fact, it may be one of the most harmful daily habits for your dog’s mental health and nervous system regulation that no one is warning you about.

Let me break it down for you in detail. This will be long, but if you have a working dog, you need to understand this.

Working dogs like the Malinois and German Shepherd were selected over generations for their intensity, persistence, and drive to engage in behaviors tied to the prey sequence: orient, stalk, chase, grab, bite, kill. In their role as police, protection, herding, or military dogs, these genetically encoded motor patterns are partially utilized—but directed toward human-defined tasks.

Fetch is an artificial mimicry of this prey sequence.
• Ball = prey
• Throwing = movement stimulus
• Chase = reinforcement
• Grab and return = closure and Reward - Reinforecment again.

Every time you throw that ball, you’re not just giving your dog “exercise.” You are triggering an evolutionary motor pattern that was designed to result in the death of prey. But here’s the twist:

The "kill bite" never comes.
There’s no closure. No end. No satisfaction, Except when he start chewing on the ball by himself, which lead to even more problems. So the dog is neurologically left in a state of arousal.

When your dog sees that ball, his brain lights up with dopamine. Anticipation, motivation, drive. When you throw it, adrenaline kicks in. It becomes a cocktail of high arousal and primal intensity.

Dopamine is not the reward chemical—it’s the pursuit chemical. It creates the urge to chase, to repeat the behavior. Adrenaline and cortisol, stress hormones, spike during the chase. Even though the dog “gets the ball,” the biological closure never really happens—because the pattern is reset, again and again, with each throw.

Now imagine doing this every single day.
The dog’s brain begins to wire itself for a constant state of high alert, constantly expecting arousal, movement, and stimulation. This is how we create chronic stress.

The autonomic nervous system has two main branches:

• Sympathetic Nervous System – “Fight, flight, chase”

• Parasympathetic Nervous System – “Rest, digest, recover”

Fetch, as a prey-driven game, stimulates the sympathetic system. The problem? Most owners never help the dog come down from that state.
There’s no decompression, no parasympathetic activation, no transition into rest.

Chronic sympathetic dominance leads to:
• Panting, pacing, inability to settle
• Destructive behaviors
• Hypervigilance
• Reactivity to movement
• Obsession with balls, toys, other dogs
• Poor sleep cycles
• Digestive issues
• A weakened immune system over time
• Behavioral burnout

In essence, we’re creating a dog who is neurologically trapped in the primal mind—always hunting, never resting.

Expectation Is a Form of Pressure!!!!!!

When fetch becomes a daily ritual, your dog begins to expect it.This is no longer “fun.” It’s a conditioned need. And when that need is not met?

Stress. Frustration. Obsession.

A dog who expects to chase every day but doesn’t get it may begin redirecting that drive elsewhere—chasing shadows, lights, children, other dogs, cars.
This is how pathological behavior patterns form.

Many people use fetch as a shortcut for physical exercise.

But movement is not the same as regulation.
Throwing a ball 100 times does not tire out a working dog—it wires him tighter.

What these dogs need is:
• Cognitive engagement
• Problem solving
• Relationship-based training
• Impulse control and on/off switches
• Scentwork or tracking to satisfy the nose-brain connection
• Regulated physical outlets like structured walks, swimming, tug with rules, or balanced sport work
• Recovery time in a calm environment

But What About Drive Fulfillment? Don’t They Need an Outlet?

Yes, and here’s the nuance:

Drive should be fulfilled strategically, not passively or impulsively. This is where real training philosophy comes in.

Instead of free-for-all ball throwing, I recommend:
• Tug with rules of out, impulse control, and handler engagement

• Controlled prey play with a flirt pole, used sparingly

• Engagement-based drive work with clear start and stop signals

• Training sessions that integrate drive, control, and reward

• Activities like search games, mantrailing, or protection sport with balance

• Working on “down in drive” — the ability to switch from arousal to rest

This builds a thinking dog, not a reactive one. The Bottom Line: Just Because He Loves It Doesn’t Mean It’s Good for Him

Your Malinois, German Shepherd, Dutchie, or other working dog may love the ball. He may bring it to you with joy. But the question is not what he likes—it’s what he needs.

A child may love candy every day, but a good parent knows better. As a trainer, handler, and caretaker, it’s your responsibility to think long term.
You’re not raising a dog for this moment. You’re developing a life companion, a regulated athlete, a resilient thinker.

