Chloe and Buddy
Experienced Member
ok, so, i got a clicker and i have NO clue how to use it... Any help? i dont know what tricks/obedience to use it for... :/
Using A Clicker
- Thread starter Chloe and Buddy
- Start date
Anneke
Honored Member
You can use the clicker for anything...
That's no help, is it... Sorry, i'm in a funny mood today.
First of all, you have to teach Buddy what the click means. It is called Charging the clicker.
click and treat. No matter what your dog is doing. All you want is for him to understand, that click means treat.
click and treat a couple of times. Then wait for him to look away, or get someone to make a distracting sound. Then click and wait al little. If Buddy gets it, he will immidiately swing his head to you. If not, no problem, just click and treat again for a couple of times.
Some dogs get it after 5 click and treats, some dogs take 20 times.
But once he knows that click means treat, you can start actually training.
Clickertraining requires a good sence of timing on your side. Because you want to capture the exact moment that your dogs does something. I practiced dry clickering with a tennisball. Drop the ball and click the moment it hits the floor. Or make it bounce and click everytime it hits the floor.
You can do some silly things to get the hang of the clicker.
For example, teach your dog to look to the left(or right)
Have your dog sit in front of you. At first he will probably look at you, because he is expecting a cue. Just wait. There will be a moment when he looks away. Click at that time and treat. Then wait again. He looks away, click and treat.
Now a dog who is not used to using his brain in this way, might give up thinking and shut down. Meaning he will lie down. If he does, take a few steps to lure him up again and wait for the moment that he looks away again.
This is a very basic excecise, but one I found very usefull to get to understand the clicker.
Here are some threads about clickertraining:
http://www.dogtrickacademy.com/members/forums/threads/first-day-of-clicker-training-some-questions.3960/#post-28690
I love Kikopup: She has a lot of tips and tricks on her channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/kikopup#p/u/43/_wv1uvvqaSw
Good luck and have fun!!
That's no help, is it... Sorry, i'm in a funny mood today.First of all, you have to teach Buddy what the click means. It is called Charging the clicker.
click and treat. No matter what your dog is doing. All you want is for him to understand, that click means treat.
click and treat a couple of times. Then wait for him to look away, or get someone to make a distracting sound. Then click and wait al little. If Buddy gets it, he will immidiately swing his head to you. If not, no problem, just click and treat again for a couple of times.
Some dogs get it after 5 click and treats, some dogs take 20 times.
But once he knows that click means treat, you can start actually training.
Clickertraining requires a good sence of timing on your side. Because you want to capture the exact moment that your dogs does something. I practiced dry clickering with a tennisball. Drop the ball and click the moment it hits the floor. Or make it bounce and click everytime it hits the floor.
You can do some silly things to get the hang of the clicker.
For example, teach your dog to look to the left(or right)
Have your dog sit in front of you. At first he will probably look at you, because he is expecting a cue. Just wait. There will be a moment when he looks away. Click at that time and treat. Then wait again. He looks away, click and treat.
Now a dog who is not used to using his brain in this way, might give up thinking and shut down. Meaning he will lie down. If he does, take a few steps to lure him up again and wait for the moment that he looks away again.
This is a very basic excecise, but one I found very usefull to get to understand the clicker.
Here are some threads about clickertraining:
http://www.dogtrickacademy.com/members/forums/threads/first-day-of-clicker-training-some-questions.3960/#post-28690
I love Kikopup: She has a lot of tips and tricks on her channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/kikopup#p/u/43/_wv1uvvqaSw
Good luck and have fun!!
Chloe and Buddy
Experienced Member
Thanks you guys! I am so gonna try that. I didn't know how to get him to know what the clicker meant. My friend, who is a dog trainer, says she would never use a dog clicker, because "I would praise my dog with a treat for something, not just clicking to make a noise." Eh, I want to try it. 
You are praising with a treat, not just a click, all the click is is a marker for the exact moment the dog did what you want. Like taking a "mind picture" of the behaviour. The click is associated with a reward (any reward) and is ALWAYS followed by a reward of some sort. Works better than your voice. Your dog trainer friend doesn't really understand what clicker training is if she thinks that.