abzndbonnie Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 I was wondering about clicker training? I saw there was a clinic on soon for people interested in clicker training and helping with trialing ect. Theres a lady coming from W.A. Is clicker training a good techinque to use? Is it easy to grow dogs out of the habit? Does it help with their focusing? Any answers would be great! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tess32 Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 It's a HUGE area of training, way too much to put in one post. Yes it's a good technique, it is both easy and hard to learn depending on how far you want to go. Yes it is easy to fade out. It can help with focusing. If you have been training your dog with mixed signals and she's confused, a newly clicker savvy dog can be relieved you are finally communicating clearly! I find it pretty easy once you've read a few articles, and it is easy to stay consistent. Nat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abzndbonnie Posted March 10, 2005 Author Share Posted March 10, 2005 Thanks nat! Bonnie and I have been doing focus , she is understanding but she will look for literally half a second then its back head down to the ground. She's much more interested with things around her. I have tried balls, bells, treats, my voice, jumping(like an idiot). And she is a very lazy dog, not very interested in working. I just think clicker training might be much much clearer, And i just looked on your beautiful doggies pictures and reilly is a stunner! Great shots! and the old lady witht eh hat is really cute :D Abbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tess32 Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 hehe thanks. Focus is one of the hardest things I am teaching Reilly - by focus I mean eye contact. For *ages* I was only getting 1-2 second glances, but am now up to a steady 5 seconds. If you have any specific questions about clicker training I can try and answer but I am only a newbie myself :D But put it this way - we taught Reilly to give paw (he does not do this naturally either) in four clicks..hehe. Nat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abzndbonnie Posted March 10, 2005 Author Share Posted March 10, 2005 hahaha :D I dont know hardly anything about it, i just thought it could help, yep by "focus" i mean eye contact aswell. It would help a hell of alot with our heeling work and also any other training. Should i be going along with this training session or just starting at home myself on info i know already? thanks nat ur helping me lots :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tess32 Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 Depends. I started by myself but I also go to a obedience school that does clicker training so I can see both ways. I would read some of the clicker websites if I were you so you know what it is all about. Like um, CLICKER SOLUTIONS That'll probably answer a lot of your questions. I am following Sue Ailsby's training levels to avoid creating "gaps" in Reilly's training - I find it EXTREMELY helpful! Nat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boxagirl Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 Clicker training is great! Really helped me build Bondi's confidence, as I could re-enforce good behaviour at exactly the right time. She is definately alot more motivated since we've started clicker training, I guess it's because it concentrates on what your dog does right rather than what it does wrong. Definatley a good way to go Good Luck with your training! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clicking Mad Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 (edited) ... Edited January 7, 2008 by Clicking Mad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yogibear Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 Hi guys I would reccomend going to Ginas intro to Clicker workshop there you will get a good basic understanding in a hands on enviroment with a very experienced trainer. there are a lot of people out there using a lot of variations to the method and sometimes things dont always go the way books say they should. Getting help from someone who has experience to start off is definately a good way to start.. yb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tess32 Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 Yep and just to make it really really clear *g* - You HAVE to charge the clicker before you use it. IE - pair it with food until the dog visibly jumps at the sound and expects food. Don't use it on a behaviour straight away - just click, treat, click, treat, click treat over and over. Eventually, the dog understands that a click means "yep, whatever you were doing right there was correct and earnt a reward". Later on when you feel more comfy you *can* use a click with other rewards - like click/toy, click/go sniff etc. Nat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mooper Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 I started with the "101 things to do with a box" as this game doesn't effect any other behaviour you want or don't want so it doesn't matter if you stuff up. Slight deviation from topic ... We've been doing this "101 things to do with a box" thing, too, as I've only been clicker training Jack for a few weeks now. Don't do what I did and completely confuse the dog! I thought Jack was getting the hang of the box games, and since all his toys are kept in a box, decided to put his newest toy in the box we'd been using for clicking. The eventual aim is that since he knows to get his toys out of the box, I want him to learn to put them back in there as well. His newest toy has a jellybean-scented stomach (why, I don't know!) so we call it Jelly Belly. So there I was, clicking and treating Jack for looking at the box, taking a step towards the box etc until I added the command "Get Jelly Belly". I could have sworn he was getting the hang of this ... But no. My husband, who was watching and giggling the whole time, suggested I take Jelly Belly out of the box, and then reissue the command. So what did Jack do? He went straight to the box, ignoring his toy altogether! All along, I thought he was focusing on this toy, while he thought he was getting clicked and treated for focusing on the cardboard box :D My husband laughed so hard he fell off the couch!! :D Seeing that Jack was frustrated, we ended the session with some quick "look at me" exercises and a jackpot of treats after the final click. What did Jack do after I said "free!"