clickertraining

Clicker Training - What's all the fuss?
“…Clicker training was developed from techniques employed by dolphin trainers and has
grown tremendously in popularity over the course of that time, used by trainers who work with
a huge variety of species from dolphins to tigers to fish to domestic dogs…”

You’ve seen dolphins and killer whales leaping from a pool of water, jumping through a hoop,
or balancing a wetsuit-clad trainer on the tip of their noses. How could one witness such a
sight and not gawk in wonder at the partnership between wild animal and human trainer!
The scene is almost magical, and witnessing it in person does not take away from the
otherworldliness of what your eyes behold. Surely this is some sort of wizardry at work.

The truth is that the “magic” that occurs in marine park pools all across the world is actually
the result of a very scientific form of animal training: operant conditioning with the use of a
secondary reinforcer. The user-friendly term for this sort of training is “clicker training”. And
this “magic” is available for easy use to anyone with an animal they’d like to train.

Because you cannot physically force a dolphin or a huge killer whale in a tank of deep water
to do anything it does not want to do, trainers need brains instead of brawn to teach their
charges those fancy show behaviors. Using POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT – food rewards for
doing the right thing – dolphin trainers get these mammals to behave through a process
called “shaping”. Shaping allows trainers to break down complex behaviors into tiny parts
and reward the dolphin after each successful step. Each step builds upon the last, and
before you know it, the whole behavior is performed in one step, and then rewarded. But
there is an added element that makes this kind of training so useful and effective: the
conditioned reinforcer. This is a sound that is given special meaning – it can be a word, a
whistle, or the click of a clicker!

Through a process called classical conditioning (think Pavlov’s dogs and that bell that made
them drool), the “click” of the little plastic clicker box paired with food becomes a signal that
the food is on the way. When the animal hears the click, it knows it did the right thing and
food is on the way. The clicker therefore is a conditioned reinforcer – something that was
originally neutral to the animal and now has positive meaning.
You may be thinking, “Why not just use food? Why add the element of the click?” The click
is quick and precise, and “marks” the exact behavior the trainer wants to see, the exact
second it happens. This makes things unequivocally clear to the animal. And that makes
training easier and faster than training with food alone.

But there’s more!

In animal training, it is imperative that the food be delivered to the animal during or
immediately proceeding the behavior – otherwise the animal might get confused about what
it’s being rewarded for. When you are teaching complex behaviors that are shaped step by
step, sometimes broken down into very tiny increments, it can be really difficult relaying to
your animal what it is being rewarded for. You might want to reward for a tiny flipper
movement, or a wink, or a blow hole opening. By the time you deliver the food to the animal in
a pool, ten more behaviors could have occurred. Which behavior is the animal being
rewarded for? The clicker acts as a BRIDGE between behavior and reward – when the
animal hears the click the second the behavior happens, it knows in no uncertain terms
what it did right.

Lastly, the clicker lets the animal know it did a good job and completed the behavior.

To review, the clicker allows trainers to MARK the correct behavior the moment it happens,
it BRIDGES (connects) behavior to food so the animal knows what it is getting rewarded for,
and it ENDS the behavior so the animal knows it did its job. WOW! All that from just one click!

But why the CLICK? Why not just use your voice?   The clicker never wavers, always sounds
the same, and always has the same meaning. Your voice can sound different morning and
night, is used for a variety of reasons throughout the day, and the pitch can change. The
clarity of the clicker is something that makes it an exceptional training tool. Animals need
clarity and consistency to help them learn. There is also new research coming out (http:
//www.clickertraining.com/~c11cker/node/226) that shows the click may have a very
specific effect on the amygdala – that part of the brain that impacts rapid learning. So there
are several very good reasons to use the clicker.

Today, more and more dog trainers are learning from dolphin and exotic animal trainers and
utilizing the clicker to train pet and competition dogs. The efficacy and scientific validity of
the clicker cannot be denied. Clicker training is far superior to many other methods used by
trainers that do not understand operant conditioning or the science behind it. And whereas
some popular dog training methods can work only on animals you can physically push
around and dominate (like dogs), clicker training works across species – because it uses
brains not brawn to teach animals. And it is, very importantly, a pain-free, humane way to
train.

