When the author joined a canine unit of the Dutch police in the early 1990s, dog training was based mostly on punishment, submission and coercion, as almost everywhere at that time. When he was asked to lead a newly founded special task force unit for covert operations, where dogs should be sent over large distances and out of the handler’s sight to spy out areas or buildings with cameras or to place objects, it quickly became clear that this kind of training would not be possible with traditional training methods. This was the start of the “Pavlov Project” – the introduction of operant conditioning principles into the world of police dog training.

In the years to follow, Simon Prins travelled the globe to learn from the best animal trainers and was strongly influenced by animal training legend Bob Bailey who should become his mentor and friend. In this book, he writes about his personal journey into the fascinating world of the science on behaviour, learning and training and invites the reader to take part in the experiences he made, the difficulties he encountered and the striking success in the end.

From the background of his own learning process, he describes the principles of classical and operant conditioning and learning by positive reinforcement in a clear and understandable way.

Learn why operant conditioning is far more than “throwing cookies”, why reinforcement schedules are important, why you need to collect data in training, how motivation and mindset of both dog and trainer will influence the outcome and what exceptional results can be achieved by good training that is based on science and a trusting relationship in equal parts.