I am trying to clicker train one of my dogs to put his chin on to my upturned palm.

After a few goes at whacking me with his paws (ouch!) he will briefly touch my palm with his chin.  What's the best way to extend the time that he keeps it there?  He really seems intent on just sort of "brushing" my hand.  Should I withhold the click fractionally ... it would have to be fractionally, otherwise he goes into his turn upside down, wave paws, etc routine.  Should I have started by teaching him to touch the floor with his chin?

Any tips gratefully received - thank you!  :-)

To get the duration you need to withhold the click.  At first he will pull off and go back on, start by clicking him for that to start with, then withhold it until he keeps it there for a bit longer, gradually build up from there.

At the moment he seems unsure that chin in hand is what you want as he is offering a paw.  So until he is completely happy with touching your hand without offering anything else, don't move on to the above.  Put your hand into different positions to test that he knows what he should be doing.  If he offers a paw, withdraw the hand and fold your arm turning away from him.  Then start again.

just curious - is this just for stimulation or is there a purpose to chin on hand.  Never heard of it before - no reason why I should have though as I've only just started training.  Just wondered if it was part of a show piece or something..
Max

He's a rescue dog with an issue about hands in some situations and it's just part of building confidence between us.

Some people say that it helps with the retrieve - it helps the dog to locate your hand when holding something large.

Thank you Sandrah, you are right - I must wait until the paws stop before I can think about anything else.  I don't want to end up training repeated touches of the hand though ... pass me the glue ... :-D

Harrumph.  Why doesn't it ever go to plan?  Today we definitely ruled out the paws, so then tentatively began withholding click.  So we got licking, nibbling and nose underneath the hand before he finally settled in pushing the point of his nose into my palm and inhaling deeply ... arghhhhhhhhhhh. :-D

If he licks, take the hand away, pause, then offer it again.

You might do better holding the palm of the hand so he touches that, rather then trying to get him to use his chin.  Try putting your hand flat against a wall so he can't barge it.

Another tip if you are not already doing it, look at your hand, not at the dog.

He will get it, trust me :D

Just had a thought.

I think he wants to go nose down because he actually is hoping for food in the outstretched hand.  With his nose downwards he would be able to sniff out a piece of food lurking there and potentially also see it.  To use his chin he would have to be looking beyond my hand and this is why we are struggling.

I chose the chin because I thought it would be more natural for him to rest like that (as they will rest their chin on the floor or on your knee) rather than maintain contact with his sensitive nose.  Silly me! 

There is another way which is to teach them to put their chin on the floor, then put a small piece of cloth underneath and get them used to that and then put the cloth on your hand.  It sounded like the long way round but I can now see the merits of it! :-)

Don't forget to feed your treats with the hand you are not asking to be touched.  The touch hand should not smell of food, otherwise they will lick.