More life lessons from applying the philosophy of clicker training — to your dog, and to yourself.
Improves Our Eye/Hand Coordination
The mechanical skills used in marker training can be learned. Our timing gets better with practice. So does our sense of where to place the reward to set our dog up for success. We get better at using the equipment. We fine-tune our motor and brain muscles for life’s other activities.
Builds Creativity and Resourcefulness in Both Us and Our Dogs
We can teach our dog to be creative when it comes to learning new behaviours and interacting with us in different ways. And we learn to be creative in applying the principles of marker training to training our service dogs — and to life.
Many people with disabilities think resources are in short supply when in fact they aren’t using their creativity to use what’s around them to the fullest. Being resourceful is empowering!
More Than One Way to Get There From Here
There are many ways to teach behaviours and skills to service dogs — and all of them can be positive. Dogs often don’t do what we think they will, but we can take what they offer and work from there. Our training plans may take a zag where we thought they would go straight.
When we learn to adapt our teaching, we find we can also apply that adaptability to our lives. Life doesn’t always go as planned — and in many cases, the zag can mean better things for us, if we go with it rather than stick rigidly to the original plan.
Go with it! You can still get where you want to go — just find a different way.
How the Brain Works
In order to help our dog learn to assist us in the world, we learn what happens when fear is triggered and how it inhibits learning. We learn what is needed to create environments where our dog can learn quickly and easily — so he can help us.
If we experience anxiety, emotional difficulties, or high stress, we learn from our dogs what we can do to help ourselves better function in the world.
The World Isn’t Just About Us
When we really learn to apply the principles of marker training, we learn that our dog has needs and wants just as we do. Our dog also sees things differently than we do.
From there, we start considering other perspectives. We don’t have to agree or disagree — we just acknowledge that their view may differ from ours. That’s okay. Their history and experience are different from ours, and that gives them a different view, be they canine or human.
Process Is More Important Than the Product
Whether we are training our dog basic life skills, public access, or specific service dog tasks, nothing is more important than the process. We spend about 99% of our time working towards goals. If we only enjoy the actual moment of achievement, we are missing out on the largest part of the goal.
To keep our dog and ourselves moving forward, the process needs to be fun and enjoyable. If it’s not, we stop doing it.
The process is how we build relationships and strengthen trust.
Join the Conversation
What lessons have you learned from taking up marker training? We’d love to hear from you.
