Clickers & Animal Training
Catherine J. Crawmer
Who needs a mechanical noise to train an animal? The answer is simple. You don’t need a clicker, whistle, buzzer or any other mechanical noise to train an animal. Can you train an animal with no mechanical noise and no verbal utterance at all? Yes! Can you train an animal in complete silence, giving only inaudible physical cues? Absolutely.
There is no magic in the noise put out by a hand held clicker toy or any other sound-producing device. So…………..what the heck is clicker training and what is everybody so excited about?
The clicker is simply a novel noise that is being used as an event marker. A whistle could be a marker as could a buzzer, a spoken word or noise, hand signal or body gesture. The clicker is currently an in vogue device being used as a marker in the process of training animals. Animals can be trained equally as well with any type of marker noise including a verbal sound or spoken word. The focus should be on positive reinforcement; beyond that it is just semantics.
Most of us use food at one time or another to train animals. You don’t need to train with food to use a marker but in the interests of simplicity I will go forth now with the premise that we are using food. Food is great! It’s motivating. But there are a couple of things wrong with it.
There is no one training animals that would argue with the fact that proper timing is imperative if one is going to make significant accomplishments training animals. If an animal executes something at a great distance there can be a slight or substantial delay in getting food reinforcement to him. If he is a very fast moving species or an animal moving very quickly it can be impossible to reward him at exactly the point we would like to. For instance, if we have an animal that has been hesitant to jump and then suddenly he does it, wouldn’t it be great to “pay” him at the moment of his takeoff? With the exclusive use of food or petting type rewards we can only reward him after he has landed. Can this be effective? Absolutely. Is it perfect timing? It is not.
What the clicker or any other event marker does is to pinpoint the exact second where the animal has done it, whatever it is. The marker, whichever type you choose to use, is first made important to the animal by pairing it with some reinforcement. We’re talking about food being the reinforcement now so I’ll just go with that. You would click and feed, click and feed, click and feed, or say “Good” and feed, “Good” and feed. Pick any marker you like. All you have to do is make a positive association with it to the point where the animal hears the marker and gets happy about it. Basically, when the animal hears, sees or feels the marker, depending on what marker you have chosen, he expects to eat. Some species can make this association with the marker in a few minutes some take longer. You have to do this basic work before you can make use of it.
After a few days, at the most no matter what species you are working with, you will click or whistle, or whatever, and the animal will stop what he is doing and come to you immediately for his reward. You have essentially established a communication with your animal that says, “You will be paid!” You have drawn the animal’s attention to a specific occurrence, behavior or “event”.
Let’s go back to the jumping animal. He wouldn’t jump. Maybe you had some trouble with it for whatever reason. Now suddenly he makes the jump and at the point of takeoff, while he is in the air, he hears his “You will be paid” signal. By the use of your marker you have effectively communicated to the animal what part of his action was the part that will get him paid. Yes, he has to land and you will feed him at that point. However, he knew he would be paid at the exact moment you wanted him to know it. What the marker has given you is a way to perfect timing.
Obviously, this is a simplified explanation of training an animal with an event marker. It is important to note that used in this context a clicker is NOT a cue to do something. Any audible, tactile, visual or olfactory stimulus can be used as a cue and any audible, tactile, visual or olfactory stimulus can be used as an event marker.
No piece of equipment or list of terminology makes one a competent animal trainer. Like any other professional, practitioners should be judged by the work they put forth. Obviously, if you are getting results that give you a happy and consistent working animal you are doing your job. The clicker or other event marker is just another tool in the toolbox of the progressive professional.
Copyright 1997
What Can A Trainer Learn From “Other” Species
Catherine J. Crawmer
Quite a bit can be learned from training no matter what species we are handling. The fact is that most people, including professionals, concentrate only on one species. Not only do they concentrate on one species but most are training for one specific purpose with that single species. Someone may be training a house cat to have him behave well in the home. Take that same trained house cat and get him to perform in the yard, in someone else’s house or in front of a crowd and you have a whole different set of training problems brought into the mix. Additional challenges are quickly seen when the trainer has a new set of criteria.
When people join clubs, computer elists or read training articles or books they commonly seek out people who agree with them. It certainly is not unique to training animals. We all feel a sense of camaraderie with those who agree with our own prospective. In these forums the information is likely limited, repetitious and coming from sources who have as their own base of information just this one philosophy, ideology or methodology.
