Nothing In Life is Free
Nothing In Life is Free
Permission-Based Dog Training, Earned Reward, Clear consequences
"Nothing in Life is Free" (NILF) is a dog training method that focuses on teaching dogs that they must earn everything they receive, including food, affection, and privileges. This method is particularly effective for dogs with behavioral issues such as aggression, separation anxiety, or dominance-related problems.
The goal is to establish you as the leader.
You will most likely be implementing this training philosophy because your dog has a significant behavioral problem. As such it will be customized for your dog behavior rehab program.
To implement NILF, you will need to establish very clear and consistent communication between you and the dog. You must be consistent, fair, and confident in your leadership.
It’s a strict way of living to start. There will be several months of living this way to reset your dog’s expectations & understand their place in the family pack. We want them to have very clear expectations and consequences so they can begin to learn to trust this process and find a sense of clarity and consistency. As strict as it may be, it will help your dog with confidence and trust.
Everything becomes permission-based, and ideally, things are so clear to your dog that they know what their tasks are to earn those permissions and do them automatically. It becomes a new normal for everyone.
A few ways we being to implement NILF include:
Feeding Protocols:
This means that your dog will not be given food unless they perform a specific behavior, such as sitting or lying down. This teaches your dog that they must obey commands in order to receive food, which is a powerful motivator. The degree of this challenge will increase each week having your dog learn to truly wait for permission and to comply with obedience commands even when their expectation is time to eat.
Dog Obedience Skills
This includes commands such as sit, stay, come, and heel. These commands should be trained to the point where your dog will obey them no matter what distractions are present. Verbal communication should be honored on command without having to repeat yourself or have the dog try to negotiate out of the skill.
You will be taught basic obedience skills and how to achieve them on and off-leash
Permission-Based Exercises
Thresholds: NILF permission is expecting your dog to sit and wait for permission to exit their crate and exit any external door. This is to prevent your dog from rushing out the door and potentially getting into dangerous situations. It also teaches your dog that they must wait for your permission before going through certain areas of the home. If your dog does not comply with the command to sit/stay to exit any door, the door will not open & you will walk away until the next scheduling outing.
Leashes: When it’s time to leash up, you’ll call your dog to come and sit/say to leash up. If they get into gameplay the leash is hung up and you walk away.
Life has consequences. This may mean they do not get their walk or that potty break at that time. We have to be willing to walk away.
It only takes a few missed meals, potty breaks, or walks for the dog to start figuring things out and show up with better manners.
Duration Work
You will learn that duration work is really state of mind work and impulse-control. And your dog should comply with down-stay or place any where you ask for it for as long as you choose, under any level of distraction. This might include having your dog do a down-stay in the guest bath just because it’s 2:02 in the afternoon for 30 minutes without protest.
See Teaching Place and The Power of Duration Work
Earned Affection
Your dog will not receive affection or attention that isn’t earned through training — praise and play. Engagement activities with you, or the completion of some task or skill. Any demand for attention or affection will be met with a consequence - you move away.
Consequences for their demands for attention (jumping, barking, nudging,
Engagement Activities: we will teach you gameplay appropriate for your dog that requires your participation. This should be fun for your both and a release of energy for your dog along with stimulating their minds and natural instincts. But games have rules they will need to learn to follow.
See Exercise Your Dog & Embrace The Breed
Sleeping With the Pack Leader
Sleeping in bed with you ends today. For any dog demonstrating aggression and a general lack of respect for any members of the family, including other dogs, or guests, this privilege is not permitted. There is no higher privilege than sleeping with the pack leader. It may be earned back at a later time, but for now, they move to the bottom rung and sleep in their crates.
Access To Furniture
For the same reasons as sleeping with the Pack Leader, your dog is not to be on the furniture. This includes when you are not home. As such they should be crate trained.
Access To Roam The House
Initially, this is going to be restricted unless you are actively engaged in feeding, training, or playtime.
It begins with Sit On the Dog (aka The Long Down) but it may evolve into being tethered to YOU as you move through
the house or tethered to something as you exit the room or as part of safety protocols when you have your other dog present or visitors present. These will be part of impulse control exercises you will be guided to do. Don’t worry, they are temporary.
Resistance —
Implementing NILF is a new way of life for everyone. The first couple of weeks will be difficult. Your dog will challenge you and will resist changes associated with this process. You’ll need to stay calm and confident and work through the layers step by step. Using clear communication ~ clear yes (rewards) and clear no (consequences) will help your dog understand the new rules and develop the skills they need to begin yielding to your leadership and restoring balance in the family.
Find your patience. You will need it.