Clearly, Chicagoan Brock Rumer’s recent triumph in Fetch! Pet Care’s “How Far Would You Go For Your Pet” online contest shows that he’ll not only go the extra (hundreds of) miles to Detroit to pick up his dog, but that he got a pretty special dog when he did. But how, I asked, did operant conditioning and a desire to have a “really great dog” lead to Brock and his new Boston terrier Bruce to dog skateboarding?
All kinds of animal (and human) cognition really interest Brock, who has read numerous books and publications by Karen Pryor. His day job, User Experience Director at Threadless, keeps him busy working on human cognition and response, but with Bruce, operant conditioning training become more of a “really fun thing to do.” Brock told me that tricks, per se, were not his goal—he started training Bruce to obey basic commands like “come” and “stay,” and safety concepts like waiting to cross the street.
The biggest challenges Brock has run across while training Bruce involve responding appropriately to very specific situations. These include home situations such as when guests visit, and office protocol such as training him to being a good (quiet or invisible) dog during a meeting. Many of these situations don't allow a trainer the luxury of breaking things down and training according to optimal theoretical methods: you just need to get the dog to stop acting nutty during a meeting, or jumping on your guests, or otherwise demanding attention through annoying behavior.
Brock inadvertently made Bruce into somewhat of a prima donna. Having had the luxury of taking a month off work at the end of 2009 for a sort of mini-sabbatical, Brock had lots of time with Bruce as they first got to know each other. But by partway through that month, Bruce had become a bit of a brat when friends came over for dinner: Bruce had never not been the center of attention at his new home.
Even when Brock had previously invited those same friends over to help with Bruce's training, it was all about the dog. As Brock laments, “One of the paradoxes of the domestic canine is that they can learn amazingly fast, but it takes a loooong time to change” when your dog has learned an unwanted behavior.
At home, Brock now concentrates on ignoring Bruce when the dog picks inappropriate ways to demand attention, to teach the lesson that being a punk doesn't get rewards. At work, training includes Bruce staying on his bed as Brock goes farther away for longer increments of time. Brock knows that a boundlessly energetic adolescent terrier like Bruce needs mental exercise as much as physical.
Which leads us back to the skateboarding. Brock had seen clips of skateboarding dogs online and on TV, as have many of us. Because Brock also knew his colleagues occasionally ride a longboard around the Threadless offices, Brock decided to borrow the board and see if Bruce would try it.
The first day (a Thursday), Brock just had Bruce put his front feet on the board. The following Tuesday (the next time the dog came to work with Brock), Bruce learned rapidly. After just a few 15-min. training sessions, the dog understood the idea. By the end of the day, Bruce was consistently mounting and riding the skateboard. Since then, Bruce has learned to mount and ride, then push with one foot and ride some more. Brock and his friends think it's hilarious. Someday soon, Brock says, “I've really got to get it on video.” Let us know when you do, Brock!
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