Training Animals with a Clicker: Teaching Animals to Respond to Signals

This is a term for a particular branch of operand conditioning. That's the complicated explanation. The simple one is it is a method of establishing a signal that means, "YES". Beginning the C/T process is a matter of familiarizing yourself with the equipment and terms. You also need to know how to turn on, or teach the YES.

A clicker is a small device that makes a sharp clicking sound that can be heard a considerable distance. Some animals will jump away from it at first. Some animals will never get used to the sound. With an animal that has such a reaction you need to find a different signal to use. A whistle, a word or some sound you can make consistently but not usually is what you need to find and use. Once you have established it as a YES signal though it is a handy way to tell your animal exactly when it has done what you want it to do.

You begin teaching that a click, or alternative sound or signal, means YES by having everything ready. You have a vest or pouch full of treats. You have a clicker, or you've decided on a sound that means YES. I use the tip of my tongue against the roof of my mouth to make a clicking sound. It is distinct from the cluck or kiss sounds that some people make to get horses to go.

I will give my example using a horse but this works just as well with a dog, cat or even a goldfish. You hand your horse a treat. The treat should be something you know your horse really likes. This can vary a lot. One horse will only take grain while another will do anything if a carrot is involved. I had a TB mare that would never touch anything sweet.

When the horse takes the treat and begins chewing click. Give it another treat. Let it begin chewing. Click.

Next time click as soon as it gets the food in its mouth. Repeat this step a couple of times. Only repeat the steps three to five times. Any more repetitions only works against you. Move on.

The next step is click as the horse is lipping up its goody. Repeat a couple of times before going to the next step.

This time you click just before the horse starts to take the treat. Repeat several times.
Next, click before the horse gets near the treat. When you reach the point where you click and the horse "starts" and begins searching for the treat he is clicker trained.

Now you can use that click to tell the horse it's doing something right and a goody will be coming in a minute.

The sharp clicking sound also has an unusual side benefit for animals. When a farrier nips a horse's hooves there is frequently a sharp clicking sound. If a horse is being trimmed for the first time it may startle and try to jump away form the farrier. If clicker trained you have the case of the horse looking for its treat. Granted it may put its foot down, but this is not anywhere near the panicky pulling away some green horses do the first time they hear the hoof nippers in action.

A big question that is always asked is "Will I have to keep giving my horse treats ever few seconds forever?"

The answer is simple a simple no. Why? Because, as you extend the chain of events, the horse has to work longer and harder, for its treat. Eventually he may be working upwards of an hour to earn one carrot. You don't get there right away, but you can get to that point in an amazingly short amount of time.