In a nutshell, clicker training is a positive reinforcement training method - rewarding those behaviors which you like rather than punishing those which you dislike. The moment the dog offers a behaviour/trick you like, quickly single-click and give the dog a treat. You train the dog to associate the click sound with the meaning of "good boy, I'm giving you a treat!"
A clicker is a plastic box with a metal plate inside, which makes click sound when pressed. The click sound marks the precise moment when the dog carries out a behavior that you like. This timing is essential when you teach the dog a new behaviour.
Clicker avoids two potential issues in the regular training:
1. When we praise the dog, we could be using a different tone depending on our mood - we may not even be aware of it. Dogs are extremely sensitive to tone and body language. The main advantage of clicker is its consistent sound.
2. The other major problem with the regular training is timing. By the time we praise the dog; the dog could have stopped behaviour and could have already done something else. Dogs would not be able to determine which of their behaviors was rewarded. So, it could take longer to train a new behaviour.
How to Click Train Your Dog?
First, you'll need a clicker and some good treats. Most dogs find small pieces of cheese or cut jerky, hot dog or sausages irresistible. :-)
Find a good location for training: alway start the new trick's training with minimal of distractions - best to do it at home without any excitment and distraction around.
At the begining, you need to teach the meaning of clicker to the dog. Stand in front of the dog, click and give the treat. Spend some time doing click and a treat without any tricks. The dog soon would know that a click means a treat is coming. You'd see his ears picks up the click sound and his behavior would show as he starts expecting the treat following the click.
Then, watch your dog. As soon as he offers a behaviour/trick you want, click and treat! Most dogs picks up the new behaviour quickly with click training. If he repeatedly offer the same behaviour/trick, then you can add a commend right before he does it. And, of course, you click and treat him once he does it. Gradually, you can click, treat and say "Good Boy!" If you want, you can remove click and treat when he's good with the trick.
Basic Clicker Training Rules:
1. Always offer treat after you click. If you clicked by accident, you should still give a treat. You have to instill complete faith in the dog that “click means treat” routine. By the way, don’t allow the kids to touch your clicker. It's not a toy.
2. Click once. Don't double-click! ;-) Practice quick single-click!
3. Keep your training sessions short, around five minutes. It has to be fun for both!
Try this game with your human friend:
While your dog is not around you, practice quick single-click and treat with your friend.
e.g. (No talking) Click when your friend blinks her eyes and give a piece of Cheerio cereal. Try it - it's not as easy as you think! It's a great way to practice click and treat before you start click training with your dog!
