Muscle memory, what is it? Why do dogs need it? How do we achieve it? People with dogs all have one thing in common. They love their pets and they want to keep their fur babies safe. People spend thousands of dollars a year on their pets, trying to give them the best life they can, keep their pets safe, and have lifelong companions. Dogs are social creatures, they crave social interaction whether that’s with people or other dogs, or even other animals! In doing so their wants and needs may not always align with their human wants and needs. Whether your dog’s breed is a high-energy dog or a cute couch potato, your dog needs to have their needs met and obedience commands help owners accomplish that. A tired dog is a happy dog.
Every year people get their new puppy and think that a few short weeks at a box store training program will give them all the tools they need to have a well-mannered dog. Or that their 6-month-old puppy can be as mature and responsible as a 4- or 5-year-old dog. For those lucky enough to have a low-drive dog where 6 to 18 weeks of classes will do that for you congratulations you are very lucky! For most of us, dogs need more repetition in their day to achieve an obedience level that gets them to go out with their owner on fun adventures.
If you have ever broken down a basic training program you have your basic obedience commands; recall, sit, down, stand, place, and heel then your fun commands and manners. It takes 6 to 8 weeks to learn the fundamentals of those commands in a one-hour-a-week class. Yes, you can make lots of progress in that amount of time! However, I get so many clients bringing me their dogs who failed out-of-box store classes because of the lack of repetition. This is in no way the fault of the owner. Especially when most first-time puppy owners get their training information from these box store places where employees tend to be young animal lovers who lack experience or have only worked with certain types of dogs before. Like repetition, knowledge is vital, what a lot of dog trainers fail to get across to their clients is the importance of repetition and not just repetition but the quality of repetition.
If you’ve ever wondered why your dog can sit, down, and recall at home like a pro but then goes to the park and acts like they’ve never heard those words before or have selective hearing is because of the quality of repetitions.
Dogs do not generalize. They have no concept of commands in a new environment, endless taught all over again. That’s why when you finally see your trainer the next week and complain that they are so good in class and good at home but then they act a fool out in public or when company comes over. If that has ever been you, don’t feel bad, there is hope and a very easy answer to your problem. The answer lies in generalizing repetition. Imagine a mother going to a store, her children all grown up and out of the house. A young child is lost and calls out to the store for their mom. You reading the nutrition facts on the back of a can of soup, completely oblivious to the nearby child, hears the word mom and instantly turns. No hesitation, no thought, you simply perform the task. Until you see the child in question and realize you came here alone and that is not your child. Many people ask why this is relevant and the key to an obedient dog lies in the knowledge of a mother forced to be forever known as mom.
The answer is repeating all the commands your dog knows in every condition imaginable. Since dogs don’t generalize they need to practice, practice, and practice to make progress. Therefore if your dog knows sit in your kitchen and the training area that does not mean they know how to sit on a park bench or near some kids screaming about Legos. If your dog can hold a down stay or place for 2 hours in your home that does not mean they can hold it when you are out to dinner and the Frenchie next to you is groveling over not getting any snacks.
Muscle memory is what makes a mom unable to ever be just her given name after children. It is so ingrained in her brain after thousands of repetitions in every circumstance for her to just be Jane again. Having someone call you mom in the shower, while on a phone call, at the park, in the mall, while driving, in a business meeting, over and over again rain or shine, your muscles just develop a memory that mom equals your attention. Good or bad you have to turn and see what’s going on. Even when you want to avoid the children they will just find you or make someone else find you for them! Rendering ignoring “the command” not effective.
The same rules apply to dogs. If you teach them sit in the bathroom, in the back yard on the grass, and in the front yard on the cobblestone, rain or shine, under bright lights, or during the festivities of holidays. Your dog will learn that sit means sit anywhere not just in class or in your kitchen where your dog’s food bowl is placed. By practicing every command in new places under new conditions you can teach your dog the command to the point it becomes muscle memory. When your dog achieves mastery of a command there becomes no other option but to perform the task, it’s so ingrained in their subconscious they have no other option, like the mom in the grocery store.
Anywhere your dog does not listen to you or struggles to hold a command is where they need you to take a few steps back and “re-teach” them until they can do it without fail. This is how you will take your dog from listening 50% of the time, to a well-trained dog that is obedient in all situations. A dog with muscle memory can reliably perform commands that will keep them safe and allow you to enjoy their company on lots of adventures.
Great post.