Clicker training

I have been doing some clicker training with my foster girlie and I'm enjoying it even more than her. I have got some books with loads of ideas for things to do and tricks, but would be grateful for any advice/ideas as I am a novice at this. I have ordered a target stick. So far in 3 short sessions she has mastered:

1.the idea
2. sit
3. down

Many thanks

Spin is a good first thing to do, lure her with food so she turns her head...click...gradually increase how far she goes til she is spinning round, don't introduce the word command until she is doing it consistently well.

Good idea, she'll love that!

You will too...I did! It was one of my first clicker trained things...once she has nailed it one way, get her going the other way too

It's addictive isn't it? I wish that I tried it before. I've got 3 willing guinea pigs here!

The following links may be helpful

http://www.learningaboutdogs.com/

http://www.clickersolutions.com/articles/index.htm

http://www.clickertraining.com/dogtraining

Cheers, all bookmarked!!

One thing about luring, that I really messed up with as a novice... I used it exclusively, so Oliver depends on the lures. I have to re-train all the tricks I did with luring now. I wish I had read more about it before going ahead. free-shaping is much better at getting the dog to think for itself, with cleaner cues at the end.

With a spin, I would just stand and wait, when she turns her head, click that, then wait for her to do it again... you'll actually see her thinking, it's hilarious! It's faster to teach with luring, but I personally like free-shaping way better in the end!

That's an interesting point, cheers!

There are pros and cons to both lure and free shaping.

The main thing to consider is the purpose of your training.

If it is just for fun and amusement then the latter is fine, if you want to compete then most of us like to move things along a bit.

When I teach I ensure that food is only used a maximum of 3 times (whilst luring) then the lure can be used without the food in the hand and then of course the lure is turned into a hand signal.

This is why a lot of people think training with food is inefficient, it is not, it is the inefficiency of the people training that is the problem..........

Hopefully the links I posted will help you avoid some common errors although I cannot stress enough how much better it is to be taught the basics in person.