Clicker Training Archives - Page 3 of 46

Pay Attention to THIS to Teach Your Dog Faster & Easier

August 5, 2015

There’s a little secret that dog trainers know and use that only a few dog owners take advantage of.

It’s free, it’s easy, and it’s dead simple. This one thing can mean the difference between years of frustration and years of enjoyment with your dog. It requires no special knowledge, no advanced training, no equipment. It’s more powerful than any correction, “no,” or discipline.

It’s the power of noticing what your dog does right and reinforcing it in the moment.

People ask me how I teach my dogs to understand “No.” I disappoint every one of them when I answer that my dogs don’t know that word. “But how do you teach them what you want them to do without that word!?” they wonder. Easy: pay attention to my dogs when they do stuff I like. Take two seconds to praise them, play with them, or otherwise provide something they love when they’re doing the stuff I like.

The power of “yes” will beat 100 “no’s.”

Why notice the good stuff?

Dogs (and people) do what works. If chewing on the couch feels good to the dog, he’s not likely to quit chewing on the couch. Most people jump right into the “No” zone, skipping over the “yes.” Behavior is governed by rules, thankfully. There are five rules, but two of those rules apply specifically to this situation.

Behavior that is reinforced will happen more often.
Behavior that isn’t reinforced will likely go away.

Let’s take the couch chewing dog example a little further. If the dog is chewing on the couch, a clicker trainer is likely to find an appropriate chewable object (stuffed toy, rope toy, etc.) for the dog to chew on, redirect the sofa-chewing dog to the preferred object and then praise the heck out of the dog for putting his mouth on the dog toy. And we’ll make sure we notice and reward the dog every time he has a toy in his mouth. Because after all, the toy is what we want the dog to put in his mouth, not the sofa. And we’ll also be pretty darn sure to supervise the dog so he doesn’t get the opportunity to chew on the sofa when we’re not around.

We’re practically guaranteeing that the dog will choose the toy to chew on because we’ve paid so much attention to him every time he’s had the toy in his mouth. We can’t necessarily ignore the dog for couch chewing because that probably feels just as good to the dog as chewing on the toy. Because we can’t ignore it, we’ll do something a little different – we’ll distract and redirect the dog to the appropriate object, the toy. And we’ll also be sure that if we’re spending too much time distracting and redirecting, we’ll set some barriers up so the dog can’t get to the couch to chew on it until after we’ve gotten lots and lots of repetitions of praise and attention for chewing on the toys.

We aren’t stingy.

Dog trainers are generous with praise, play, and fun. It’s free! Give it away frequently! When raising puppies for service work, I start giving the puppy feedback right away about what things gets him attention and what things aren’t worth doing.

We look for the things that the puppy is doing that we really like. It’s much more fun to praise your dog than scold him, don’t you think? By paying attention to everything your dog does that you like, you’re setting the stage for a really fun life together, while making your job as teacher super easy and quick.

Here are some of the things dog trainers notice – and reinforce – that sometimes pet owners don’t even think about.

When the dog has all four feet on the floor, he gets lots of fun attention – I’ll pet him, play with him, and praise him.
When the dog picks up an appropriate toy, I’ll run over to play with him.
When the dog goes to the door to go outside, I’ll praise him and quickly take him outside so he can go to the bathroom.
When the dog looks at me, I will praise him, pet him.

If your dog is older, don’t worry – this works with any dog, no matter the age! It may take some retraining on your part to notice the good, but once you practice it for a week or two, you’ll want to do it because it feels so good!

The challenge.

For the next week, start to notice the things your dog does that are good (really, anything that isn’t bad is worth noticing). Praise your dog, pet your dog, play with your dog – do whatever your dog really likes so you can convey to your dog that he’s getting those good things because of what he did. The cause-effect part is important here: the dog needs to know that his actions produced the good stuff.

After the first week, if you haven’t already, start to drop out the corrections. See if you can reduce the “no,” “eh-eh,” “knock it off,” etc. Instead, if your dog is getting ready to misbehave, redirect him (“Fido, come over here” in a happy voice), get him involved in something appropriate, and praise him (or play, or give a treat, etc.) for following your lead.

Stubborn Dog: Won’t Listen Unless There’s Food

June 16, 2015

What’s the difference between a bribe and a reward?

A bribe comes before the behavior. “Hey, kid. I’ll give you $5 to eat your vegetables.”

A reward (technically a reinforcer) comes after the behavior. “Because you ate all your vegetables, here’s $5.”

My point isn’t about paying a kid to eat his vegetables, so let’d not get sidetracked there. My point is that if you teach your dog by waving food in front of his face to get him to do something for you, you can’t say the dog is stubborn because he won’t do what you ask when you don’t have food. That right there is my biggest problem with bribes. I have lots of other problems with bribes, but we’ll save those for a rainy day.

