Are Yorkie's typically hard to train?

[ALAYorkie]

Can you use the clicker method to potty train? can you give me an example of how you would do that? This might be a stupid question, but I've never had a dog before and I've never trained anything, so I'm trying to learn before I get my puppy.

Thanks!!

Jaime

[yorkipower]

Yes you can. In fact, you can pretty much use clicker training anywhere you would say "yes! good dog!"

The trick with clicker training is to break down whatever you are trying to teach, the behavior, in this case, going potty, into as many small steps as you can so that the dog knows when he is on the right track.

What you need to do first is decide what your "end behavior" is going to be? This will depend in your case on a few things: are you going to train your dog to a wee-wee pad? Are you going to train him to ask to be let out into the backyard? Are you going to walk him?

Let's say, for instance you are going to take him for walks. Well, there are few behaviors, although related, you will probably want to teach separately. I have taught my dog to do his "thing" on command (YES, YOU CAN DO THIS!). When I say in a very high silly voice "make pee pee!" he is to go sniff, find his spot, and do #1 or #2 (the command stands for both), as needed. The way I taught him to do this was as follows:

I know he will generally lift his leg when I bring him to a tree, even if he's only doing it to mark his territory. So the first time, I brought him to a tree, he lifted his leg, I clicked. Gave him a cookie. Took him to another tree, he lifted he squatted, I clicked, gave him a cookie. Now, I added the command. The following day (he had emptied out his bowels so we had to wait for the next opportunity), I took him back to the first tree (the fact that he had already marked this tree was added incentive to do it again), made my "MAKE PEE -PEE" command, he pooed, I clicked gave him the treat. Believe me, it wasn't long before he "got it." At that point, the "make pee pee" command was rewarding enough, so I didn't have to use the clicker and treat anymore.

The next step was to get him to signal to me that he needed to be taken for a walk. This is a separate behavior from the actual "act." What I needed to do is get him to associate the closet with his leash, his leash with going out, and going out with making pee-pee. This is was REALLY easy to do. I brought him to the closet where we keep the leashes, and took his leash out (already he was excited). I said "do you want to go out?" He started bouncing up and down. I put the leash on him and we went out (the actual act of going out was the reinforcement, could have given him a cookie and click but this wasn't necessary for my overly eager dog). Please notice that clicker training isn't really about the clicker, its about reinforcing behaviors you want to continue.

I did this many more times, until he began to associate "do you want to go out?" with the closet opening and his being taken out. The next time, I sat in the kitchen and asked " do you want to go out?" I was meaning then to walk over to the closet and show him the leash, but I didn't need to - he raced over there! So we upt the anti - this time I went into the den, and asked do you want to go out? And guess what he did? He began to associate his signal of running to the closet as his sign to me that he needed to be taken out (we now also have a similar sign for the back door).

We started a routine then. If I was on the sofa watching TV, he'd come and "get me" (I trained him to think for himself - trained me, you see). I'd say "do you want to go out?" and there was always a clear answer "yes" by his running to that closet for me to get the leash (he even lowers his head now so I can slip the leash on him - no, I Didn’t teach him to do that!). Then we go out, and I say "make pee-pee" - Two minutes and we're done.

This is only a suggestion on how I did it. Once you become familiar with clicker training, you'll see a dozen different ways to use the clicker to potty train. Any one else here use clicker training for potty training? Would love if you added your method to this post!?

I recommend "Quick Clicks" as a good beginner's book. Here's an even simpler shorter read to get you started: Karen Pryor (Sunshine Books) has a book called "Dog and Dolphin" its a thin pamphlet sized book that just gives you the bare "how to" of clicker training. A video series I absolutely LOVE is called “Take a Bow Wow” Here’s the website: http://www.takeabowwow.com/

Great, quality videos that really show you how to do clicker training, even if you don’t have a trainer to work with. I think they do a great job of showing how behaviors are broken down into small steps and how to conceptualize what your end behaviors should be (if you don’t know what is you ultimately want your dog to be doing, how should he?)

[fozzybear]

I think I understand the concept behind clicker training, but what happens when you forgett/misplace the clicker????

As a point a reference, we have been able to train our Fozzy through positive reinforcement and no aids. At a little under a 12 months old and he can go without a leash and obey on command. We've even been working on this with another dog in the yard next door and he's coming along well (although our tactics are underhanded "treat" command.) I do not advocate a dog not on a leash, I only do this in a highly controled environments.....

[yorkipower]

Hello Fuzzy:

The reason my dog must be able to work off leash is because he does agility and earthdog competitions, both which involve working off lead. Since I do not have enough property to train in my own backyard, we have to be able train in parks and at training facilities were there are other people, dogs and traffic. A solid recall is fundamental because for him, it’s a matter of life and death.

A dog is not fully clicker trained until he can work without a clicker. The clicker is just an implement to reinforce the behavior to clue the dog into what you are trying to teach him during the teaching phase (in training there’s a teaching phase and a proofing phase). Clicking is the same as saying “yes! That’s right” in a quick and consistent fashion (people’s voices and intonation change, and it take longer to say “good dog” than it does to click. That’s really the only true advantages to using a clicker). Ultimately, whether you are doing agility, dog obedience, or training to potty, you want your dog to work without needing constant reinforcement. So you move to a “Variable” reinforcement. Meaning, you don’t reward every time your dog does it right, nor do you reward only the third time he does it right, you “vary” the reinforcement so that your dog doesn’t know when it is coming.

To start training, it is not necessary to have a clicker. Almost any marker that you can use that will give a consistent and fast signal will work. Dolphin trainers use a whistle, with one of my dogs I also use a lip smacking “kiss” noise (I can use this on an agility course and the judge doesn’t know I just “clicked” my dog).

[fozzybear]

Excellent, that clairifies the whole "clicker" training process.

I think I was misunderstood a bit, my reference of not recomending to have the dog off of the leash was simply to clarify my statment on what I have been able to do with my dog.

That's Fozzy BTW.

[yorkieagility]

The sequence of clicker training is: First you give the command, second the dog does it, third you "click" the clicker and finally the treats.

Well if you don't have a clicker and you say "sit" the dog will SIT because he will anticpate the "click" and the reward afterward even if it isn't there.

The clicker can be easily replace with a command such as "good boy" or "yes" but the clicker is a clearer and consistent signal.

I hope that answer your question.

[yorkipower]

Sorry about the misundertanding Fozzy. I thought you were asking why I needed to use harsher training techniques to stop my dog from chaising cars. My fault, not yours.