So no—I don’t recommend playing ball every day.
Because every throw is a reinforcement of the primal mind.

And the primal mind, unchecked, cannot be reasoned with. It cannot self-regulate. It becomes a slave to its own instincts.

Train your dog to engage with you, not just the object. Teach arousal with control, play with purpose, and rest with confidence.

Your dog deserves better than obsession.He deserves balance. He deserves you—not just the ball.


Bart De Gols

03/28/2025

Hey all you Local Smith’s shoppers, if you have a Smith’s card, please consider designating Great Basin K9 SAR as your charity in the Smiths Inspiring Donations program!

Smith's "Inspiring Donations" is a great way to support Great Basin K-9 SAR just by doing your regular shopping. When you designate Great Basin K-9 SAR as your charity organization, Smith's will donate 0.5% of purchase to us! Every little bit helps. If you shop at Smith's Food and Drug and have a Smith's card/account, all you need to do is follow this link for instructions:
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12/24/2024

Merry Merry🎄❤️
From my little pack to yours🎁

12/24/2024

Love this and I believe it parallels to dogs beautifully. Simply put, dogs/horses don’t have the nasty vindictive and premeditated thinking of humans but their behaviors in response to feeling worried or fearful may appear similar. The more we can recognize our dogs/horses just wearing their emotions on their sleeves, living in their immediate reality, rather than plotting some devious plan, the better and more kindly we can respond.

My thoughts on anthropomorphism

While working with Joy this morning I started thinking about anthropomorphism…again. I think about it a lot and I’ve wanted to write this post for awhile but never quite found the words.

Many may disagree with me but I take this opinion from my own understanding of human psychology (I have a Diploma in Human Development which delves in to Developmental Psychology) and also from what I feel in myself to be true, unpopular opinion though it may be.

Firstly we need to understand what anthropomorphism is.

It is the act of attributing human thoughts, feelings and emotions to an animal.

So why is it a problem?

Because it is believed that animals don’t think the same as we do. They don’t have the parts of the brain necessary to produce certain thoughts that we attribute to them. And anthropomorphism could lead to the horse being unfairly treated on the basis of a belief that they have human thoughts and emotions.

My personal opinion is this:

Anthropomorphism is not the problem. The incomplete process of anthropomorphism is the problem.

I also believe that neuroplasticity plays a role whereby the horse brain may be able to enlist other areas of the brain to perform emotional processing tasks since they’re lacking the prefrontal cortex. But that’s another topic for another day.

But anyway, hear me out and then feel free to give your thoughts…politely.

Let’s take the term “belligerent”. A lot of people refer to horses as belligerent.
What does it mean? In human terms, belligerence is when someone is considered hostile and aggressive.

But why would a human be hostile and aggressive?
In psychology terms, a person may act hostile and aggressive when they feel threatened. Their anxiety over the perceived threat makes them act in an aggressive way in order to protect themselves.

Go figure!

So if we complete the same thought process with a horse. Labelled it as belligerent but then extrapolate that further and understated why we can decipher that they feel threatened.

By understanding that they feel threatened we can now change tact and approach the horse with new eyes. We can now present ourselves in a kinder way to the horse. We can do what they need to feel safe therefore removing the perceived threat and down scaling the “belligerent” behaviour.

Let’s try another one.

Bolshy/bolshie

In human terms it means someone who is deliberately combative and uncooperative.

Why would a human be deliberately combative and uncooperative?
Probably because they don’t feel comfortable with the situation and they’re behaving in this way in order to protect themselves, to try and stop it from happening.

So why then, would a horse be deliberately uncooperative and combative?
Probably because they don’t feel comfortable with the situation and they’re trying to keep themselves safe and stop things from happening that they’re scared or anxious about.

So with that knowledge we can adjust our approach so the horse feels safe and comfortable to cooperate.

How about this one; disrespectful.

Why would a human be disrespectful to someone? Probably because that person has offended them in some way, perhaps by their behaviour or something they’re said. Or perhaps because they don’t know any different.

So for a horse we can extrapolate that and understand that perhaps the horse is behaving in a disrespectful way because either A) we’ve offended them or B ) they don’t know any different and we need to show them a better way.

With that information we can repair the relationship and show them a better way.