I teach with food. But I do not use bribes.

I teach all my dogs and all my students (and their dogs) that food is available only after the click. We don’t have food in our hands, we don’t show it to them. We are food-less until the dog does something clickable. In this way, we’re teaching dogs to work for the click which leads to the food. The dog isn’t focused on the food, but rather on getting to the click which gives the dog access to the food.

The longer you use food to get the dog to do the behavior, the more the food itself becomes part of the whole picture for the dog. Change any of the pieces of the picture (remove the food, change positions, whatever), and the dog really doesn’t understand what you’re asking. From the dog’s perspective, you’re asking wrong!

If you want to use food to jumpstart your dog’s learning, here’s my plan. Follow this plan and you will teach your dog to work for the click, not for the food.

You can use food in your hand three times to jumpstart the behavior — clicking and treating for each of the three correct responses.
On repetition #4 (and subsequent reps), pretend you have food in what is really your empty hand. Click and then get the treat when the dog gets it right.
If the dog doesn’t do the behavior, do not get food! Dogs are smart: if you teach the dog that food will come out if they just hesitate a bit, he’ll start to hesitate just so you’ll pull the food out of your pocket and put it in his face. If you pull the food out, you’re guaranteeing the dog will only do the behavior if you have food. You’re teaching him that you need food in your hand before he does the behavior.

In real life, ask your dog to do something for you before you’re going to do something he likes or wants. For example, if your dog loves walks, ask for a sit (or down, or touch, or whatever) before you clip on the leash. As soon as he does what you asked, clip the leash on and take your dog outside. Doing this throughout the day will help your dog understand that food isn’t necessary in order for him to do behaviors — but that cooperation always leads to good things.

Dog Nail Trims: Part 4 – Get Your Dog Used to the Dremel Grinder

March 5, 2015

Do you love the idea of grinding your dog’s nails, but worry that he’ll hate the grinder?

As long as you introduce the grinder slowly and associate the noise with really good food, you’re likely to have a dog that wants to see and hear the grinder! If your dog already has a bad association with the nail clippers, using a grinding tool might help your dog move forward more quickly with nail trimming. Why? If your dog has no experience with the grinder, you have the chance to make a WOWZA first impression! I use the Dremel grinding tool for my dogs, so grinder = Dremel in this article.

This is the fourth article in a series. If you haven’t the first three yet, it’s a good idea to start with Get to Know Your Dog’s Nails, Five Mistakes When Trimming Dog Nails, and Handling Your Dog’s Paws.

Dog, meet Dremel. Dremel, meet Dog.

So here’s how easy it is to introduce your dog to the Dremel tool. You must have delicious food. People food. This won’t work if you don’t use the best food you’ve got, period, end of story. Think: canned cat food, salmon, pepperoni, steak, grilled chicken, cream cheese. It’s got to be something to make the dog go “Gimme more, gimme more!” For the video, I used cat treats from a company called FreshPet. Their treats are in the refrigerated section of your pet supply store (I got mine in WalMart).

You’re now armed with food so delicious you’re drooling, right? Good. The next step is to turn the Dremel on. As soon as you turn the Dremel on, begin feeding your dog the yummy goodies one at a time. Feed your dog for about 3-5 seconds, then turn the Dremel off. When the Dremel turns off, the food goes away. No Dremel = no food. Continue this pairing (Dremel = food, no Dremel = no food) several times until your dog looks at you happily when he hears the Dremel turn on.

Things to Remember

Use the best food you’ve got. Now’s the time to be generous, not stingy.
Be sure the dog doesn’t touch the running Dremel! (In the video, Tango wanted to sniff the Dremel when it was turned off. I wouldn’t have let him do that if the Dremel was spinning.)
Be careful! The Dremel will put holes in your clothes (and you) if you let the spinning barrel touch you.

Troubleshooting

If your dog is noise sensitive, have a helper in another room turn the Dremel on and off while you feed your dog delicious goodies. As the dog gets more comfortable with the noise, your helper can move a bit closer for the next round of training. Gradually move closer at the dog’s pace so the dog and the Dremel are in the same location.
If your dog isn’t happy about having his paw held, watch our video that shows you how to get your dog to tolerate paw handling.
The dog should have the choice and ability to leave whenever he’d like.
Go at your dog’s pace and stop before he wants you to.

Next up, how to grind your dog’s nails with the Dremel.

Train Your Dog Without a Clicker

February 19, 2015

I hear it a lot: “Do I HAVE to use the clicker?”

