Fenzi Dog Sports Academy - BH365: Thinking Patterns for Arousal, Reactivity and Acclimation

Course Details

Does your dog struggle in new settings or situations? Do they get worried and shut down, or become hypervigilant and reactive? Whether you are going into competition, to the vet, to a training class, to a public place or even a change in their own home environment, there are games to help your dog that all start out with simple classical conditioning.

Using visual and verbal cues that carry a positive Conditioned Emotional Response, we can help your dog by utilizing predictability and movement within these games. Considering active acclimation as another way to help our dogs, we can apply the use of verbal marker cues in a strategic pattern, the use of the Dopamine box, a ‘magic’ mat, or even the two-bowl game which all start with simple classical conditioning. We will then expand them to a higher level operant skill. Using a combination of patterns with more movement, some that are more calming, and one that is somewhere in between, we can influence your dogs behavior by tapping into the neurostrasmitter of Dopamine by creating anticipation of reinforcement simply be the initiation of the patterns/games. The patterns will help to utilize behavioral momentum to allow for persistence of behavior when there are changes in the environment or context.

Within this class, we will introduce multiple games that utilize visual cues and one that uses verbal cues to create a way to not only gauge your dogs emotional state, but to change it! Fluctuating between more calming games or more arousing games we can help modulate your dog’s emotional valence within a specific situation.

Teaching Approach:

A new lecture will be released approximately every other day. Most lectures build on the work from the previous lecture, although in the beginning there wil be some information gathering to allow me to make recommendations specific to your situation and problem. This is a new class and the syllabus is subject to be modified if I see it would benefit the class. There are five 'skills/patterns' that will be presented in the class and not everyone will teach all to fluency. I will help determine which patterns work best for you and your dog as we proceed through class. We will then use these patterns to help with your problem area.

Instructor: Karen Deeds, CDBC

Karen Deeds, is a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant through the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants (IAABC). She is the co-owner of Canine Connection in Ft. Worth, TX with her husband, Bob Deeds, a retired Federal K9 Handler on Texas Task Force I....(Click here for full bio and to view Karen's upcoming courses)

Syllabus

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WEEK ONE

Identifying Concerns
1. Over Arousal
  1. Active
    1. Barking
    2. Spinning
    3. Pacing
    4. Unable to Focus - Scanning
    5. Eating faster
  2. Passive
    1. Sniffing/Displacement
    2. Slow Movement
    3. Unable to Focus - head down/sniffng
    4. Not Eating
2. Reactivity
  1. Dogs
    1. Growl or Bark (Fight)
    2. Whine/Scream (Fidget)
    3. Cower or Retreat (Flee)
    4. Submissive Urination, Groveling (Fawn)
    5. Won't Move, Stillness (Freeze
  2. People
    1. Familiar in the Home
      1. Gender
      2. Age
      3. Severity
        
        Dunbar Scale 1-5
    2. Unfamiliar in the Home
      1. Gender
      2. Age
      3. Severty
        
        Dunbar Scale 1-5
    3. Outside the Home
      1. Vet
      2. Walking (on Leash)
      3. Off Leash
        
        Park
        
        Competition Ring
3. Distraction/Acclimation
  1. New Environment
  2. Vet Clinic
  3. Competition Venue
  4. Other Highly Arousing Situation
Previous Pattern Experience
1. Marker Cue Loop
  1. How Many Marker Cues
  2. Offered Eye Contact
2. Magic Mat
  1. As a "Go To' Target
  2. As a relaxation/passive process
3. Dopamine Box
  1. Type of Box
  2. Level of Duration
  3. Application of Commtment
  4. Toughness
4. Two-Bowl Game (Movement Puzzles)
  1. Fluent Movement
  2. Distance Away
  3. Distance Apart
  4. Added Obstacles
Conditioning Visuals & Verbals for Patterns
1. Marker Cues
  1. Eat Food From Hand
  2. Chase Food
  3. Multiple Treats on Floor
  4. Catch Treat *optional
  5. Deliver Food to t mouth (Slow Cookie)
  6. Create CER to Marker Cues
2. Magic Mat
  1. Seed Mat
  2. Dog on Leash
  3. Dog to Mat
  4. Handler sits
  5. Create CER to Mat
3. Dopamine Box
  1. Determina Appropriate Size of Box
  2. Desensitize Box if Necessary
  3. Feed in Box
  4. Create CER to box
4. Two-Bowls
  1. Feed dog in two bowls side/side
  2. Increase distance apart
  3. Create Fluency of Movement side/side
  4. Create CER to presence of Two Bowls

