Clicker training

I teach all new behaviors through clicker training (also called marker training). A clicker is nothing more than a little plastic box that has a metal springy thing in it that makes a clicking sound when you press it.

What the clicker does is sets up a clear line of communication with your dog. Clicker training is the closest you will ever get to talking to a dog. Dogs see the world in a series of quick photo like snapshots. In order for a dog to learn, reward or punishment needs to come within a second or two of the behavior that you are trying to teach. Because of this very short time window, many times people reward or punish the dog for a behavior that is coming AFTER what they are trying to teach. While some people do use punishment markers, we’re going to stick with reward markers.

What a clicker does is mark a desired behavior at the exact moment it occurs. Think of the clicker as a photo for the dog and also a paycheck.

Just like in the gunfire introduction where we paired the sound of gunfire with a bird coming (boom-bird, boom-bird, boom-bird), in clicker training you pair the sound of the click with food coming (click-food, click-food, click-food). The click will become a reliable predictor that food is on the way and it will elicit the same response as the food. It’s another good example of classical conditioning as it relates to dog training.

You need to do what is called "charging" the clicker. With no commands involved, you click, give the dog a treat. Click, give the dog a treat. Click, give the dog a treat. Eventually, the dog will learn that every time they hear a click a treat is on the way.

What this does now is gives us the ability to mark the desired behavior with a clicker at the EXACT moment it occurs, buying us time to deliver the reward, so we’re not rewarding for a behavior that occurred after what we wanted. Lets take sit for example. You can lure a dog into a sit and mark the behavior with the clicker at the exact moment their butt hits the ground. The clicker say "yes, right there, that is exactly what I want! Your reward is on the way".

This is very important feedback for the dog. It makes it very clear to them when they’ve done the right behavior. 

There are 3 different ways of getting a behavior. "Food luring" (self explanatory, yet there is an art to doing it effectively), "capturing" which is waiting for a behavior to occur naturally.....in the above example you would wait for the dog to sit on their own, and then mark it with the clicker, and the third is "shaping". Shaping is like playing a game of hot or cold. Here is a good example of shaping. Let’s say you wanted a dog to stand on a place board for whoa training. The dog has no idea you want her to stand on the board. As soon as she gets close to the board, you click and treat (C/T). Then, if she sniffs the board  you  C/T. Then, when she put one paw on the board you C/T. Then, when she puts two paws on the board she gets a C/T. Then, three paws- C/T. Then, all four on the board-C/T and JACKPOT! Lots of treats for four paws on the board! You shape her into getting on the board by marking the behavior every time she gets closer to our final goal. Training like this creates a thinking dog.

Whether you use luring, capturing or shaping to get a behavior while clicker training you should never give the verbal cue/command until the dog is performing the behavior with regularity. Words will do nothing but confuse the dog while they are learning something new. It makes it much easier for them to understand if you teach the behavior first, then put it on cue later. By teaching the behavior first, then naming the command after, the dog says “hey I know what that means, no problem!”. By saying the command before they know what you want, it’s just confusing chatter to them, making it harder for them to learn.

The order is:

1. Get the behavior
2. Mark the behavior
3. Name the behavior

One very important thing. Always follow up every click with a treat! If you start clicking/marking and don’t follow up with something the click or mark will lose it’s value. Even if you click accidentally, you must always follow up on it.

Although it’s not a bird dog, here are a couple video clips I found that explain the clicker method very well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAb3KJyxq0o&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4DknI1KEsE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ciy7uUtA6S8

Here is a clip of Chad Hines from Willow Creek Kennels (one of the most innovative bird dog trainers around) explaining clicker training.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfC8-qjtm9A&feature=plcp