While I highly suggest using the clicker, nothing says it’s a requirement to teach your dog. However, what makes the clicker a useful tool is that it:

sounds the same every time
carries no emotion — every click is the same
doesn’t need “translation”
is unique — doesn’t sound like anything else in the environment

The clicker is definitely my tool of choice, but there are times when it’s not convenient to carry the clicker. Or, what if you find yourself without the clicker (or don’t want to be burdened by carrying it with you)?

Easy peasy: Use “YIP!” instead.

What is it?

Yip is a nonsense word that I say in a high-pitched, enthusiastic voice that stands in place of the clicker. It fulfills the same criteria listed above for the clicker, so I think it’s a great stand-in for the click.

How do you use it?

Use it just like you would use the clicker. Both the clicker and the yip are called “markers.” That means they mark the exact moment the dog is doing what you want and it also means the dog earned a goodie. To teach your dog that yip = treat, simply pair the yip with the appearance of the treat. Say yip and then reach to give your dog a treat. Repeat about te
n times and your dog will understand the meaning (and value) of yip.

When do you use it?

Use it whenever you want to tell your dog he’s done something right and can expect payment! When I’m training service dogs, they sometimes accompany me to public places like the library, a restaurant, or the movies. I’d be the villain if I clicked my way through a dinner or a movie, so I leave the clicker (but not the treats!) at home. I can modulate the volume of yip so I’m not annoying fellow movie goers with the essential training the service dogs need.

You might use yip in place of the clicker when your hands are full — maybe when you’re working on trimming nails or another grooming task that takes two hands. Or maybe when you’re walking two dogs at the same time. Or, not that this would happen to you, but maybe you forgot your clicker at home (or like me: just can’t find it!). The yip stands in whenever you don’t (or can’t) have your clicker on you.

Rules

The rules are the same no matter which marker you use:

If you yip, you must treat.
Yip only for stuff you want your dog to do more of (in other words, don’t yip to get your dog’s attention or get him to stop doing something)
Yip first, then treat.

Talk back! What’s your marker to use in place of the click?

Charlatans, Science, and Dog Training

February 11, 2015

Science is basically an inoculation against charlatans. — Neil deGrasse Tyson

I’ve been a student of the sciences for over twenty years. And for almost every one of those years, I’ve engaged in arguments about the best way to train a dog. I argued passionately. I know what science says about how we (all things with a brain) learn and I fervently want people to understand that force isn’t needed when teaching dogs. Oh, the hours I’ve wasted!

I’ve railed against charlatans who’ve coined phrases and developed “systems” based on nothing. I’ve been in the trenches fixing up the dogs who’ve been ruined by the shallow promises of frauds. I’ve spent too much time trying to “engage the enemy” which actually took time away from those people who already understood the science and who wanted to learn more.

Karen Pryor, a behavioral biologist, a pioneering dolphin trainer, and an authority on applied operant conditioning — and who wrote the unofficial “bible” of operant conditioning dog training, Don’t Shoot the Dog, was asked: “What do you say to those who think training with corrections is faster?” Her answer was simple, succinct, and fabulous: “Bye!” Read a detailed account of the conversation and some in-depth insights into Karen’s answer.

While listening to Neil deGrasse Tyson’s podcast, StarTalk, I heard him say:

“Science is true whether you believe it or not. We [the scientists] just move on.”

Those quotes pretty much sum up my outlook.

“Humans aren’t as good as we should be in our capacity to empathize with feelings and thoughts of others, be they humans or other animals on Earth.” — Neil deGrasse Tyson

I train with positive reinforcement because science says it’s efficient and effective. I also train with positive reinforcement because I empathize with the feelings and thoughts of the dogs with whom I work. Hearing both of these influential scientists saying pretty much the same thing has led me to my inevitable epiphany: Stop arguing! Stop. Stop. Stop.

I know I can get the job done with positive reinforcement training.

Pretty philosophical stuff for a dog trainer, yeah, I know. I’m excited about what I do. I work with people and their dogs because I know I can help both ends of the leash. And I know I can do it without force. I’m tired of arguing about the “toolbox” and how some things work with one dog but not another. In the words of NdGT, starting today I’m leaving the arguments behind — there’s no time for arguing when there’s so much science to read! Get on the force-free bandwagon if you choose, we’re going places!

Dog Training 801: Fluency Continued. Better Behavior, Here’s How

February 4, 2015

In last month’s article, we introduced fluency. It’s what most people really need to teach their dog. It’s what people mean when they say “My dog knows it, he just won’t do it.” If you work on fluency of each behavior that needs improvement, your dog will easily be able – and willing – to do what you’ve asked. This month, we’re digging in deep. Here’s exactly how to improve fluency.

