Clicker Training an older dog: what happens in almost one week

When Jake first arrived, he seemed very sweet, very smart and vigorous, but largely untrained. Small distractions overwhelmed him, and he didn't respond to his handler calling his name in our garden. A confirmed puller, Jake was also showing signs of stress related to his head halter, and even to the leash. He seemed to have no idea what he was supposed to be doing while on leash, and this upset him. An energetic dog who benefits from daily running and play, if Jake decided to go grab a ball, he wasn't likely to ever come back with it. He seemed to believe that he could just grab a toy and go play with it by himself. This next set of very short videos documents on training session with Jake, broken into several small specific lessons. I find that Jake does best with very short fun little lessons, and lots of reinforcement. Learning is inherently stressful, but Jake is beginning to really enjoy his lessons. Jake is very eager to do the right thing, and he shows a bit of stress when he is uncertain about "what" is the right thing.  It's really easy for him to learn hand targeting, and this will be a huge help to his owners.

You'll see one little segment where I do something a bit weird -- I wave around a tug toy and click and treat Jake for NOT going after the toy. I'm doing that because I want Jake to understand that he should only go after a toy if he hears the cue to "get it." I DON'T want Jake to believe that a wiggling moving object is a cue for him to get it, because kids do that kind of thing all the time, and if some kid goes running by Jake waving a ball, I don't want Jake to go after it. I want Jake to wait for a verbal cue. Anyway, notice how Jake gets uncertain ("am I being cued to get that thing or not?") and this uncertainty makes him so unsettled that he decides it's probably just best to leave the darn toy alone! Good boy Jake! This provides a lot of insight into Jake's marvelous personality. Jake wants to do the right thing, always. He is very eager to please.