By Melinda Johnson, all rights reserved.
If you are interested in learning clicker training, you should prepare yourself before
you begin. Being an effective trainer is both a science and an art. It's a lot more than
just clicking at your bird and giving him treats. Clicker training your bird is a process
you build slowly and carefully, taking time to lay firm foundations on which to build
future progress. You'll find the benefits are astounding so it's worth it to take your
time to learn operant conditioning, the science behind clicker training, before you get
started. The clicker is a very powerful tool, so learn to use it to your benefit right
from the beginning.
Below is a step-by--step guide that will help you get off to the best start possible while
avoiding common newbie mistakes. These steps are meant to be followed in sequence.
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GETTING STARTED WITH CLICKER TRAINING
- Book mark and read the entire BirdClick web site at: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Acres/9154/
Start at the top and work your way down through each blue-colored link.
- Surf the clicker ring at the bottom of our home page and the web under "clicker
training". Learn all you can about clicker training while you wait for your clickers
to arrive.
- Order clickers and any books or videos you will want. We highly recommend Karen Pryor's
book, "Don't Shoot The Dog." This isn't a book about dogs. It's all about
understanding operant conditioning as it applies to animals and humans.
- Determine your bird's favorite treats and a way to deliver them. If your bird will not
calmly take treats from your hand, ask questions on the list about the best way to
approach the bird.
- Join the BirdClick email list. Read and save the BC Welcome File for future reference.
Read every post and ask questions about *everything* you don't understand. Post your
introduction as soon as you get a feel for the list. It's hard enough to learn clicker
training just by reading, so by all means take advantage of the list as you learn. We are
there to help make it easy
and fun for you.
- Condition your bird to a mouth click. ( one to three sessions)
- As soon as your clickers arrive, play *The Training Game* with family members or friends
(directions are on our web site). Take turns at being both the trainer and the trainee.
Being the trainee will help you to understand what your bird is experiencing when you're
training. Being the trainer will help you to learn the most effective timing of the click
for good communication. Share your experiences with the list.
- Practice your timing with the clicker. Have a friend toss a ball or beanbag in the air
and see if you can click just as it reaches the top of it's arc, before it begins to fall.
Practice makes perfect and good timing is essential.
- Condition your bird to the clicker. ( one to three sessions)
- Coordinate frequently with the BirdClick email list as you begin your training. This can
make the difference between easy success and stressful frustration for you.
- Keep a detailed training journal. This is especially important if you intend to train
more than one bird.
- Carefully plan each step of each session before you begin training your bird.
- Break each behavior into the tiniest "baby steps" that you can. Teach each
step in succession from very easy to a finished behavior.
- Make very sure that all training sessions are fun for both you and your bird. Rather
than being impatient to get to the end result, enjoy the process of getting there. You
will be spending quality time with your bird and you will both be learning. Have fun.
- Teach targeting first. The first behavior learned will become your bird's
"default" behavior and it's *very* important what default behavior you select.
Our years of experience have taught us that targeting is the best first lesson. Once your
bird has learned one target, try another one. Your bird should be taking many steps to
reach a target and be able to follow the target before these lessons can be considered to
be learned. Note: Be *sure* the first behavior you teach requires a prop. Otherwise, you
are very likely to create problems for yourself that you won't be able to solve.
- Shape a retrieve or any other behavior that requires a prop as your second taught
behavior. Get it on cue. You will continue to use targeting as a warm-up exercise at the
beginning of each new training session.
- Re-read the section of our web that discusses ways to get behaviors. Work your way
through teaching a different behavior from beginning to "on cue" using each of
the ways to teach a behavior. The list members can help you select a good behavior and a
way to teach it.
- After you've taught at least one behavior using each of the methods, you can feel free
to tackle problem or critical behaviors. You will find that once you reach this point many
"problem behaviors" will have dissolved on their own and your relationship with
your bird will be much better than when you first started. Please be sure to take
advantage of the list to guide you on your path both to ask questions and to brag about
your results!
NOTE: If you decide to vary from any of these guidelines, post to the list and discuss
your plans *before* you begin. This could save you a lot of headaches. Some variations
might be just fine. Others could get you off to a very shaky start. So do yourself a favor
and take advantage of the available resources so that you and your bird can get the most
enjoyment and benefit.
Melinda Johnson
click@surfree.com