What about some positive emotions? One I heard recently is pride. That horses don’t feel pride.

Pride is defined as “a feeling of accomplishment or confidence that can be a response to success.”

You think a horse might feel a sense of pride when they feel confident in a new skill they’ve developed?
Confidence is certainly something we attribute to horses with apparently no concern for anthropomorphism.
Confidence is defined as a feeling of self-assurance arising from an appreciation of one's own abilities or qualities.

Certainly we can accept that for horses, though I am unsure why, as equestrians, we seem much more comfortable accepting anthropomorphism when it’s in a positive view versus in the negative view.
Of course I understand that the negative attributions could lead to the horse being unfairly treated. But if we can extrapolate for the positive emotions, why not for the negative?

At the end of the day, the thing humans and horses have in common is our primitive instincts. All human behaviour is driven by an instinct. We have psychology to explain that for us.
But horses have that same part of their brain too. Their behaviour is driven by instinct and if we break it down further, we can use that information to understand WHY the horse might be behaving in a belligerent or bolshy or disrespectful way.

Feelings and emotions give off an energy or aura. We feel it from other humans. And we can feel that same energy or aura from a horse. That’s why we attribute a human emotion or behaviour to it. Because as humans, that’s how we understand it, we instinctively feel it.

The issue, in my opinion, is not anthropomorphism but the incomplete extrapolation of anthropomorphism.

If you’re going to label a horse with a certain behaviour or emotion, it’s important to look at that emotion from a human perspective to understand what drives that emotion and break it down completely so you can use it from a place of understanding for your horse.

10/25/2024

Thanks to everyone who voted for GBK9SAR🙏❤️

Well, sad to report that we did not receive enough votes to win the Land Rover Defender and we fell just short of the top 5😔

That said, we were up with several large organizations who are all very deserving. So many great people out serving their communities. We congratulate them!!🥳👏

We are so very grateful for everyone’s support who diligently voted for us👏👏

This contest gave us the opportunity to share our mission, updated services, and video with all of you.

We continue to provide quality K9 Search team services and have been very busy this month with training, testing, and most importantly, out searching with our dogs ~ all with the solitary goal to help bring people home to their loved ones.

A few tips to coming home safe:
➡️ tell a friend when/where you are heading out;
➡️ leave a note in your vehicle with your planned route;
➡️ take a photo of your children at the trailhead showing clothing and shoes in case one wanders off;
➡️ plan for changing weather;
➡️ carry sufficient water and supplies (whistle, 🆘 capability, light, 🔥),
➡️ stay within your fitness and climbing level.

Come home safe🙏⛑️

10/15/2024

My team, Great Basin K9 SAR needs your votes! We are all volunteer and in the honoree category trying to win a Land Rover defender for our team. The top five by popular vote can win $5000 which would also be a huge help to sustain our operations. Every vote is appreciated and counts. 🙏🙏❤️❤️

Six heroic nonprofits will win a Defender 130 and a financial donation to help further their mission, and you have a say in determining the most deserving organizations. Vote now for your favorite among the finalists.

09/13/2024

The ASB Human Remains Detection standard is being recirculated for comment. This link has the document as well as template for making comments. It is important that comments be made per the template if they are to be considered. There really isn’t a mechanism to incorporate generalized comments. So, if you have suggestions, it is necessary to be specific and provide recommended alternatives. Thanks all!!

StandardsASB Standard 076 - RecirculationStandard for Training and Certification of Canine Detection of Human Remains: Human Remains on LandFirst EditionStandardsConsensus Body: Dogs and SensorsOpen for CommentShareShare on TwitterShare on FacebookShare on LinkedInASB Deadline: October 28, 2024Pleas...

09/09/2024

Instinct and genetics associated behavior are real!

WHEN CLICKER TRAINING FAILED

In yesterday’s post, I detailed the work of Keller and Marian Breland who not only discovered "shaping" and bridging stimulus, but also invented clicker training.

Keller and Marian Breland trained animal acts featured in movies, circuses, museums, fairs, zoos and amusement parks across the nation, and also trained many of the trainers that worked in these facilities as well.

By 1951, the Brelands had trained thousands of animals from dozens of species, and in an article for American Psychologist, they said they thought rewards-based clicker training might work on any animal to train just about anything.

And then something happened.

They noticed that clicker training was, in certain circumstances, beginning to fail in ways that they could no longer overlook.

