Clicker training is a newly introduced method of training dogs. It is different from the standard dog training programs where food is used as an incentive and reward. This means that the dog was previously deprived of food during the period of training!
Clicker training sessions are brief and avoid punishment or negative reinforcement as far as possible. Each practice session lasts less than five minutes. Clicker training is programmed with the idea that a dog learns better in short sessions than in long tiresome ones.
Clicker is the name given to this training, since a clicker is used as a behavior marker when training. The click sound goes off when a command is obeyed and the dog is rewarded. The reward could be food, a ball, petting or anything else which you know your dog loves. You need to ensure that the canine's meal does not precede a clicker training session as it will overrule the food reward.
The crucial thing to remember about clicker training is that the click should be at the moment of and not after the desired act. The timing of the reward can take a back stage, but not the click. The power of the click is stronger in training than a spoken word, as it registers an association with a desired action and the reward to follow. The click also allows a dog to register the action it performed. Words have little significance to a dog because it gets related to the emotion expressed, but the sound of a click carries weight.
How do you train your dog with a click? If you want to train your dog to run to you when called, click the moment he makes a move in your direction rather than wait till he is actually running towards you. The reward should follow even if it has taken a few steps towards you. The click training method can also be used when you wish to cure your dog of a wrong habit like wetting the carpet, instead of reprimanding it. The click and reward would reinforce the correction in habit.
Once you or the trainer has trained the dog with the click and reward method, start the dog with a cue. This should be a signal of the hand or a word to imply the desired act. Again the click and reward should be used to reinforce the behavior. Suppose the behavior unfolds without the cue, the click should not be used and the reward not given. If the dog does not respond with the desired act then the place of training should be changed along with the reward. The cue may also have to be relearned in such a situation.
Never reprimand or berate your dog verbally or physically while clicker training him. This will only result in the loss of confidence of your dog in you and the clicker training process.
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