Clicker training
 

I'm clicker training our 12 weeks old cocker and have found that her treats are actually make her super hyper! They are store bought and even though I tear them into tiny pieces and she is learning, it's very slow because after 5 mins she acts like I gave her cat nip so all training is done. Does anyone have anything that they make themselves for treat/clicker training?

We do take her for a short walk before training.

Sounds like the dog just needs to drain more energy. A short walk may just not be doing the trick. Without knowing your circumstance, try a 10min jog or bike ride. In the dog world the pack starts its day by waking up, stretching, then traveling at a brisk pace being in hunt mode or travel mode. In travel mode it releases ant pent up energy, then they eat( hopefully) but your objective is to have the dog release any energy it has stored. You'll find the dog more attentive once the energy is released. Hope this helps :)

[QUOTE=3 Laughing Dogs;1009363]Sounds like the dog just needs to drain more energy. A short walk may just not be doing the trick. Without knowing your circumstance,[B] [COLOR="Red"]try a 10min jog or bike ride[/COLOR].[/B] In the dog world the pack starts its day by waking up, stretching, then traveling at a brisk pace being in hunt mode or travel mode. In travel mode it releases ant pent up energy, then they eat( hopefully) but your objective is to have the dog release any energy it has stored. You'll find the dog more attentive once the energy is released. Hope this helps :)[/QUOTE]

Definitely NOT with a 12 weeks puppy, he's too young to run on hard surface for 10 minutes.

A 10-15 minutes romp in the grass is fine though.

I doubt it's your treats, my thought is it's the clicker itself! If your puppy is enjoying her lessons that much, congratulations, you're doing an excellent job!

It would be if she would pay attention, and she does, at first. Shes very attentive (same as on her walks) but after about 5 mins with these treats she's jumping around, running with her butt tucked under, laying on her back trying to nibble on things and jerky, erradict movements. We've been using them a week after switching to these treats (from another store bought brand she didn't like) and just need something different and figured I would go more organic which is healthier for both of them. My other dog won't eat them.


Thanks for everything but I will look up treats online instead of trying to see what other people may have made. Which is what I thought would have been better for her if people actually made treats themselves and could tell me how it works for them and what they use. I'll just research on my own and see what works for us. :-)

I'm curious as to your previous experience with clicker training. Was it a different breed you trained previously, or have you taken class with an instructor?

Personally when I clicker-train, I use pieces of my dogs' own kibble, and when I work with other people and their dogs I encourage them to do the same. To make sure a puppy has an appetite, don't feed them for 2-3 hours before the session.

Your pup sounds like she is really enjoying training, which is great.

What is happening is your reinforcer is too distracting for a young pup and you're going for too long for a 12 wk old pup.

Find a treat that is good, not GREAT (too distracting) and keep sessions less then 5 mins, she's telling you that 5 mins is her limit.

My border collie pup could only do 5 min sessions until about 5-6 months before she could actually concentrate on the task at hand. Pups are all over the place, as they should, they're taking in the world!!!

Have fun with it! Try to call it quits before she does, leave her always wanting more training!