For clicker training to become the peoples' choice, to reach the mainstream of America, clicker trainers need to recognize that we are up against a deep-seated cultural bias, one that severely limits pet owners' expectations from dog training. Our task is to help people replace that narrow vision with a broader vision and higher expectations, with "something more." We can do it if we can show people that clicker training uniquely delivers that "something more." With me? Keep reading.
Just for Professional Trainers
Become Your Business's Chief Medical Officer
By Aaron Clayton on 01/01/2005The operating health of your training business can be powerfully assessed in 15 minutes by applying a few familiar concepts in new ways. You may not want to try brain surgery quite yet, but you'll be able to assess how well your business is performing, what its intrinsic growth limits are, and what the payoff could be from any improvements you may make.
Host a Clicker Training Seminar
By KPCT on 01/01/2005Seminars featuring other top clicker trainers can be profitable, enhance your reputation as a top educational facility, and strengthen the bond with your customer.
Defining Common Ground
By Melissa Alexander on 11/01/2002What does "positive training" mean? If I polled fifty professional trainers, I would get fifty different answers. That's fifty active members of the dog training community-and very likely most, if not all, would profess to practice it.
So what? As long as each has his own definition, does it matter if it's not exactly like someone else's? Yes. It matters because without a standard, agreed-upon definition, trainers can't communicate with each other, and it matters because we've given clients no clear way to define or ask for what they want.
The Training Game: A New Perspective
By Laura Monaco Torelli on 09/01/2010Tell me why?
“My dog loves to eat his kibble while training at home. I am so surprised that he will not eat it in the group sessions.”
“Our dog stays motivated and focused for training when the house is quiet. But as soon as there are distractions, she does not want to eat the kibble.”
“Why does my puppy focus so well for the trainers during classes? She really seems to enjoy her interactions with them.”
Professional trainers hear comments like these from our dog teams every day. Owners are completely baffled as to why their puppies or dogs refuse to focus on them amid the distractions of daily life. How can this be, they wonder? Their dogs love the dog food at breakfast and dinner, so there should be no need to introduce new treats. These owners truly believe that feeding kibble is reinforcing in any environment.