First, here’s a quick review of fluency. There are six pieces of fluency relating to your dog’s ability to “do” a behavior:

Precision – does the behavior look perfect (you get to define what perfect looks like)
Latency – does the dog start doing the behavior as soon as you ask
Speed – once the dog starts the behavior, does it happen quickly enough for your needs?
Distraction – can the dog do the behavior no matter what’s going on around him?
Duration – does the behavior last as long as you need it to?
Distance – can the dog do the behavior away from you?

You’ll remember from our last article that you’re going to pick just one piece of fluency to work on at a time. I find it easier to work on fluency in the order I’ve listed them above. Last month’s homework was to make a list of the behaviors and each aspect of fluency you wanted to work on. Pull that out and let’s get ready to get clean, pretty, and reliable behavior!

Gotta know the average

In order to improve, you need to know where you are right now. The way we do this is find the average level of behavior, and then click only the behaviors that are at least at the average or better than the average.

Finding the average

What you need: 10 treats, paper, pencil. To find the average, put 10 treats on the table. Ask your dog to do the behavior you want to improve and click and treat every attempt. After every attempt, write down the number. For instance, if you’re working on latency (how long it takes the dog to start doing the behavior), you’ll silently count the number of seconds it takes for your dog to start to sit after you ask him. Write that number down. After 10 trials, add up those numbers and divide by 10. That number is the average amount of time it takes your dog to start the behavior.

Improving fluency

Now that you know the average, you have everything you need to help improve your dog’s behavior. Back to our sit example above: if the average amount of time it took your dog to start moving to sit was three seconds, then you will click and treat your dog whenever he start to sit in three seconds or less. If it takes him more than three seconds to sit, abort that attempt. You can shuffle your feet and move so your dog is “reset.” Your dog will begin to understand that only the faster responses get clicked and fairly quickly you should have fewer below average responses. Calculate your new average and then begin clicking and treating only those faster responses. Continue to improve the average until you’ve met your goal.

Special Situations

When working with the last three aspects of fluency – distraction, duration, and distance – it’s easier to start from a point where you know the dog can be successful and systematically raise criteria from that point. Using our trusty sit example from earlier, if you were working on distractions for the sit, start in a quiet room, and simply wave your hand while you ask your dog to sit. When working on distraction, for instance, you won’t worry about any of the other aspects of fluency. So it doesn’t matter if it takes your dog 5 seconds to start to sit, as long as your dog is able to sit, she earns a click and a treat. Once you’ve gotten your distractions to an appropriate level, you can then work back up to the previously achieved level of latency

Troubleshooting

If your dog isn’t successful at any point, you may have taken too big of a leap in estimating your dog’s abilities. If your dog can’t get it right within three attempts, reduce the level of difficulty so the dog has a good chance of getting a click and treat.

Remember to work only on one aspect of fluency at a time. It’s easy to think “she’s mastered the distractions, now I’ll add distance.” That’s a sure way to set your dog up to fail. Instead of adding distance, drop out distractions and work only on distance.

Work on one aspect of fluency at a time, keep your training sessions short (5-10 minutes, shorter if your dog zones out more quickly), and most of all, have fun! Improving your dog’s fluency on each behavior will give you that reliable, crisp, impressive dog who responds quickly, enthusiastically, and correctly whenever you ask.

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Clicker Training

There’s a little secret that dog trainers know and use that only a few dog owners take advantage of.

It’s the power of noticing what your dog does right and reinforcing it in the moment.

The power of “yes” will beat 100 “no’s.”

Why notice the good stuff?

We aren’t stingy.

Here are some of the things dog trainers notice – and reinforce – that sometimes pet owners don’t even think about.

The challenge.

A bribe comes before the behavior. “Hey, kid. I’ll give you $5 to eat your vegetables.”

A reward (technically a reinforcer) comes after the behavior. “Because you ate all your vegetables, here’s $5.”

I teach with food. But I do not use bribes.

If you want to use food to jumpstart your dog’s learning, here’s my plan. Follow this plan and you will teach your dog to work for the click, not for the food.

Dog, meet Dremel. Dremel, meet Dog.

Things to Remember

Troubleshooting

Next up, how to grind your dog’s nails with the Dremel.

What is it?

How do you use it?

When do you use it?

Rules

Talk back! What’s your marker to use in place of the click?

“Science is true whether you believe it or not. We [the scientists] just move on.”

“Humans aren’t as good as we should be in our capacity to empathize with feelings and thoughts of others, be they humans or other animals on Earth.” — Neil deGrasse Tyson

I know I can get the job done with positive reinforcement training.

Gotta know the average

Finding the average

Improving fluency

Special Situations

Troubleshooting

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