Karen Pryor, Getting Started: Clicker Training for Dogs

I’m not convinced clicker training is the best approach for every dog in every situation, but it’s definitely a good method to have in your toolbox, and I incorporate it into all of my group obedience classes. Pryor’s classic guide outlines the method clearly and makes it easy to understand and follow. I work with a lot of shelter dogs and find clicker training ideal for rehabbing those who are fearful, poorly socialized, attention-starved, or otherwise temperamentally unsuited to more traditional approaches. The clicker method is particularly useful for small, highly transactional breeds such as dachshunds or terriers. (Protip: Use the dog’s regular ration in place of “high-value treats” to get maximum cooperation while eliminating the risk of overfeeding.)

I have been a dog trainer for well over 30 years now, but have not tried clicker training because whenever I tried to look into it, there seemed to be so many RULES and terrible debate about which RULE was best. Ended up with a headache and decided to step back from it for another couple years. I have always been a reward-based trainer -- however, once the dog knew what they were supposed to do and didn't, then I would apply corrections like dragging them back to where they were supposed to 'Hup'(sit), for example. I don't like correcting, it annoys me and confuses the dog. Clicker training - in the introductions - sounded like a great idea, until I read down further and started seeing all the overboard rules.This book throws all those rules into a corner. If it makes sense to you, TRY IT. The only RULES in this version is click before treat. Always Click-then treat. And - Click ONCE. Feeling incredibly confident after finishing the book, I decided to try introducing the clicker to our 8 year old Clumber Spaniel boy - not considered the most obedient learners no matter who you ask, LOL. He is an AKC Champion as well as a titled hunting spaniel, so he certainly isn't a blank slate for training. He had stopped looking at my treat hand, and was STARING at my clicker hand by the 4th repetition of click:treat. The next day I picked up the clicker near him again and he immediately gave me his full attention, staring at the clicker hand intently. Getting the full attention of a Clumber without actually holding a bird or a treat is awesome.I heartily recommend this book to all clicker beginners, those who are on the fence about it, and especially those who - like myself - have been beaten into non-interest by other books, forums, and in-person training friends. *Get this book.* I'd give it 6 stars if Amazon would let me.Tomorrow I'll be starting using the clicker for a simple action for the 8 year old boy, and will also start introducing the clicker to our 2 younger pups, also Clumbers. Our young singleton girl... I will sing and dance if this captures her attention!! Don't worry, I won't put video or audio of me singing and dancing, I promise!~ TracyComedy Clumber Spaniels in the Great Pacific NorthWET!

I just recently bought my first dog after college and decided to give this training business a go. This really provided me with some background knowledge of how clicker training works and how it originated. I was able to train my dog using very basic commands such as stay, lie down, and use the clicker with pointing to get her to go to bed at night or use her pee pad. Unfortunately my puppy almost died when getting spayed and suffered some hearing loss as a result of the trauma, BUT she still knows what to do because I used hand signals with the clicker like the book said to do! This book doesn't want you to use a clicker forever, but move to hand signals as the dog gets more stable with learning their tricks. You only use the clicker when introducing something totally new (which I've substituted since the accident with lightly banging my hand on the floor to get her attention with vibrations). This is a really good concept and the way you could implement/modify the training is limitless.

I know this was written as an introduction to Clicker Training but it could have been a two page pamphlet instead of a book. In fact, at the same time I purchased this book I also bought a CLIK-R brand clicker and the little 2 page instructions included actually gives more information than Ms. Pryor's book. Still, glad I read her book as a first step since we all need to begin somewhere. But my guess is that there's a better, more detailed introduction to Clicker Training out there.

This is a good, quick intro to clicker training if you know nothing about it. I think I didn't learn anything new from this book that I didn't already know from about a half hour's worth of internet surfing on clicker training - but that isn't the fault of the book given that Karen Pryor seems to be one of the eminent authorities on the subject and a lot of the info on the internet can probably be traced to her writings like this book.I have to say though that almost half of it consisted of advocacy for clicker training, which seems unnecessary (I'm already reading the book so why devote two whole chapters and much of the others convincing me to go with clicker training?) and made the book even less useful. I expected a procedural how-to, not a persuasive essay. Overall, though, I thought it was solid for a "Getting Started" type book.

While this would be a decent book for someone that has done zero reading into clicker training, I found it provided very little over what I had already learned on the web and through a week of hands on with my new puppy. Way too much was devoted to how clicker training works with dolphins and pretty much any other animal, this is clicker training FOR DOGS. In summary, very basic even for a novice like myself.Structure also seemed very off. While you don't use a verbal command in clicker training until the animal is offering the behavior reliably, the book doesn't include this in the steps for sit/stay and down examples, referring you to later in the book and other books the author wrote for more detail as to when to introduce the verbal command.

Karen Pryor has written some great books. Love the clicker training. It does work but you have to keep practicing. My dog loves it!