Doggy Mentor

Clicker training is a new way to train dogs. It’s used to train show dogs to do special tricks, but it can also be used to train your family Labrador retriever to sit or lie down. Clicker training works on the assumption that dogs want to learn to do what their humans want.

Dogs enjoy training. They like to have their “pack” around them. The only problem is that they don’t understand exactly what we want. By giving a click at just the right time, the trainer tells the dog, “What you did, right NOW, is exactly right,” and then gives a reward. The dog says, “Hey, that was fun!” and tries to get the human to respond in the same way again. It’s almost as if the dog and trainer train each other.

Clicker training works with almost entirely positive reinforcement (the negative reinforcements are more likely to startle the dog than cause physical pain). A dog who has had clicker training is happy and confident. Here are five tips for clicker training your dog.

1. Include the kids in the training. You don’t have to be strong enough to handle a leash with clicker training, because you don’t use a leash. All you have to have are clicker, treats, and time. You’ll want to supervise your small children, especially if the dog is big, but the clicker training will get the whole family on the same page with regard to expectations, words and rewards.
2. As you begin clicker training, click every time your dog moves toward what you want. The idea is that the dog learns what behavior you want and then learns the word for it. If the lesson is “sit,” you’ll click and reward any time the dog moves toward a sitting position. As time goes by, you’ll get pickier with your clicks, and the dog will keep playing the game for rewards.
3. Practice clicker training with your dog every day. Pick a behavior to concentrate on, and click and reward anything that approaches that behavior. Dogs are so social that we forget they don’t understand them. So the word “sit” doesn’t mean anything to them until we teach them to connect it to the action of putting their rear end on the floor.
4. Once the dog understands that “butt on floor” means click and treat and associates that behavior with the sound “sit,” then you can refine the behavior. You can use the clicker to say that a good sit gets a reward and a sloppy sit gets a “try again” (not punishment, just no reward). It’s a natural progression and ends with no need for the clicker at all, unless you’re trying to teach something new.
5. Make the clicker training a time for fun for you and the dog. Dogs love to spend time with you and will look at clicker training as an enjoyable game. With a cheery voice and happy bearing, you can persuade them to do astonishing tricks.

A clicker-trained dog expects good things from life. If your dog is confident and happy, he will love to learn to do what you want to teach.

Click here for more information about clicker training.

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