WEEK TWO

Generalize CER of Pattern/Game
1. Location
  1. Various Rooms
  2. Outdoors
2. Equipment
  1. On Leash
  2. Harness
  3. Personal Clothing
3. Orientation
  1. Standing
  2. Sitting
Individual Pattern "Next Steps -1"
1. Marker Cue Loop
  1. Create Hierarchy Based on need
    1. 'Favorite' (biggest emtional change)
    2. 'Functional' (greatest arousal change)
  2. Reduce Latency of Offered Eye contact
    1. Repeat Marker Cue until Fluent
2. Mat as a Target
  1. Ensure Dog offers to Move to Mat
  2. Add Release Cue
  3. Use Various Movement Marker Cues
3. Mat as a Settle
  1. Ensure Dog offers to Move to Mat
  2. Lure Dog Into Down
  3. Feed on Mat
  4. Lure into Hip Roll
  5. Add Release Cue
4. Dopamine Box
  1. Box cues dog to approach and look in box
    1. Reduce need for 'priming' box
  2. Add Release Cue
  3. Use Marker Cues to get head in/out behavior
5. Two-Bowl Game
  1. Add Center Object (close)
  2. Add Marker Cue
  3. Increase Distance around Object

WEEK THREE

Impulse Control s a Concept
1. Food/Toy in Hand
2. Food in Bowl on Ground
3. Toy on Ground
Duration as a Concept
1. Reverse Luring
  1. Eye Contact
  2. Chin Rest
  3. Nose Target
  4. Sit/Down
  5. Apply to Mat & Box
2. Delay Marker Cue
  1. Eye Contact
  2. Chin Rest
  3. Nose Target
  4. Sit/Down
  5. Apply to Mat & Box
3. Strategic Placement of Reinforcement (Mat & Box)
  1. On Mat
  2. To Mouth
  3. Bottom of Box
  4. Apply to Mat & Box

WEEK FOUR

Individual Pattern - "Next Steps - 2"
1. Marker Cue Loop
  1. Add Simple Positive Distraction
    1. Food Distraction
    2. Toys
    3. Familiar/Friendly People
    4. Familiar/Friendly Dogs
2. Mat as a Target
  1. Generalize on/off
    1. New Locations
    2. Approach from any direction
  2. Build duration on Target/Mat
    1. Release Cue
    2. Movement Marker Cue
  3. Handler Position
3. Mat as a Settle
  1. Generalize Move to & down on Mat
    1. Locaations
    2. Orientation
      1. Sitting
      2. Standing
  2. Build Duration
    1. Add Duration Marker Cue
      1. Feed on Mat
      2. Feed to Mouth (room service)
    2. Ensure Release on Cue
4. Dopamine Box
  1. Dog Offers head in Box Easily
  2. Build up to 1-2 seconds duration
  3. Generalize with duration in Box
5. Two-Bowl Game
  1. Add Start Ritual
  2. Move Center Object Further out
  3. Add Triangle of Cones/Object
    1. Create Depth
  4. Handler Moves Between Bowls
What Pattern/Game, When?
1. Analyzing your dog's Needs
  1. Arousal
  2. Valence
Combining Patterns
1. Arousing
2. Calming

WEEK FIVE

Applying Controll Distraction/Difficulty/Duratio/Distance with Advanced Skills
1. Marker Cues
  1. Novel Location
  2. Movements
  3. Sounds
  4. Specific Trigger
2. Mat (As a Target)
  1. Novel Location
  2. Reset to/from different directions
  3. Movement distraction
  4. Sounds
  5. Specific Trigger
3. Mat (As a Settle)
  1. Build Duration on Mat
  2. Novel Environment
  3. Add Distractions
    1. 1. Movements
      2. Sounds
      3. Specific Trigger
4. Dopamine Box
  1. Consider alternate type of Box
    1. Translucent
    2. Transparent
  2. Novel Location
  3. Add Distractions
    1. Movements
    2. Sounds
  4. Present Specific Trigger
    1. Level 1 - Feed to get head in box if necesary
      1. Forward Trace Conditioning
      2. Forward Delay Conditioning
    2. Level 2 - Present Trigger - Dog Offers head in box
      1. Forward Trace Conditioning
      2. Forward Delay Conditioning
5. Two-Bowl - Movement Puzzles
  1. Add Obstacles - outside of puzzle
    1. Over
    2. Under
    3. Through
    4. Between

