You may have heard of Bootleg as it refers to unregulated booze but I bet you didn’t know bootleg can also be a cause for major challenge when it comes to dog training, and changing the behavior of really any living species.

I am referring to Bootleg Reinforcement.  Here is a scientific definition: With bootleg reinforcement access to the specified reward or to other equally reinforcing items or events without meeting the response requirements of the contingency occurs. (rom Applied Behavior Analysis by John O Cooper)

To clarify, the behavior that you are trying to change (the unwanted behavior) is getting reinforced by something else in the environment – whether that be another person, animal, sensory stimulation, activity or proximity – NOT you. So, even though you are reinforcing your pet for doing the behavior you want to see, he is also getting paid for doing what you do not want.

This is a huge reason why behavior change plans may not be successful. Bootleg reinforcement can strengthen those unwanted behaviors and make them more resistant to going away (known as extinction). It can also decrease your pet’s motivation to do the behaviors you are trying to teach because reinforcement is readily available for him to do other behaviors instead.

This may become clearer by looking at some examples.

On a recent Zoom appointment, it came time for me to watch my new client show me how she was currently training her dog. She was standing in her hallway, treats cut up and in her hand. She called for her dog; however, there was no dog that appeared on the screen. “I don’t think he will come because my dad is making macaroni and cheese in the kitchen,” she told me. (And her dad usually gives her dog scraps during cooking.)  Although she also had treats and was ready to give them to her dog when he came and sat, her dad had something much higher value.  Yep, bootleg reinforcement at work!  Addressing this would take a number of different strategies to both control access to those bootleg reinforcers while also getting lots and lots of practice of teaching her dog to come with equally great reinforcers in different contexts and environments; and never practicing those lessons when she knew the environment would make it too difficult for her dog to do what she is asking.

I have spent a lot of time teaching Dawson to walk on a loose leash. I do allow him to sniff and have taught him to go with me when I say either ‘let’s go’ or ‘this way’. However, there are times when we are walking on a sidewalk and I want him to just walk. He will walk perfectly until suddenly he gets a scent of something and dashes for the spot in a split second. That opportunity to smell whatever is so amazing to him is probably what has taught him to run at the speed of light, not saunter over there, when the temptation is so great. Honestly, it has been ok with me so I have let it go. Much of the time – so long as I am aware of the surroundings (where there may be other dogs on leashes in close proximity), he and I enjoy our walks together. But my point is that, that sniffing moment is a bootleg reinforcement. It would make teaching him to walk on a loose leash with no interruption through an area laced with incredible smells difficult, and would require me to have a rock-solid prevention plan in place to keep him from getting to that reinforcement while teaching him what I want him to do.  In the training, I could teach (and have taught) Dawson that what he really wants (the opportunity to sniff) is one of the reinforcers for walking on a loose leash. An antecedent arrangement I often do for those days when I want to be able to walk with less interruptions is that I choose a location without sidewalks. There are pockets in adjoining neighborhoods with wide streets where Dawson and I can walk a little further from the grass. When I want to give him sniffing opportunities I walk him close to spots….while the leash is loose.

This is why it is so difficult to stop dogs from barking at delivery people or other passing sights outside. Each time that dog barks at that person or dog, guess what happens? The trigger goes away. The dog is bootleg reinforced. An effective behavior modification plan for that would mean coming up with a plan to prevent the dog from having an opportunity to react to the stimulus (antecedent arrangement) which can include strategies such as window clings, having mail dropped off down the driveway, playing white noise to hide the sound, or blocking off the view out the window, until the times that you are prepared to do the training. In the training, you can teach your dog what you would like for your dog to do instead. Some examples include going to get a toy or running to you. Still, there will likely be occasions where your prevention plan may fail and your dog reacts…and the trigger goes away. Now that unwanted behavior is put on an intermittent schedule of reinforcement (see this post to learn more) and that builds the strongest of behaviors. It creates a gambler in your dog. In my house I have window clings and when Dawson does bark, I can call him and he will come running from where ever he happens to be. That is what works for us.

It could be that you are trying to teach your dog to lay down for a duration amidst the distraction of your other dog doing an activity. All is going well until that other dog does something when you are not prepared (maybe gives your stationary dog a certain look or does a play bow), and the two dogs take off playing. Now, in order to work on this, you may need to not only focus on one dog but both dogs since it was the behavior of the active dog that set the stage for the stationary dog to take off. And they were both bootleg reinforced for that. Since what they want is the opportunity to play with each other, make the opportunity for play breaks a reinforcer for the stationary dog to hold his stay and your working dog to focus on your activity.

The culprit behind strong counter surfing behaviors is bootleg reinforcement. You may spend a lot of time and energy teaching your dog to lay on his bed or play with his toy rather than doing attention seeking behaviors when you are cooking. You may also have taught your dog that ‘leaving it’ means stay away and you will get something of high value in return. However, if, in rare circumstances you forget and leave the loaf of bread or thawing meat out on the counter when you are in another part of the house and your dog takes that chance to grab it…and is successful, then your dog has just received some pretty mighty bootleg reinforcement.  By the way, being many lasting problem behaviors is a thin intermittent schedule of reinforcement.

As you can see, bootleg reinforcement can make solving behavior problems tricky. It can definitely create a puzzle to figure out what in the environment needs to change to prevent practice of that unwanted behavior and prevent that behavior from getting inappropriately reinforced should it happen. That behavior plan should also include making sure your dogs’ needs are being met (physically, mentally, socially). When you can, instead of depriving your dog of that competing reinforcer, use it to teach your dog the contingency that IF he does THIS, THEN he gets the competing reinforcer.

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