At a certain level of experience it is wise to seek all the information possible from a source that interests you. Don’t forget anything you have learned but I recommend that you move on when the information tends to become repetitious. Seek out other ideas and purposefully listen to those who you do not agree with. Read their books, get on their elists and read their articles. Learn as much as you can about who they are, what they are doing and why they are doing it. Pay close attention to the results they are obtaining. More than likely you will learn something that you can use. If you cannot use it now, maybe you will someday, and if not with this animal, maybe another. At the very least you will be able to intelligently discuss, in an informed manner, what you agree or disagree with and why.
Don’t limit this process to your chosen species. Anybody who has trained any animal to do or not do something has training information. If that person is willing to tell me what he has learned I consider it a privilege that he will take the time to share it with me.
I have used information over the years that I never thought I would because I was faced with a unique situation or specific animal and something I had learned became unexpectedly appropriate and relevant.
Copyright 2002
Aggressive Dogs
Crawmer’s Animal Training has been handling aggressive dogs and dangerous dogs for more than 40 years. While it was never meant to be our specialty it became our specialty because the need is so prevalent and there are so very few professionals prepared or willing to handle it.
Sadly, many dogs are euthanized needlessly when an in depth analysis and a comprehensive program would have made all the difference.
It is widely understood and accepted that guard dogs, protection dogs and military dogs are aggressive. It is also true that any high level sport dog is aggressive, including hunting dogs, tracking dogs and agility dogs. Aggressive temperaments are more than acceptable, such a temperament can often make the difference between an excellent and poor prospect when looking for the right dog for a particular job. It is common to erroneously conclude that aggressive dogs are inherently bad. In fact, an aggressive dog may be exactly what is needed. Trained for the job at hand, by a person who knows how to accomplish that training, an aggressive dog can be a star performer. The same dog in the wrong hands may be euthanized for the same aggression …..aimed in the wrong direction.
An aggressive dog with no training or poor training can be a logistical and legal nightmare for the person responsible for its actions. Such a dog can be a threat to public safety. Although surprising to many people, the exact same dog may be fine in one environment and downright dangerous in another. Dogs may be aggressive only toward dogs that are strangers to them, only dogs in their own household, only cats that are strangers to them, only cats in their own household, only small pets that are strangers to them, only small pets in their own household and only wildlife. Some dogs are aggressive toward all other animals at all times.
Dogs may show aggression only toward persons who are strangers, only family members, only men, only women or only children. They may show aggressive tendencies only at the groomer or only at the veterinarian’s office. Dogs may show aggression only when food is present, only when a toy is present or only in a particular location. Some dogs are aggressive toward all people at all times but this is surprisingly rare
Dogs bite, threaten to bite or engage in fights for many reasons. The list of criteria may seem confusing and random…. but it is neither! The causation is elusive and predictability uncertain only if you don’t understand what you are seeing. These reasons must be identified before any attempt to alter the behavior is implemented.
Attempting to deal with dangerous aggressive behavior and/or progressive aggression behavior in the wrong way can intensify the problem. Dog aggression is serious. Doing nothing is, at the very least, problematic. If you observe traits that you are uncomfortable with, please don’t wait, act immediately. Crawmer’s Animal Training will help you.
Call for further information: (518) 477-8230
Catherine Crawmer is a noted speaker and teacher on the subject of dangerous dogs and dog behavior.
After the Nov 1997 murder of nursing student of Jenna Grieshaber inside her Albany apartment police were delayed at her door by Ms. Grieshaber's own dog. The New York State Humane Association held a seminar for police agencies and dog control professions on dog behavior in which Catherine Crawmer addressed the subject of identifying the body language of dogs, determining the level of threat and controlling and removing dangerous dogs.
In 2003 she joined a panel of experts including Assemblyman Paul Tonko, Former State Police Investigator Susan McDonough, and others at Albany Law School to address pit bulls and public safety.
In 2010 and 2011 Catherine conducted a seminar for animal control officers hosted by the New York State Dept of Agriculture and Markets Dept on the subject of recognizing and handling dangerous dogs.
In 2012 James Seror of Pittstown was mauled by two loose dogs leaving him in critical condition. The evaluation of the dogs was done by Catherine Crawmer for Pittstown Town Court. The behavior of two of the dogs was so dangerous that the town's dog control officer was unable to move them to the veterinarian. Catherine Crawmer and Glenn Stevans transported these two animals demonstrating the skillful use of state of the art equipment and techniques while protecting public safety.
In May of 2013 Catherine will conduct another seminar hosted by the New York State Dept of Agriculture and Markets on the subject of the New York State Dangerous Dog Law (Article 7 Sec. 123) from complaint, to and through the court system and the role of the Dog Control Officer.