WEEK SIX

Add Obstacles into Movement Puzzles
1. Over
2. Under
3. Through
4. Between
Repeat Advanced Skills with lower value reinforcement
1. Increases difficulty without changing other criteria
Apply to Real World
1. Reduce Skill Level
2. Increase Reinforcement Value
Combine Patterns to Influence Aroual and Valence

Prerequisites and Equipment

There are no prerequisites for this new class! You will want to have a mat, a foot target, a box big enough for the dog to stick their head in without being able to see out, two bowls, and an object such as a cone that your dog will go around preferably without stepping over it.

Sample Lecture

Week 1 - Lesson 3B

In this lecture we will create a positive association with the mat as a visual cues. For now, we just want the dog to realize that the presence of the mat leads to good things, and that is free food!

Type of Mat

I would suggest something that is easily portable, and I usually recommend a rubber-backed bathmat with looped fibers. Sometimes it can be beneficial for the food to get lost in between the loops so that the dog spends more time with their head down on the mat looking for food and this likely creates an even more salient association.

If you have previously trained a “go to” mat using a clicker and shaped or even lured the dog to get on the mat, marked it (clicker) and then tossed a treat off the mat or let the dog get off the mat to get the reinforcement, then you may want to choose a different mat or context in which to train this behavior. For now, we do NOT want this to be an ‘active’ behavior or to start off as an ‘operant’ behavior! However, that will be another pattern that we will teach as we progress with the mat. We will end up with two patterns, a more passive response (settle) as well as an active ‘go to’ target.

Type of Food

You can use your dogs normal kibble if they are a good eater. It is also OK if not beneficial for the food to somewhat crumble onto the mat.

Remove your dog from the room and place your mat close to a chair or couch where you will be sitting. Scatter about 10 – 15 yummy treats on the mat.

Seed the mat -

Put your dog on the leash and bring it into the room to the mat. As your dog discovers the treats, sit down. Keep the dog on leash by holding it or attaching it to the foot of the chair/couch. You can have a bait bag of back up food but hold a handful in your hand. Drop a few more treats on the mat as your dog continues to sniff and look for them on the mat. Continue to drop one treat every one or two seconds around the front paws on the mat. It is important to drop the treats on the mat and not give them directly to the dog. We want the dog to associate the food with the mat with focus down, not on you. Do this for a few minutes, then release the dog with your release word (“All done”, “Free dog”, “Ok”) and stand up and remove the dog from the area.

Bring your dog to the mat -

This dog is in a crate just outside the camera but can see the mat and watches me load the mat. This likely explains why he goes directly to it so quickly!

Repeat this process; seed the mat, bring the dog on a leash towards it, sit in the chair, and continue to drop treats on the mat. Once the dog recognizes the mat as a good place to be and moves to it readily when you approach it, begin to move it to different locations within the house. This is called generalization. It is important that your dog be able to learn to ‘settle’ in a variety of places at the beginning of the process as it will help as we progress.

Dog moves to mat easily -

Registration

Next session starts: October 1, 2025
Registration starts: September 22, 2025
Registration ends: October 15, 2025

Registration opens at 10:00am Pacific Time.

BH365 Subscriptions

	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Tuition	$ 260.00	$ 130.00	$ 65.00
Enrollment Limits	12	25	Unlimited
Access all course lectures and materials	✔	✔	✔
Access to discussion and homework forums	✔	✔	✔
Read all posted questions and answers	✔	✔	✔
Watch all posted videos	✔	✔	✔
Post general questions to Discussion forum	✔	✔	✖
Submit written assignments	✔	✖	✖
Post dog specific questions	✔	With video only	✖
Post videos	✔	Up to 2	✖
Receive instructor feedback on	Questions All videos	Questions All videos	✖

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BH365: Thinking Patterns for Arousal, Reactivity and Acclimation

Course Details

Teaching Approach:

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