In a 1961 paper entitled, ‘The Misbehavior of Organisms,’ Keller and Marian Breland described their first experience with the failure of reward-based operant conditioning.

It seems that when working with pigs, chickens and raccoons, the animals would often learn a trick, but then begin to drift away from the learned behavior and towards more instinctive, unreinforced, foraging actions.

What was going on?

Put simply, instinct was raising its inconvenient head.

Though Skinner and his disciples had always maintained that performance was driven by external rewards or punishments, here was clear evidence that there was an internal code that could not always be ignored.

The Brelands wrote:

“These egregious failures came as a rather considerable shock to us, for there was nothing in our background in behaviorism to prepare us for such gross inabilities to predict and control the behavior of animals with which we had been working for years.... [T]he diagnosis of theory failure does not depend on subtle statistical interpretations or on semantic legerdemain - the animal simply does not do what he has been conditioned to do.”

The Brelands did not overstate the problem, nor did they quantify it. They simply stated a fact: instinct existed, and sometimes it bubbled up and over-rode trained behaviors.

Clearly, every species had different instincts, and just as clearly, a great deal of animal training could be done without ever triggering overpowering instinct. Still, the Brelands noted,

“After 14 years of continuous conditioning and observation of thousands of animals, it is our reluctant conclusion that the behavior of any species cannot be adequately understood, predicted, or controlled without knowledge of its instinctive patterns, evolutionary history, and ecological niche.”

What does this have to do with dogs?

Quite a lot.

You see a small but vocal group of clicker trainers believe everything a dog does is learned by external rewards, and internal drives are nothing but "old school" fiction.

While the Brelands argued that a species could not be adequately controlled without “knowledge of its instinctive patterns, evolutionary history, and ecological niche," the most extreme militants in the world of clicker training now seek to minimize and disavow the very nature and history of dogs.

Dog packs? There are no such things, we are told.

Dominance? It does not exist in feral dogs or in wolves, and never mind the experts who disagree.

Prey drive? Not too much said about that!

Of course, instinctive behaviors and drives do not disappear simply because they are inconvenient.

As Keller and Marian Breland put it,

“[A]lthough it was easy to banish the Instinctivists from the science during the Behavioristic Revolution, it was not possible to banish instinct so easily.”

Of course, one must be careful to qualify the role of instinct.

Yes, dogs have instincts, but the history of dog breeding has largely been about reducing instinctive drives. As a consequence, most breeds have instinctive drives that are sufficiently attenuated that they are not much of an impediment to basic rewards-based training.

That said, not all dog breeds are alike. Not every dog is a blank slate, as the owner of any herding dog or game-bred terrier will tell you. Prey drive does not disappear because you want it to. Many problematic behaviors in dogs -- especially behaviors in hard-wired working dogs that are being raised as pets -- are self-reinforcing behaviors that express themselves without any external reinforcement at all.

Clicker training, the Brelands remind us, cannot solve everything.

Is rewards-based training the most important tool in any trainer’s box of tricks and methods?

Absolutely. There is not much debate there.

But the Brelands remind us that dogs do not come to the trainer as a tabula rasa, nor should we think of all dog breeds as being more or less the same, or that all responses are equally conditionable to all stimuli.

Dogs and other animals, it turns out, are a bit more complicated that white rats, and the real world is not a laboratory.

In the wild and on the farm, animals have managed to learn, all by themselves, since the Dawn of Time and long before clickers came on the scene.

How did they do that? Does the real world have as much to teach us as the lab? Keller and Marian Breland thought it did.

09/06/2024

Great post!!! Dogs have needs. They are not one dimensional. A wholistic approach will yield best results.

When me and a bunch of the worlds practical thought leaders in dog training sat down to discuss behaviour modification and ethics, one of the first things we agreed on was the checks that need to be put in place before we work with a dog.

These 7 things are things we discuss with our dog families before carrying out any interventions. They often need to be tweaked and various changes implemented prior to training or other interventions.

The trainers on the panel all had a wealth of experience; all came from different places with different backgrounds and used different methods and techniques but this was something we ALL did.

08/03/2024

Sonja’s Dog Training Book:

Dog ~
Want it - Don’t want it
Like it - Don’t like it
It works - It doesn’t work!
~The end

At the end of the day, it all comes down to this🤷‍♀️😊