Puppy does not offer behaviors . . .

[achieve1dream]

What do you do when you have been working with a puppy on clicker training for several weeks now and he is still not offering behaviors? I have used the lure method for getting him to sit, down, jump and turn around. Was that a mistake? Will he ever offer behaviors. If I sit and wait for him to offer something he either gets up and walks away or he barks constantly. Any advice?

 

[sarhaspups]

How old is he?
Are you saying 'sit' , 'down' ... when you are doing luring the trick? Be selective with your treats and rewards? Or use toys to your advantage. Will he offer a sit for a toy?
Just some thoughts......

 

[montsterdog]

Make sure you are keeping your training sessions short and using lots of really good rewards. At first you might have to click any behavior that is NOT sitting (if that is default behavior for your puppy).

This could be a fun game to get your puppy to offer behaviors:
http://www.clickertraining.com/node/167

By the way- your puppy is adorable!! :dogsmile: Have fun!

 

[achieve1dream]

When I trained him sit and down I started out not saying the word. I only added the word after he was doing it reliably. Now he does it reliably for voice or hand cue. I have been using kibble for when I am just reviewing what he already knows but I use liver treats when I am training him something new. I also have a special toy that he only gets to play with after a training session. I also try to always end a session on a good note.

I think maybe he has just gotten used to me using hand signals and lures. Or maybe he is too young? He is almost fourteen weeks. I thought puppies that age would offer behaviors. Unfortunately if I keep it too low key he walks away and loses interest, but if I get him amped up all he does is bark.

He has also recently started trying to bite my hands again, which is frustrating because I catch myself saying no (which he does know the meaning of, it isn't meaningless to him like it is for Storm because I have used it selectively) and I know you aren't supposed to scold when he does something wrong during clicker training.

When the barking or biting gets excessive I stand up and look away. Then he eventually stops barking and I click and treat if he is still sitting there. Most times though he walks away. Then it is hard to get his interest again.

I'm confused. I forgot how hard it was to raise a puppy. When Storm was a pup I had never even heard of clicker training.

 

[achieve1dream]

Thanks Montster, he is a cutie. What if his default behavior is barking? To I click whenever he is silent? And how long does he have to be silent before I click? I'm always afraid I am clicking too soon and he thinks I am clicking the bark, because he knows how to speak on command and has been clicked for it before. What do you think? I'm gonna check out the link. Thanks.

 

[achieve1dream]

How could I forget Karen's box game!! Thank you so much for the link. What a duh moment. This is how I got Storm started in clicker training because she was trained the conventional way. I can be so dumb. Thank you so much!

 

[montsterdog]

You could try clicking any moment your dog stops barking and then increase the time. It might help too if you play with your pup after he is quiet.

What I did with my puppy was to ignore her when she barked. You might be more successful if you can train your puppy in a confined area that has no distractions so your puppy can't self reward when he is being ignored. Or have him on leash so he can't leave.

 

[sarhaspups]

Have you taken him to puppy classes? 14 weeks is very young. But I think puppy classes would be a good thing to do. It will help get him socialized and it can also set a presedence for 'working' with you. You would also have the help of someone else. Just an idea.

 

[achieve1dream]

I am working on getting a specific room cleaned out to use as a training room (being used for storage right now) because there are too many distractions outside (where I have been training him). I checked in to puppy classes because I wanted a way of socializing him, but there is only one trainer in my whole town of over 25,000 people (and services over 80,000 in the area - insane) and they only use conventional methods. I'm not paying that kind of money to go have someone try to teach me what I already know. It is clicker training I need a little help with, not the old stuff. I will let you guys know how it goes with the box. Right now I have to go see my parents since tomorrow is mother's day. Thanks again guys.

 

[sarhaspups]

Maybe you can send us video of a training session and we can help you better with clicker training from what we can see you doing?
Have a great day!!

 

[fickla]

The box game is deffinetely a good place to start! But also, you just need to be really quick with your clicker and break things down into tiny steps. Don't be afraid to start with eye glances and then head turns to get something out of your dog. The biggest mistake most people make is not starting clicking right away; a great trainer starts clicking the smallest thing immediately and can quickly get complex behaviors out of a dog. Not that I am that great trainer, I am still working on following this advice myself!