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I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

Last post 08-31-2008 10:33 AM by ron2. 8 replies.
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  • 06-19-2008 10:06 PM

    • BlackLabbie
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    I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

    Wish us luck! I literally just got home from Petco...I bought "Click & Easy" by Miriam Fields-Babineau. Anybody read it yet? I bought a clicker and some of Apollo's favorite treats. Any tips and/or advice? He's pretty solid on basic commands (sit, stay, down) and knows some extra commands (paw, head down, on your bed) , but I would like to try clicker training for better leash manners (we don't use a prong anymore and we're having a tough time adjusting) , and maybe (hopefully a year from now) get him into dock diving comp's.

    Photobucket




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  • 06-19-2008 11:46 PM In reply to BlackLabbie

    • BCMixs
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    Re: I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

     Have fun!  Clicker training can be so much fun and really connects you to your dog in a cool way.  There's lots of online info also, videos and such.  Video your tricks and post them for us!  :)

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  • 06-20-2008 12:27 PM In reply to BlackLabbie

    • BlackLabbie
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    NEED HELP! I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

    Ok....I need some help for a second here, please....

    Apollo already knows how to sit automatically when we're walking (if I stop he plops)....should I click & treat this?

    Also, since I took the prong off he pulls on the leash and it seems like we're back to square one with his leash reactiveness towards dogs. I was putting the prong on, but hooking it to a regular collar, so we weren't using it but it was on. How do I get him to heel with click & treat if wants nothing to do with the treat while we're walking (I brought come cheese with me today on our walk, which he LOVES, but still didn't want it while heeling)? Also, he pays zero attention to me now when a dog is passing, since the prong is off.

    Anybody else have a tough time clicking & treating with a leash and baggies of treats?!

    Photobucket




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  • 06-20-2008 1:56 PM In reply to BlackLabbie

    • JRTzoey
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    Re: NEED HELP! I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

    first of all, congrats on taking this new adventure with your dog. you're gonna love it, trust me.

    I started my journey with that same book, and i'm actually passing it to my neighbours who just got a puppy actually!

    Remember, that there's nothing wrong with using a toy instead of treats if while you're walking he doesn't like food... it's a lot easier to carry too! (i wish MY dog was toy motivated lol) i'd say just make sure he has a good release command.

    I'm sure other people in here (who are MUCH more knowledgeable than me!) will have some great advice for you. Don't be shy to come here and ask the stupid questions- i know i have! :)

    Keep up the good work and stay positive!

    ~V & Z~ 

    my dog makes me a better person.
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  • 06-20-2008 2:54 PM In reply to BlackLabbie

    Re: NEED HELP! I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

     

    BlackLabbie:

    Ok....I need some help for a second here, please....

    Apollo already knows how to sit automatically when we're walking (if I stop he plops)....should I click & treat this?

    Also, since I took the prong off he pulls on the leash and it seems like we're back to square one with his leash reactiveness towards dogs. I was putting the prong on, but hooking it to a regular collar, so we weren't using it but it was on. How do I get him to heel with click & treat if wants nothing to do with the treat while we're walking (I brought come cheese with me today on our walk, which he LOVES, but still didn't want it while heeling)? Also, he pays zero attention to me now when a dog is passing, since the prong is off.

    Anybody else have a tough time clicking & treating with a leash and baggies of treats?!

    You need a bum bag (fanny pack??) Smile

    Or a couple extra pairs of hands!

    Does he not want food at all while he is walking or is it just while he is around other dogs? 

    You may need to up the ante treatwise (cooked chicken?  beef?  liver cake?) OR maybe you have a dog who is more toy motivated... in which case you need to confiscate his favourite toy, increase its value by playing short and highly exciting games with it and then use it as a reward during training.

    Now, if he just doesn't really want food while he is around his "trigger" (in his case, other dogs, right?) then this to me is a signal that you are starting off too close.  He needs to be further from the trigger for the treats (or possibly the toy) to have any value.  If he is too close, then he doesn;t want to let his guard down to eat or play.

    What I would do is, I would start off using the clicker to teach him to walk next to you.  DON'T use a cue at this stage.  Start off in and around your house, off lead.  Just click him for standing beside you.  Move around so he realises its for standing BY you and not standing in that spot.  Now you need to add a lead.  Try using a completely new collar and lead.  Don't hold the lead.  Let it drag on the floor.  CT him for standing beside you and walking beside you.  Take one step, four steps, two steps, five steps, one step, six steps..... in other words, gradually increasing, but still random to keep him on his toes. 

