How does clicker training work?
The trainer clicks at the moment the behavior occurs: the horse raises its hoof, the trainer clicks simultaneously. The dog sits, the trainer clicks. Clicking is like taking a picture of the behavior the trainer wishes to reinforce. After “taking the picture,” the trainer gives the animal something it likes, usually a small piece of food but sometimes play, petting, or other rewards. Very soon (sometimes within two or three clicks), an animal will associate the sound of the click with something it likes: the reward. Since it wishes to repeat that pleasurable experience, it will repeat the action it was doing when it heard the click. Any behavior can be trained with any animal following these three simple steps: • Get the behavior. • Mark the behavior. • Reinforce the behavior. How do clicker trainers ask for behaviors? Clicker trainers differ from traditional trainers in that they wait until the behavior is well understood by the animal before using a command or “cue.” A cue is the nam
