Clicker training your dog is a simple concept , and this is exemplified in the principle of training called operant conditioning. This piece of dog training advice is much in line with the principles that tie all animals together. Whether we realize it or not, humans learn from this same form of training.
Let’s look at one instance of operant conditioning. If you were in a room with two doors leading out, you would want to leave by the easiest or safest one. If one door opened to a stairway that led up while the other opened to the outside of the building with no steps, you would choose the easier way to the outside.
Your dog will stop doing things that he gets no reward for or puts him in bad favor with his master, just like he will keep doing things that he is rewarded for. In standard puppy training advice, when the dog does something he is asked to do, you are told to reward him with praise. This makes him know that you are satisfied with his behavior.
Your dog doesn’t actually comprehend the words, so whether you say “good boy” or anything else, he won’t understand the words you are saying. The use of the clicker is for the purpose of association.
When your dog does what is expected of him, you click the clicker and he learns this indicates something positive. It is short, sharp, and gets his attention so the clicker is as good as any words you could use.
Training is not replaced by the clicker It is just a tool for simplification and, in the dog’s case, clarification. You might say “good dog” with a little voice inflection that is different one time than another. Additionally, the pure clicking sound is so short that the dog can instinctively understand that the sound means the master approves.
Immediately after the click the dog should be given a treat, in the early part of the training. The click alone acts as a reinforcement of approval by the master because the dog will associate the treat with the sound.
The dog will eventually stop responding to the commands if you stop giving him a reward for doing what is requested so it ok to give him a treat every so often. Treats do not have to be given as a reward every time the dog does as asked.
People respond favorably to rewards for what they do. If you don’t think this is true, stop paying people for the services they provide and see how long they continue doing them.
Dogs aren’t that much different in this respect. If they understand that you approve of what they do, it is because of what they receive, which may be a dog treat, a clicking noise, or verbal praise. One key tip piece of dog training advice is remember the reward, whether the sound of a clicker, verbal or edible.
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