    Now progress to holding the lead and going very short distances.... maybe as far as your front door at first, then maybe halfway down your street.  Don't think of it as a "walk".  Think of it as a lesson, an extension of what you have been doing in and around the house and be prepared to build on it gradually. 

    When you see other dogs, your initial response should be to keep far away from them.  Give them as wide a berth as possible so you give your dog every chance to succeed.  CT for calm and relaxed behaviour, JACKPOT if he focuses on you Smile
    "Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life." (Pratchett, Jingo)

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  • 06-20-2008 3:10 PM In reply to Chuffy

    • BlackLabbie
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    Re: NEED HELP! I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

    Chuffy:

     

    BlackLabbie:

    Ok....I need some help for a second here, please....

    Apollo already knows how to sit automatically when we're walking (if I stop he plops)....should I click & treat this?

    Also, since I took the prong off he pulls on the leash and it seems like we're back to square one with his leash reactiveness towards dogs. I was putting the prong on, but hooking it to a regular collar, so we weren't using it but it was on. How do I get him to heel with click & treat if wants nothing to do with the treat while we're walking (I brought come cheese with me today on our walk, which he LOVES, but still didn't want it while heeling)? Also, he pays zero attention to me now when a dog is passing, since the prong is off.

    Anybody else have a tough time clicking & treating with a leash and baggies of treats?!

    You need a bum bag (fanny pack??) Smile

    Or a couple extra pairs of hands!

    Does he not want food at all while he is walking or is it just while he is around other dogs? 

    LOL, I always tease my Mom for wearing one when we go on vacation! Big Smile

    He will sniff the treat when we're walking but won't take it. And when another dog is around he wont' even sniff it.

    Photobucket




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  • 06-21-2008 12:32 PM In reply to BlackLabbie

    Re: NEED HELP! I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

    Recipe for treats that might entice him even in distracting circumstances:

    16 ounce can pink salmon

    1 cup whole wheat flour

    1 cup yellow corn meal

    1 tablespoon olive oil

    1 large egg

    1 tablespoon garlic powder

    Mix all ingredients and spread on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake for fifteen minutes at 415 degrees.  Cut with a pizza cutter while still warm.  These freeze well and it makes about five baggies of treats.  They also break into teency pieces, so you aren't getting the dog fat!


     Re the bait pack, I like the one that Outward Hound makes.  I can open it easily with one hand, and it's pretty roomy. 

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  • 07-01-2008 8:24 PM In reply to BlackLabbie

    • samshine
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    Re: NEED HELP! I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

    BlackLabbie:

    He will sniff the treat when we're walking but won't take it. And when another dog is around he wont' even sniff it.

    There is a famous line used by dog trainers. Train where you can. (also Train WHEN you can.)  You can't train in an environment where your dog is that distracted.  Start at home.  As your dog gets into the training game and more focused into you, he will start responding around gradually increasing distractions.

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  • 08-31-2008 10:33 AM In reply to BlackLabbie

    • ron2
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    Re: I finally decided to try it (clicker training)

    I can give you direct experience on this. And how I accidently trained heel.

    My dog is a mix of Siberian Husky and Lab but is predominately Siberian. Born to be in front pulling like a truck and running as fast as the wind.

    First, after solidly associating click with reward, I started on the touch exercise. You have the treat in one closed hand. That dog will sniff and touch your hand by his own impulse. When that touch happens, click and open your hand to dispense the treat. By the third click, he will have it locked in. It's just that fast. Now, put it on cue. He will learn to identify the word sound "touch" with the act of touching your hand to get a treat.

    Here's where my accident comes into play. I was going to try "touch" from a distance. So, I had the treat in my left hand and was walking away but Shadow was walking beside me with his nose bumping my hand. So, I would give him the treat, anyway, since he touched, even though not from a distance. I thought I had messed up. Spiritdogs said, "It sounds like you have the beginnings of a heel." Well, knock me over with a feather, why don't you? And walking touch became "heel".

    And that is how I trained a dog bred to run hard out in front to walk in heel position. I later used a similar process for Loose Leash Walking (LLW). Catching him walking in close proximity with slack in the leash, I would click and treat.

    So, 3 clicks to get touch, about 3 more clicks to get walking touch which was named heel. Then, various times in public to achieve the same result in the face of other distractions. And training need not be more than a few minutes at a time, much more effective than boring repetitions, especially with a breed that can get bored easily.

    Good luck.

     

    The way you treat your dog in this life determines your place in heaven. - chukchi proverb


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