target training in a day!!

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Postby Malli » January 14th, 2010, 11:26 pm

:woowoo:

we started with the clicker today and targeting this thing, a wiffer ball on a stand. I'd say Oscar's about 75% already!! I think the rest of the time he is just trying to figure out how to get the treat from me without touching the target :rolleyes2:

so... I have two questions, you can toss the treats instead of giving them from your hand, right?

and when, and how, do I add the word? Because I really want to start teaching other stuff! :bounce:
I was thinking... word right at/before the action the click/treat, then only click treat for word then target.... :|
I can only please one person per day. Today is not your day, tomorrow doesn't look good either.
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Postby Hundilein » January 14th, 2010, 11:35 pm

Way to go! Clicking is so much fun, it's easy to get hooked.

Yes, you can absolutely toss the treats on the floor instead of always giving them from your hand. I sometimes toss them on purpose depending on what criteria I'm looking for. For instance, if I'm looking to add distance or different directions into the mix, I throw the treats in different directions. To work on a send out, I sometimes feed from my hand and back up each time the dog is heading towards the target so that he gradually has to go farther every time after he gets the treat.

There are several different opinions on when/how to add the word. I usually add it when I can predict the behavior fairly accurately, and I add the word as the dog is doing the behavior at first and then gradually back it up so that I'm saying the word before the behavior starts. You can just withhold the click/treat if he does the behavior without you giving the cue, but that frustrates some dogs, so sometimes I throw in different behaviors that the dog knows to get him paying more attention to the cue. (For example, come, sit, touch, sit, touch, down, sit, come, touch, etc and if he touches the target any time I haven't asked him to, I just ignore it.) Once the dog starts waiting for the cue, you can reward waiting by giving the cue.

Hope this helps!
Sarah and Renee - aka wild child
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Postby Malli » January 15th, 2010, 12:34 am

I added the word and I think it HELPED! :| I think maybe he's SO used to taking verbal direction from me that a word just solidified that that is what I was looking for.

Whats also funny is that I've been leading him away by his collar to get him to target from farther away, and he'll scramble to touch it again before he gets lead away :giggle: Like he'll stand pretty well on it and keep touching it, I'll reach for him and he'll hit it twice more or however many times he can get in before I lead him away :lol3:
I can only please one person per day. Today is not your day, tomorrow doesn't look good either.
_______________________________________
"You didn't know of the magical powers of the break stick? It's up there with genies and Harry Potter as far as magic levels go." SisMorphine 01/07/07
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Postby TheRedQueen » January 17th, 2010, 10:37 pm

:clap:

What fun! I'm so glad to see this! Now I want to see video! lol ;)

And what I tell my students about when to add the cue..."When you're willing to bet $200.00 (or whatever that is in Canadian :giggle: ) that the dog will perform the behavior. Some behaviors are easier and faster to add a cue to than others...
"I don't have any idea if my dogs respect me or not, but they're greedy and I have their stuff." -- Patty Ruzzo

"Dogs don't want to control people. They want to control their own lives." --John Bradshaw
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