clicker training

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5vaPjXkTr4

Tulip was rescued about one week ago. She has already been practicing hand targeting and has now begun to grasp the cue for the behavior “lie down.” One thing you should remember with training is that it takes consistency and repetition.

Tulip learned to lie down with a cue in the kitchen, but that didn’t mean that she could do it automatically on the porch. Cues must be practiced in different locations-preferably beginning with a quiet spot without distractions. Then, slowly, you will want to practice behaviors in new places and eventually while adding distractions-again starting from minor and moving to bigger things that might catch your dog’s eye/nose.

You should practice all around your area and in as many locations (indoor and outside) as possible. You should also gradually add new distracting elements to your environment and repeat short practice sessions often. When it comes to your dog listening to the cue that you give for “sit” instead of chasing a squirrel or a chicken (in our case) if you have practiced many places and with many things going on and many, many times, you should have built up a good “bank” of reinforcements that will help your dog to make the correct decision.

Often when folks hear the words, “positive reinforcement” they think of folks carrying around a plastic bag of cut up hotdogs (Ok…I DO do this). As Pat  Miller said, “I prefer to have a cookie in my pocket than a chain around the neck of my dog.”

Positive reinforcement can be anything that your animal will work for. This means that reinforcing or rewarding the dog can be in the form of praise, play, food, toys, or anything else that your dog considers worth working for.

It has been demonstrated that the most effective way to train a dog is to reward good behavior. Furthermore, it has been shown that rewarding good behavior will increase the likelihood of that behavior being repeated.

“Positive training helps to establish and maintain a connection that increases trust and therefore creates a stronger bond between dog and owner because if your dog feels good about you, he will be a happier, more confident and better-behaved dog.”-Victoria Stilwell

Remember that positive training relies on consistency and repetition, so be patient and you will see results.

If you need help getting started… contact PAW Positive Animal Welfare today!

The custom PAW box of clickers has arrived! If you are participating in a class or if you hire me as a private trainer you will receive a clicker (and instructions on how to properly use it).

Clicker training leads to better human-animal relationships. Clickers offer a language for communicating more precisely and clearly. Clickers are a marker which means that a positive reward is to follow. Clickers mean good things are happening.

Let’s get clicking already!