Clicker training has become increasingly popular in recent years, but does it have any real benefits for puppies? This blog post will investigate the potential advantages and disadvantages of clicker training for puppies to help you make an informed decision. Clicker training is a type of positive reinforcement-based training that relies on the use of a device, such as a clicker or a whistle, to provide a prompt or reinforcement. The clicker is used to mark the desired behavior so that the puppy knows that they have done something right. The goal of clicker training is to help puppies become accustomed to learning behaviors through positive reinforcement, without fear of punishment or negative reinforcement. This type of training has been used successfully in many species of animals, including dogs, cats, and even horses. In this blog post, we will explore the potential benefits and drawbacks of clicker training for puppies, including how it affects their overall behavior and development. We will also discuss how to get started with clicker training, and what
What Is the Meaning of the Click?
The clicker is merely a way to mark a moment. That particular noise is not particularly magical, except that you probably never use it around your dog outside of training. As long as it’s different from other ways you communicate with your dog, you can therefore use anything else as a marker. You could, for instance, clap your hands, whistle, or cluck your tongue. Many people use a marker word, like “Yes” or “Good. You could use a light tap on the shoulder for a canine with hearing loss.
Naturally, the click or other marker alone has no significance unless it is combined with a reward. The click simply indicates a reward is on the way. Although most dogs find that edible treats are the best motivator, a reward can be anything that your dog finds valuable. Therefore, if your dog would rather engage in a game of tug of war than consume some chicken, do so. The important part is timing and consistency. Every click must be followed by a reward and the click must occur at the right time.
A dog is rewarded in positive reinforcement training when it exhibits a desired behavior. It may be obvious to the trainer what is being rewarded without the use of a clicker or other marker, but is it obvious to the dog? For instance, how do you make it clear you are rewarding the belly on the ground when teaching a dog to lie down? You have to make sure the reward is given while the dog is lying down rather than the dog getting up to get it. Otherwise, the dog may believe that the reward is for getting up or approaching you. With food treats, that is simple, but it is impossible if the reward is a game of fetch or tug.
You can’t possibly get the reward to the dog fast enough if it pops up from a down as soon as it touches the floor. How do you train your dog to jump through a hoop at the precise moment they pass through the hoop, or what about more difficult behaviors like those performed at a distance? That’s where the power of the click or other marker comes in. The moment you are going to reward is marked by the click, which then fills in the time until the reward shows up. Your dog knows exactly what action was correct.
You could, of course, use praise in the same way, but it’s not nearly as obvious. You communicate with your dog using praise all the time. In fact, it’s a wonderful part of rewarding your dog. Furthermore, praise is not tailored to the context of training, and you wouldn’t want that to be the case. Part of the fun of owning a dog is gushing over it. Using a clicker or another training-specific marker eliminates any uncertainty regarding the forthcoming reward.
In addition to the advantage of clarity, clicker-trained dogs typically enjoy learning. To get a click, they want to put in the effort and train. Mark and reward training turns teaching new behaviors into a game from your dog’s perspective. It takes the pressure off the trainer too. Instead of dwelling on errors, looking for clickable moments helps you highlight your dog’s wise decisions. Clicker training improves communication, strengthens your relationship with your dog, and makes training enjoyable, just like any other positive reinforcement training method.
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Dogs repeat behaviors that get them what they want. This is why rewarding your dog for the actions you want to see is a key component of positive reinforcement dog training. For instance, if you reward your dog with a treat after they give you a paw, they are more likely to do so again.
You may be familiar with clicker training, also known as mark and reward training, but where do clickers and markers fit in? Is it an unnecessary gimmick? Quite the opposite. The use of a clicker (or marker) can increase the effectiveness of positive reinforcement training. A clicker develops the properties of a conditioned reinforcer after being repeatedly connected with a treat or reward. Learn how clicker training can help you and your dog communicate more clearly and effectively while you are training.
The same as positive reinforcement training, clicker training has the advantage of a clicker. A clicker is simply a small mechanical noisemaker. The methods are based on the theory that behaviors that are rewarded are more likely to be repeated in the future, which is supported by the science of animal learning. Therefore, clicker training flips the script and focuses on what your dog is doing right rather than what they are doing wrong and takes good behavior for granted. You can have a remarkable impact on how your dog chooses to behave by instructing it on what to do rather than what not to do.
The clicker is useful because it lets your dog know precisely which behavior you’re rewarding. You can “mark” the moment your dog complied with your requests by clicking at the appropriate time. Therefore, the click informs your dog exactly what they did correctly rather than forcing them to guess what you liked. For instance, when teaching your dog to sit, you would click as soon as his butt touched the ground.
Is a word of praise as effective as a clicker sound for dog training?
A recent heated debate between two dog trainers about the relative merits of “clicker training” versus “marker training” caught my attention. After much shouting and waving of the hands, it seemed that neither could offer convincing evidence, and the matter was left open. Fortunately, there is now scientific evidence that resolves the controversy and provides an answer to the question.
It really is quite simple for those of you who are unfamiliar with clicker training. It is dependent upon a tiny plastic toy that clicks. The dog discovers that whenever he hears that sound, a treat will follow right away. As a result, the dog begins to try to exhibit behaviors that will cause the trainer to click, knowing that a reward will follow. In so doing, the dog learns which behavior is wanted. Consequently, the training process is very straightforward: learn the behavior, mark it (by clicking), and then reinforce it. The more a behavior is practiced and rewarded, the more powerful it becomes. Read this to learn more about the psychological processes involved in clicker training.