The application of the clicker in dog and other domestic animal training is limitless. From
obedience and agility, to solving complex behavior issues (http://www.clickertraining.
com/node/64), and even to teaching a miniature horse how to guide her blind owner (http:
//www.guidehorse.org/coop_panda.htm), clicker training is changing lives. With clicker and
treats in hand, animal guardians across the world are embarking on new and exciting
training programs with their best friends. “Just click & treat” is the motto (thankfully)
replacing the old and dusty, “Just jerk the leash”.

What are some applications of clicker training in the pet dog home? Use clicker training to

•        teach a dog not to jump: approach your dog, and when his four feet are on the floor,
click & treat!
•        crate train: break down into increments the behavior of gladly walking into a crate (look
at crate, step towards crate, step in crate, get fully into crate); click & treat each of those
increments, gradually building up to the full behavior before you click/treat. You’ll have a dog
happy to go in the crate on his own in no time!
•        go potty outdoors: click & treat when your dog uses the designated outside potty spot!
•        teach eye contact: click & treat when your dog looks at you, either on his own or when
you say his name. Soon, you’ll have your dog’s attention on demand.
•        teach manners on the leash. Click & treat for a loose leash, when your dog is at your
side, or when your dog looks at you!

The list of teachable behaviors can go on for as long as your imagination will allow.

If you’re itchin’ to give clicker training a try, but don’t know where to start, it’s easy. The only
tools you need are a clicker, a pile of tasty treats, and of course your dog. There are many
clicker resources online, but my favorite site is www.clickertraining.com, which is the one-
stop resource for all things clicker training. There is plenty of information on this site to get
you started, from clicker theory to training how-to’s. And if you’re stumped on how to teach a
specific behavior, or are having difficulty with solving a behavior problem, contact Peaceable
Canines for help in choosing the right training solution for you and your dog!

Clicker training is an exciting, simple, fun and effective way to train your dog; with science
on your side, how can you lose?     And if clicker training can get a wild, 8 ton killer whale to
gently kiss a trainer on the face, what can it do for your pet dog?

A simple clicker training exercise to try at home with your dog - get
your dog to move a paper cup with his nose:

1) "Charge" the clicker by clicking then treating in succession. Do
this for a few days, over the course of each day, for several minutes
each time (a good time to charge your clicker is while you are sitting
watching tv. Randomly click and toss your dog a treat.) Test the power
of the clicker by randomly clicking when your dog isn't paying
attention to you. If your dog swings around to look at you, the
clicker is ready to be put to work!

2) Take an unused paper or plastic cup. In a small, quiet room, show
it to your dog. Let him sniff it, and watch you place it on the floor.
Hold your clicker, and have some yummy treats in a bowl off to the
side where your dog cannot reach them.

3) Walk around the room without saying anything. Ignore your dog's
attempts to sucker treats out of you without earning them. Watch your
dog carefully. If he looks at or moves towards the cup on the floor,
click & treat. Each time your dog moves towards or looks at the cup,
click & treat.

4) Now, wait for your dog to get closer to the cup than he's ever
gotten before. Click & treat each time he gets closer and don't click
anything else.

5) Watch for your dog's nose to get near or touch the cup, when it
does, click & treat. Don't click anything else

6) Now wait until your dog hits the cup with his nose with enthusiasm
(he may even knock the cup over). Good, click & treat! Pick the cup
up, place it upright on the floor, and try again. Click & treat each
time he touches the cup with his nose enthusiasm, and only then.

The purpose of this exercise is to demonstrate the power of the
clicker, and specifically how the process of shaping works (breaking
the behavior down into steps). You'll see that this whole process
takes a very short period of time. Watch for the gleam in your dog's
eye when he figures out what it is you want from him!

Enlightened training for every dog. (tm)