How Does Clicker Training Work?

Clicker training is an effective training method for dogs, but many dog owners are having a hard time using this form of training because they do not know how to use the training method properly. In general, clicker training was developed to help trainers train marine mammals that are difficult to coerced or forced.

Since reward plays an important factor in training animals, clicker training became the substitute rewards for animals who cannot be rewarded at the exact point in which they successfully completed a task.

What are Clickers

A famous animal trainer named Karen Pryor came up with the idea to use a signal that the pet had done a great job. The purpose of sending a signal to animal is for the pet to accurately identify the great thing that they have done to get a reward. The signal that is sent by the trainer is known as the event marker which allows animals to advance on more challenging tasks and trainings.

In marine mammals such as dolphins, the common event marker used by trainers are whistles and Karen Pryor developed the clicker for dogs.

Clicker is important in dog trainings because dog trainers cannot use whistles anymore because the whistle sound already serves as a cue for the dog to start doing what they have to do. An event marker has a different role from a cue so dog trainers need to use a new sound such as the clicker.

How does clicker training work?

Again, clicker training allows the dog to identify the actual action the dog owner is rewarding them for because immediate powerful rewards can confuse the dog. Timing plays an important role in training dogs because giving them rewards should be closely associated with the behavior that deserves a reward.

In example, if you want to teach the dog to make an eye contact, the dog can associate the reward with looking away. Instead of making an eye contact, the dog would start looking away to get the reward.

The clicker training helps overcome the situation given above because through the help of a clicker, the dog can correctly identify the behavior that deserves the reward.

Based on the same example, if you want your dog to learn how to make an eye contact, click at the very moment the dog looks into your eyes. Even if you give him the treat after they look into your eyes, the eye contact was reinforced by the sound of the clicker.

Clicker is an effective method as long as dog owners maintain the click and treat process because the dog starts to associate the clicking sound after a good behavior from getting a reward.

The power of clicker in dog training

Besides from rewarding the dog, clicker is an important and powerful tool in dog training because its accuracy enables dog to pick out the behavior that deserves the reward. As the dog starts to associate the clicking sound to a good behavior, they start to build on those moments because they know that they would get a reward after.

The benefit of using clicker training in dogs is that it speeds up the learning process because dogs are not afraid of making a mistake and it gives the dog less stress during the training period.

The clicker training is helpful in getting the dog to respond in basic cue behaviors such as “sit” or “down” because dogs can easily associate the word with the right action. However, since clicker is a powerful and effective form of training, the dog can be trained to carry out unusual behaviors such as switching the light, fetching things, and others.

The rise in popularity of clicker in training

A clicker looks like a tiny box that makes a click sound when pressed became a controversial tool in dog training because many trainers are against it because they are used to their conventional methods of training.

Before, the clicker training was only associated in teaching tricks to dogs and many trainers considered it as an unsuitable training method for proper dogs. However, when trainers engaged in competing dog sports tried the clicker training, many were amazed with the power and potential of the clicker.

Nowadays, clicker training is an established form of training on dogs because many serious dog trainers that are competing around the world are using this method. Aside from dog competitive sports and shows, clicker training is helpful in training military and service dogs. The adaption of innovative solutions and improvements in dog trainings allowed clicker to become a useful device in the world of dogs.

What to do when the clicker training is not working

There are many reasons why the clicker training is not working for the dog, but it does not mean that you should immediately abandon the training. Take a step back from the situation and try to assess what is wrong with the training and why is the dog struggling with such method.

The initial check that the dog trainer should do is to see if the clicker is making a distinctive snappy click and observe how the dog respond to the sound. There are instances when the clicker’s sounds are too loud for the dog so they are scared of it. Try to muffle the sound by adding some tape or getting an adjustable clicker that is capable of making a softer sound.

If the dog is deaf, clicker training can be done to them by replacing the clicker device with a flashlight or a vibrating collar. Every time the deaf dog successfully did the task, turn on the flashlight or the vibrating collar so they could associate it to the proper action the same way with a clicker.

In general, you need to adjust the clicker method to the dog’s needs and temperament to make it more effective to them. Instead of abandoning the training method when things are not working well, assess the situation and adjust the training accordingly to the needs of the dog.