The only difference between clicker training and marker training is that you use a different signal as a reward signal instead of the clicker. It could be a voice command like “yes” or “good dog.” When psychologist B first explained the underlying idea of this type of training to the public, F. In a 1951 Scientific American article, Skinner stated that the reason he selected a clicking sound was that it seemed more precise and was more audible. Nevertheless, according to Skinner, the marker doesn’t even have to be audible and could instead be some kind of visual cue, like a light flash or a hand gesture.
After Karen Pryor’s book Don’t Shoot the Dog was published in 1984, clicker training among dog trainers started to gain popularity. Her seminars and instructional videos emphasized the use of the clicker, and over time, dog trainers began to assume that using a clicker as a signal is the only way to conduct truly effective marker training. Many websites dedicated to dog training claim that using a clicker is the “only” effective way to train dogs to perform any kind of challenging task. While others continue to agree with psychologists that any signal that can be precisely delivered when the dog exhibits the desired behavior will work as a training aid, they argue that there is nothing particularly special about the clicking sound.
A team of researchers from the University of Trieste led by Cinzia Chiandetti recently decided to investigate the best method for teaching dogs. They used a sample of 51 domesticated dogs, each of which had to be trained on a brand-new task before being tested to determine how well they generalized their learning (that is, how they applied what they had learned to new situations that were new but somewhat similar). 17 dogs were trained with a clicker and 17 dogs were trained with the verbal reward marker “bravo.” When these researchers were planning the study, they assumed that a third group of 17 dogs would be trained solely with rewards and no markers, but they later realized that the dogs were likely responding to a visual signal, specifically the trainer’s bowing as she moved forward and bent over to give the dog the reward. No matter the marker used, all of the dogs were extremely motivated because the reward was either a piece of cheese or sausage, depending on their preference.
Shape-training, also known as “successful approximations,” involves rewarding the dog for behaviors that get closer and closer to what they must eventually learn to do. They were instructed to use their nose or muzzle to push the handle of a plastic breadbox up in order to open it. The dogs received up to three training sessions per day until they could successfully open the breadbox eight times out of ten.
A week later, the dogs were tested again to see how much of the initial training they had retained. They were also tested at this time on two additional tasks that could be completed with the same motion of their head and muzzle. A breadbox of a different color with the back cut off was used for the straightforward test; this makes it very similar to the box used for training. Due to the test apparatus’s different size, shape, and use of wood rather than plastic, the second test was a little more difficult.
Regardless of whether the marker was a clicker sound, a spoken word, or a visual signal, almost all of the dogs completed both the simple and the complex test tasks after successfully mastering the basic task. These researchers examined a number of different measures to ascertain the degree of performance and rate of learning because the experiment was being conducted to see which of these forms of markers produced the fastest and most effective learning. These included how long each dog took to train and how many tries each dog needed to make it through each of the three learning stages, which were: getting to the first successful behavior (opening the box); progressing from there to the training standard of 8 out of 10 correct; and passing the simple and complex generalization tests.
These researchers discovered that there were no discernible differences between the groups of dogs trained using the clicker, those trained using words as markers, or those trained using the visual cue of the trainer stooping over as a marker. The researchers admit that they were surprised by this because they had anticipated an advantage given the distinctiveness and accuracy of the clicker sound. “Our study is consistent with previous works conducted in different laboratories with both dogs and horses,” the authors conclude in their summary of their findings. “These studies, taken together, point toward no advantage in favor of the shaping method using one acoustic signal over another.” To put it another way, both the clicker sound and the word of praise had the same learning effect.
The results of this study indicate that you can train dogs using your voice or a clicker, according to your personal preferences, and still anticipate the same level of learning. Undoubtedly, some individuals find clicker training to be very enjoyable and prefer it to other techniques. Those individuals will probably want to continue to use it. Others can now confidently anticipate that they will achieve the same learning objectives by using a verbal marker like “yes” or “bravo” in place of holding and operating a clicker. These people may prefer to hold the leash in one hand and guide the dog with their other hand. “.
A dog trainer from Texas laughed when I told her about the findings of this experiment, saying, “I have found the ideal compromise.” When I say the word “click,” my dog knows he has made the right decision.
Stanley Coren is the author of many books including Gods, Ghosts and Black Dogs and The Wisdom of Dogs.
Copyright SC Psychological Enterprises Ltd. May not be reprinted or reposted without permission.
Cinzia Chiandetti, Silvia Avella, Erica Fongaro, Francesco Cerri (2016). Can clicker training facilitate conditioning in dogs? Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 184, 109-116. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2016.08.006
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FAQ
What age can you start clicker training a puppy?
One of the advantages of clicker training is that it works for learners of any age, so it’s never too early to begin, and that goes for both humans and dogs.
What are the pros and cons of clicker training?
- Pro: It Creates a Strong Bond. …
- Con: Not All Dogs Respond Well. …
- Pro: Eliminates Inflection Issues. …
- Con: Incomplete Training May Hinder Results. …
- Pro: Click Training Is Simple. …
- Con: Clicking May Cause Conditioning. …
- Pro: Train Larger Dogs Faster.
Is a dog training clicker worth it?
Although a clicker may not always be necessary for learning to take place, it is a great tool that, when used properly, can lead to better training. Animals can and do learn without intentional markers made by humans; a marker may not be necessary if reinforcement can be given right away.
Do professional dog trainers use clickers?
The use of clickers, according to many seasoned dog trainers, allows you to train your dog more quickly.