I was originally going to post about a really great way to begin clicker training by teaching your dog to 'leave-it' - but I figured that you probably wouldn't understand what I was talking about until I gave you a glossary of terms I use when talking about clicker training. So here it is! I'll post later this evening about teaching your dog what has been called a 'default leave-it'.


Glossary of Terms used in Clicker Training

Clicker
This is the item that makes the noise that marks a behavior. Technically, it can be anything, like a word (“Yes”, or “Good”), however a click is even more precise.

Click and Treat
First you click, then you treat – in that order. Try not to make a movement towards your treats or the dog until you’ve clicked otherwise the dog may associate your movement with the treat instead of the sound of the click.

Lure
A lure is a bit of food you use to guide or entice your dog to do something or move in a certain way.

Lure (a behavior)
To lure a behavior, you use a food lure to get your dog to move a certain way or move into a certain position.

Shape (a behavior)
You use shaping to create an end result that is somewhat complex. You reward small movements or milestones toward the final goal. An example is going in a crate: Treat for looking at the crate, then moving towards the crate, then their head in the crate, then one paw in the crate, then two, then their whole body in the crate, then sitting in the crate, then laying in the crate, they staying in the crate, then closing the door, then you moving away from the crate. All this to get a dog that lays calmly in the crate.

Capture (a behavior)
You can capture a behavior that a dog already does, like sitting, or cocking its head. You click and treat whenever the dog does this behavior throughout the day.

Reinforcer
A reinforcer doesn’t necessarily need to be a treat, though it most commonly is. It can also be a game of tug, a thrown ball or Frisbee, or a game of chase. Whatever motivates your dog the most is going to be your reinforcer. It is a good idea to change up your reinforcers, using those that motivate the dog the most.

Positive Interrupter
This is a sound, either the dog’s name, a kissy sound, or a whistle, that captures the dog's attention away from whatever it is doing and focuses it on you. When trained early and well, this can result in a dog that will leave almost anything when you call it.

Give Value
You can give people and objects value by pairing it with great reinforcers. This makes the object or person something interesting and positive for the dog. This is useful when training dogs with props and training to eliminate fears. During training, you end up giving yourself very high value with your dog.

High Value/Low Value
Reinforcers with a high value are great – your dog will work and do anything for them. If your dog seems uninterested or distracts easily during training, your reinforcers are low value and you need to get better ones.

Eye Contact
Asking for eye contact while training ensures that your dog is paying attention to you and only you. It also reinforces that you’re in charge.

Fading a Lure
When luring dogs during training, it is important to fade the lure within the first 5 repetitions, otherwise you end up with a dog that is dependant on food lures. This makes other behaviors very difficult to train.

Adding a Cue
Once your dog has consistently done a behavior, you can add either a verbal or visual cue to ask for it. It is important not to do this too early, as you don’t want to name a poorly executed behavior, rather only the perfect behavior that you want your dog to do over and over again.