Col. Potter Training Tip: The eyes are the window to the soul

I hope you’ll excuse me for ranting today. I am befuddled, confounded, and just plain angry at people who use pain to force a dog to “behave.” I’m even angrier at the trainers and pet product manufacturers who tell people that pain is a legitimate tool in dog training. If you look into the eyes of dogs subjected to pain, you’ll see a dog who wants desperately to connect with you – if her look can meet your eyes at all.

I am a dog walker and, let me tell you, there are some untrained and rambunctious pups out there. And that’s okay. I can work with that. What I cannot work with is people who expect me to use a prong collar when walking their beautiful dog. I’ll meet my obligation to provide the walk I’ve agreed to, but I’ll not accept another assignment with that client – UNLESS the client is willing to forego the pain and will learn to build a positive relationship with their dog.

Last week, I walked into a client’s home and saw a prong collar hanging next to the leash, waiting for my walk. Since the client didn’t specifically direct me to use that collar, I decided to spend some time developing a positive relationship before going on our walk. That dog was so ready for a human connection!

I couldn't put this prong collar on the dog I was obligated to walk.

Making that connection doesn’t require fancy equipment or special experience, as trainer Pat Miller points out in her article, “It’s All in Your Dog’s Eyes: How to get your dog to look at you, and why it yields better training results,” in Whole Dog Journal.

“Sit on a chair with your dog in front of you, leashed if necessary, and wait. The instant he looks at you, or near you, click (or use your verbal marker) and feed a high-value treat,” Pat explains. “You’re reinforcing offered attention – teaching your dog that if he chooses to look at you, he can make you click.”

Sandy T. discovered the value of eye contact when she fostered and adopted cairn terrier Oscar.

“Oscar was reactive to any sounds outside – cars, trucks, bikes, lawn mowers, people talking, dog's barking – and walking him was a nightmare,” Sandy says. “He would lunge and bark at every car and, since there are no sidewalks where I walk my dogs, it was darn scary!”

“I spent a couple of weeks teaching him to look at me when I said ‘look here.’ Once he would reliably look me in the eye when I said it inside, I moved to the yard and worked with him in the yard, getting him to pay attention to me instead of the car or bike that just went by. We then moved to walking and I used the same concept. Within a month, I could walk him without any reactions to cars, trucks, dogs in yards barking at us, etc.”

“I am using the same protocol for my Monty now as he just cannot help himself, he has to react to the dogs in yards barking at us,” she says. “All 16 pounds of him wants to take on that pit bull mix barking at us through the fence! LOL. He is making progress but he is not very food-motivated, so I’m still trying to come up with something that will keep his attention on my eyes instead of the other dog.”

I’ve found that pups will understand the eye contact even without words. I let the dog see that I put a treat in both hands, and then I hold my arms up at my sides, level with my shoulders. The dog will look at the hands holding the treats, but will eventually give your eyes a quick glance. When she does that, I immediately mark the eye contact with “yes!” and give the dog one of the treats. Then the arms go up again. As we progress, the dog will eventually understand that she gets a treat when she looks in my eyes. And then, while the concept is still fresh in her mind, we’ll go for a walk and she’ll get a treat every time she turns her head to “check in” with me.

Encouraging this dog to look into my eyes, instead of using a prong collar, made for a much happier walk with lots of check-ins. 

The eye contact protocol isn’t for everyone, although it worked with my Westie pup Peaches.

Making contact with these darling eyes is pure joy!

I also made the eye connection with my collie boy Nemo, but he decided he liked to check in so much that I have to remind him to look forward during our walks! And collie girl Rosie, who was severely reactive, is still a little too hyper during the walk to look into my eyes or accept a treat; however, she will gladly take her treats at the end of the walk when she can relax and look into my eyes.

Miller points out that teaching eye contact has a fulfilling aspect beyond training. When a dog learns to look into our eyes, he has the ability to communicate with us.

“As behavior science continues to explore and acknowledge the cognitive capabilities of our canine companions, we are realizing that our dogs may possess ‘theory of mind,’” Miller explains.

“Theory of mind... is the ability to attribute mental states – beliefs, intents, desires, pretending, knowledge, etc. – to oneself and others, and to understand that others have beliefs, desires, intentions, and perspectives that are different from one’s own.”

There’s a lot we have yet to learn about our dogs’ cognitive abilities. But, in the meantime, we KNOW that our pups will benefit from a closer relationship and better communication with us. And it starts with the eyes.

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