Acquisition (acquiring) The first phase of learning where the dog acquires knowledge of a particular behavior. Reflexive (automatic) The second phase of learning where the dog essentially becomes “fluent” in the new behavior. In this phase it is as if the behavior becomes a fluid response – behaviors become rhythmic and automatic. Generalization (application) In this third phase of learning, the dog learns that behaviors are relevant in a wide variety of situations. Maintenance (always) The dog learns to incorporate behavior into its permanent behavior vocabulary in this fourth and final stage of learning.