Dog Clicker Training
Dog clicker training involves using a tiny
plastic box held in the palm of your hand. In that small
plastic box is a small thin metal piece that when you push
it quickly, it makes a very distinctive "click."
This clipping sound has been used to train all sorts of
animals, from large elephants, to even small rodents. Now you
can use this technology to train your dogs and cats as
well.
How Does Dog Clicker Training Work?
Dog clicker training works because it essentially creates a
language between you and your dog. First of all, you have to
train the dog to know that each time you make a click, your dog
gets a treat.
Once your dog knows that a click is followed by a treat, you
can use a click as a powerful reward whenever your dog does
something right.
For example if you want to teach your dog to sit, you'll
simply click the device whenever your dog's butt hits the
floor. Through repetition and your dog easily learns this new
sitting technique.
The Best Thing about Clicker Training
The great thing about clicker training is it always emits
the same pitch and tone of sound. That is a huge advantage over
just using voice commands which can change all the time.
In order to get your dog to perform the desired behavior,
you first have to get your dog to do this behavior before you
can reward them. There are three ways that this is commonly
done in clicker training. These are called catching, shaping,
and luring.
Catching
Catching means that you caught your pet in the act of doing
what you wanted. This could be sitting, or rolling over.
Shaping
With shaping you slowly build this new behavior by training
your dog to do smaller steps towards performing a larger
behavior. This could be breaking down something like retrieving
a ball and putting it in a certain spot. In order to shape this
behavior simply break down this chain of behaviors one at a
time.
Luring
With luring you basically use a piece of food or treat in
order to get your dog into the desired position. For example if
you want your dog to sit, just simply hold the treat above your
dog's head and move it slowly towards your dog's tail.
Because your dog is forced to look up, it is very natural
for them to sit down at this point.
Final Tips
>Whenever you teach a new trick, make
sure you practice in several different places so that your dog
can do it anywhere.
>When it comes to dog clicker training,
you have to be careful not to give too many treats. Once your
dog learns how to do the desired behavior, start cutting back
on the number of treats given.
>Finally, you should only train if you
are in a good mood. If you're not in a positive mood and don't
have a lot of patience, training your dog should be the last
thing that you should do.
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