? He ran straight across the room to pick up Jelly Belly and play with the toy. ;) (husband fell off the couch again at this point!) Oh well. The exercise taught me a lot, didn't do Jack any harm, and convinced me that clicker training really works. Jack can find that box no matter where it is in the house!! And I've been retraining him with his Jelly Belly toy, minus the box, so he now knows the name of that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yogibear Posted March 10, 2005 Share Posted March 10, 2005 Hi guys Free shaping like 101 things to do with a box is a lot of fun but can also be very stressfull for some dogs personally i prefer to begin with teaching dogs to target your hand or a stick i use a wooden spoon get them touching it with their nose then build on getting them to follow it its simple and both dog and handler pick it up quickly it teaches the dog that by trying he will succeed and its clear what you want whereas 101 things to do with a box isnt clear there is a lot of guess work going on and if the rate of reinforcement isnt high enough it can be confusing and frustrating for the dog and handler especially if the dog is a crossover and has never learned that by trying things it can gain reinforcement. yb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tess32 Posted March 11, 2005 Share Posted March 11, 2005 I agree. 101 things really shouldn't be the dog's introduction to clicker training - the handler is rarely going to do it well enough and clearly enough for the dog to catch on. I'd do easy things first, like targetting and eye contact. Nat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yogibear Posted March 11, 2005 Share Posted March 11, 2005 Hi Nat I think so its easier to get the hang of clicker training when you can see the dogs progress. yb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tess32 Posted March 11, 2005 Share Posted March 11, 2005 For those who don't know, 101 things to do with a box is an exercise to get the dog thinking and offering behaviours. Basically in the first session you click any behaviours to do with the box - touching it, looking, sniffing etc. In the second session, you ONLY click original behaviours and not ones done previous, so the dog is forced to think up new behaviours in order to get the click. Some dogs suddenly get a "ohmygodIgetit" look and start flicking the box in all directions and really going for it. Nat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m-j Posted March 11, 2005 Share Posted March 11, 2005 Hi If that lady is Gina Okeefe I really recommend you go if you are interested in positive motivation. She is very good. cheers M-J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abzndbonnie Posted March 11, 2005 Author Share Posted March 11, 2005 Thankyou all for your great advice! Yes the training day i want to go to is the Gina O'keefe one.. I think i will go. I'm trying to get this 101 things to do with a box. So basically its a training excersize with the box? Also can i get a clicker from a pet department store? I think this is the answer to all my focus things. My golden is getting confused and she basically doesnt really care about focus. I need to get her "hyped" ! I've been using chicken and cheese for treats, also those biscuits "shapes" . she never gets these sorts of treats, are these ok? Sorry i havn't replied sooner! Abbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yogibear Posted March 11, 2005 Share Posted March 11, 2005 hi abbie they have little frog clicker keyrings in the 2 dollar shop in langwarrin Some pet stores do have them too. Dpes your dog know how to touch a target id start with that before trying the box game. Does your club have any clicker trainers there that can help you get started yb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abzndbonnie Posted March 11, 2005 Author Share Posted March 11, 2005 hey! yeah my club has a clicker trainer there, i don't get to the club often though, we have finished obedience and are going into trialing and im having trouble with heeling so i thought focus would be very handy to have. What do u mean by touching a target? thanks Abbie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yogibear Posted March 11, 2005 Share Posted March 11, 2005 Hi Abby Its a pity your club doesnt go on to trial work as it is very beneficial to have someone who has been there help you get started. Targetting is basicaly getting the dog to touch a target which cn be the end of a wodden spoon a target stick or your hand . I start with my closed hand and hold it out close to my dogs nose they are curious and will usually sniff it so you can click and treat for the sniff once you have your dog nosing your hand when you hold it out start moving it to different places close to the dog and click and treat for a touch you can then build up the lenngth of time they hold their nose there and add a cue i use touch. Once they get the idea you can have them follow the target change the target easily to something else or even start sending them to touch a target it can be a lot of fun . the eye contact game is also good for attenttion I start in the lounge sitting down with some treats and a clicker at first depending on the dog i would make sounds until they look up at my face and then click and treat some dogs like to stare at the food in your lap hoping to levitate it into their mouths you can try holding a piece of food up to your face or eating a piece remeber as soon as he looks up at you click and treat. this is good for your timing hope this helps im hopeless at explaining things via words if i get time i will make a couple of short video clips demonstarting both exercises for you and you can have a look at them yb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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