Threshold: The Key to Home-Alone Training

Let's re-examine your dog's home-alone training through the lens of a single, crucial concept: the threshold. The threshold is the fine line between your dog having a success—building confidence and trust—and tipping into a fear episode. Pushing a dog over their threshold is not only unethical, it's also counterproductive, as it can be traumatising and make training more difficult in the long run. Our goal is to create a series of small, consistent successes that build your dog's confidence and enable them to learn new skills.

To help you with this process, I've created a short PDF called 'Light at the End of the Tunnel' that defines the terms we'll be using. You can download it for free [here]. I highly recommend you take a look to ensure we're always on the same page.

When we practice absence training, you'll need to become a keen observer of your dog's communication. Watch and record each training session, then review it afterwards. You can rate each repetition as ACED, OK, or STRUGGLED:

• ACED: The training step has become a complete non-event for your dog. They show no signs of concern or interest, behaving as though you were simply in another room. Only when your dog consistently aces a step should you move on to the next.

• OK: Your dog is working to process the situation, but they're not overwhelmed. You might see some subtle signs of unease, but they don't escalate. This is a great learning opportunity.

• STRUGGLED: This is over the threshold. Your dog's behaviour escalates into a fear response, such as barking, whining, or frantic pacing. You must avoid this at all costs.

If your dog ever struggles, immediately go back to a training step they can reliably ace. You must learn to recognise your dog's subtle signals of unease by carefully reviewing your training recordings. Remember, the goal is not to see how far you can get, but to ensure the quality of success in each training session. The important thing is not how long you are outside, but that your dog has a positive, successful experience every time.

Wishing you and your dog all the very best,

Victoria