Dog Health Questions: Dog training: clicker or my voice?

should i use a clicker for teaching the dogs tricks? or should i use my voice? also, can i stop using the clicker after the dog learns the trick?

Dog Treats for Dog Training

Recommended Answer:
1. Clicker or voice? Yes.

Look, it's not about a clicker. It's about a marker--something that explicitly, clearly MARKS at an exact point in time that the dog unequivocally associates with "you done good." About 99% of humans are incapable of EXACTLY matching their voice every time. They say "yes" but it's in a slightly higher pitch. Or louder. Or more drawn out. It's different in some way. But I use a clicker. And I use my voice. And other trainers have used a key-light (for a deaf deaf) and another used a thumbs up sign. SeaWorld trainers use whistles (since the click doesn't carry underwater). It's all the same--it's about a "marker". It's not that a clicker is magic, you need to "load" the clicker (so the dog associates the click with a reward and thus the click means "you done good" and you need to get the timing down PERFECTLY. Ditto with your voice. Or whatever you use to mark with. The reason that clickers work so well with dogs is that the clicker doesn't get louder or longer, it doesn't change smell, it only makes one sound. But humans change their expression, we focus on something different, we give off pheramones, we get louder or softer. And the dog gets a mess of signals in there, only one of which is the "yes" that we say. So it tends to get lost in the mess of other messages. Because dogs are more visual and olfactory based when it comes to humans--our voice commands and language comes in a distant third in their perceptual focus.

2. Read up on operant conditioning and behavior shaping and you'll find out all the answers to this issue as well as how to train your dog. But in the meantime, of course you can stop using the clicker, just like you can stop rewarding or stop using your voice.

Example: when I was training my dog to heel and not pull on the leash when walking, we'd walk 5 steps, I'd click and treat and praise. We stopped clicking at 5 steps and moved it to 8, then 10, then 15, then 20, then clicked when he stayed focused on me during the walk instead of going for the squirrel. And variable reinforcement also applies--research shows that you get a better response if you don't treat every time.

For more details, check out Shirley Chong's website (www.shirleychong.com) or read Karen Pryor's book on operant conditioning (Don't Shoot the Dog). Or google "behavior shaping" for dogs.

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• it doesnt matter what method of reward you use its the timing, it has to be perfect for the dog to learn what they are doing is the right way. after the trick is learned you can stop using the clicker.


• I use my voice for commands done very close because I can give her a treat straight away but if Im doing target practise where she has to go and touch an object I use a clicker to pin point the behaviour at the right time so she knows