Clicker Training is great. I have used clicker lightly in the past to teach my boys basic commands. Along with the click, I reward either with my voice or with a treat as to ensure that they aren’t dependent on the click. Just recently have I begun using the clicker in a more expanded roll. With my 11 month old Max going through his adolescence, I have began using the clicker to mark every good action that he does to show him how I expect him to act around inside the house (this stems from him not having good house manners the last few months). For example, when I am sitting on the couch watching tv and I see max lay down, I want him to know that I like that, so I click and say “good”. On the other hand, if Max and my other boy Hartwin are getting rowdy, I will command them to stop, get their focus and have them sit, and lay down, using the clicker to mark each positive action (focus, sit, and lay down). I have seen some noticeable results in just 3 days of using the clicker for these actions. For you all who have far more experience then me using the clicker, is there any reason why I shouldn’t use the clicker to mark good actions around the house, without being in a formal training session or is this an effective way of shaping boundaries around the house?
I have also begun using the clicker in my daily obedience training with my boys. Just last week, while working on the focus command using only treats and a ball for the grand reward, I would get a successful action out of Max and throw him the ball as his reward. He would burn off and fetch it and run half way back to me and drop it. It was hard to ever get him to return the ball all the way to me; this would put a damper on our training session, having to go get him, refocus him, etc. After heading the advice from fellow forum members on how I could get Max to run all the way back to me, using the 2 ball throwing method (thank you all for that advice) and a clicker to mark his successful return, I have Max fetching the ball and returning it without even commanding him to do it. He now understands what I expect from him when I throw a ball to him. This is just a small example, but in my opinion illustrates the progress that can be made in a short period of time using the clicker.
Maggierose, great video of the Mule. That session was 5 minutes long, and they got the mule to do something it otherwise wouldn’t have done without force; and it wasn’t only the one time that the Mule completed the action, he repeated it. I am definitely a beginner in training; both my boys are my first, so I am open and objective to other methods. But from what I have seen using the clicker, I am impressed and sold on its benefits…
