ive just been out and brought one of thoes clickers, its said on the box hat you dont say ie (sit ect) is this what everybody elce does ?,dont want to confuse her as she knows that allready???

They do books on clicker training in pets at home that might be worth a look.

We have just finished a 6 week puppy class with clicker training. You apparantley should only say the word of the action after they have done it. e.g. if you're not sure that they will go 'down' then you shouldn't say it until the second they actually do it. So they go down and you click and treat and say 'down so and so, that's a good boy etc'. If you tell them the action and then they don't do it they will end up getting confused.

I'm not sure I understand your question!
Do you mean that you don't issue commands? It's true that you shouldn't use the command before the dog understands what is expected of it, it's best to use a lure and then reduce it to a hand signal, then you can introduce the word before the signal, which means the dog doesn't have a chance to just phase it out which most do if you repeatedly give them a command. With 'sit' people thinks it works because the dog realises the people are after something and sits to see if that will shut them up!

The clicker is an unambiguous signal to the dog that he's done something right, and makes it easier to get your timing right because you use it as a bridge between the behaviour and the treat. Sometimes by the time you've messed around getting a treat and giving to the dog, it's forgotten what it did to earn it.

Do a google search for clicker training, they'll be loads of sites which lots of information. It's a fantastic tool, I'm sure you'll have loads of fun teaching your dog all sorts of things!

Jo

ok ,say i show her the treat and point to her bum drawing my hand back she will sit ,say i point to the floor she will lie down ,im just unsure if i should say sit ect and when you recall should i say (come)???and when out walking do you say heel or just click when shes getting it right?

If she sit's and lies down whenever you give the hand signals you're using, then you can introduce the voice cue. Usually you give the voice cue, followed by the hand signal. After a while they know that the hand signal always follows the word, so respond to the word. When she does that you give her a jackpot treat.

For walking on a loose lead, you don't really need a command, because the dog needs to learn that it's the way to behave with the lead on.

Having said that, it's your dog, you do what you feel comfortable with, if you don't want to use voice cues, you don't have to, you're the one that lives with her!

Jo

The way most people start is to just stand still and watch the dog, when it sits, click and give a treat. After a few times the dog will start to sit and look for the treat, when this happens start to introduce the word sit as you click. Later the dog will sit the moment you start to work with him and then you try and get the sit in first as he sits. Best buy a book or go to classes, it is a wonderful tool and worth the effort to learn how to use it.

Pets at Home sell a very small booklet by Sarah Whitehead with a clicker set and it gives the information for clicker beginners beautifully and ina very straightforward way - maybe try getting it, its about a fiver i think...

Lindsay

The idea is to add a word to the action. But with true clicker training - or so i'm told - first you have to teach the action first. So once they realise that by luring the sit you want them to sit, i.e. after you have clicked and treated a few sits and they are now doing it automatically, you start saying sit when they do the action. To start with you say it during the action. So if they are doing a down you say the word when they start going down not before. Once they have learned that the word means that they have to lay down you can move it to before the action. I have to say though i tend to find myself adding the word to the action from the beginning, just a habit i suppose.