Finger Clicker

Trixie Finger Clicker Training

Let the Training Begin with this Practical Clicker!

With this practical clicker you can start training. The clicker has a pleasant shape and fits nicely in the hand. Thanks to the special loop, the clicker can easily be attached to the finger. The tone of the clicker is consistent, so that the animals always hear the same to hear sound. This is necessary for proper training.

Training your rodent is not just about teaching the animal something, but it is mainly about playing together. Rodents and rabbits are intelligent animals that like a challenge and they learn surprisingly quickly!

✔ Effective training with the sound signal method
✔ Always at hand, as it can be worn around the finger with a loop
✔ Suitable for dogs, cats, rabbits and birds

The clicker is an excellent tool for the education and training of your animal. Clicker training is not age-related, it works with puppies/young animals as well as with adult animals. In order for clicker training to be successful, it is very important , to click at the right time.

This is how animals learn (Dog as an example)

Animals learn by trying things out and by directly rewarding desired behavior and ignoring undesired behavior. If an action by the animal is followed by a reaction from the owner with a delay of a few seconds, for example, the animal no longer understands it, even if there are but a few seconds between. It should also be clear that – even if your dog walks away from you – playing with another dog means a reward. That is why it is very important to ensure that unwanted behavior is prevented as much as possible Instead, teach him alternative behavior step by step. For example, if another dog comes into view, your dog must make eye contact with you for a moment before you allow him to play—or even to to go away from you. Even with a dog that has been allowed to decide for itself for years whether to walk towards another dog to play, this behaviour can still be changed with the right training. Crucial in the upbringing is that you clicks at the moment that the dog shows the desired behavior and for that you now have a handy tool, the
clicker.

The basic principle of clicker training

Imagine the following situation: someone waves a €50 note in front of you and says: "Follow me to the market and don't let go of the note. When we get there, the money is yours. .” You participate and at the market you receive the note as a reward. Now imagine that you are back at the place of departure. Would you still know the way to the market? No. You have the
the whole time you only looked at the note and have no idea how you got to the market. However, before your first attempt, someone would have told you at the place of departure that you had found a €50 note at the market, 00, if you could find your way there, you would have started out just as motivated. Maybe you would have taken a few wrong turns, but eventually you would have arrived at the market – and you would have way there again and again. Clicker training works according to this principle. Your animal goes through the exercises step by step. This way he learns what exactly is intended and he can repeat it.

The jackpot

A clicker is like playing lotto. The animal never knows whether he will win the main prize on the next try, the jackpot so to speak. That could be a mega portion of super tasty treats or a filled food bowl, exuberant playing or an extra pat on the head - the jackpot is what your animal loves most. The jackpot is important so that clicking remains interesting for your animal. Use it sparingly, i.e. at about every thirtieth "click!".

This is how it works

"Click!" means to your pet: "I like what you are doing now. You may stop and receive a reward." First, of course, your pet must learn what the "click!" means to him. Take small cut super treats (pea-sized), a clicker and the dog. For the first training hour, choose a space with as few stimuli as possible, so preferably indoors rather than outdoors. To prevent the animal from being startled by the sound of the clicker, click you in the beginning alone, if the clicker is in your pocket or if you hold it in your hand with a towel wrapped around your hand. 1st exercise: press the clicker once, take a reward treat and give it to your animal. Repeat this 15 to 20 times. Say nothing at all. For example, if your dog barks or jumps up at you, ignore it. If he tries to steal the food, do not allow it. The exercise should be repeated the next day. Your animal should now have understood: after every “click!” a reward follows. The previously meaningless sound of the clicker now becomes the predictor of a reward for your animal. This sequence applies at all times: “click! ”, hand to the food, food to the animal. Never click, to get the animal's attention or to call him to you. Now your animal must learn, that he can control the "click!" with his behavior himself. He learns to focus on what you expect of him.

Basic training

The first exercise is the "watch me!" or "look!" exercise. With this exercise your animal learns to focus its full attention on you by making eye contact. Later, you can use this exercise in any situation to draw your dog's attention to you. This will only work if your animal has fully mastered the "watch me!" exercise. Put a leash on your dog to prevent him from wandering off. Hold the leash loosely in your hand or stand with one foot on the handle. Put the food in your pocket or put it behind you out of reach of your dog.

1. “Watch me”

You will now have to be very patient. Without you saying anything to him, your dog will learn to make eye contact with you. In the beginning, your dog will sometimes look away. With every
small movement that the dog makes with his head in your direction, you indicate with the clicker that he is on the right track: dog moves his head, "click!", food. Set small intermediate goals, that ensures that you and your dog will achieve more success. The easier it is for the dog to achieve the intermediate goals, the more enthusiastic he will be during the exercise. Do not expect too much from your dog. Practice only one step at a time during each session. This means : in the first training session the goal is that your dog moves his head. This session should be repeated 10 to 15 times. After that it gets a bit more difficult: your dog has to make eye contact with you, to get a “click!” plus reward to get. After this exercise has been repeated several times, it can be made a bit more difficult: the dog takes a step towards you and makes eye contact with you. There is a “click!” and a reward. Practice for no longer than three minutes one after the other and only once a day: preferably not immediately after a meal. The filled food bowl after the last “click!” of a session – instead of a single reward treat – can be the jackpot.

The Command

First, the dog must have mastered an exercise before it is given a name. Up until now, your dog has learned to make brief eye contact with you after you have started the training session. If you are sure that your dog dog has understood that it is about looking and that is why he repeats it over and over again, go a step further and make the distraction bigger. Practice in the garden instead of in the house, then while walking and finally also with other dogs. Important: if the distraction is too great, so that your dog no longer looks at you, go back to the previous step and practice with less distraction. As soon as your dog likes to do an exercise despite a lot of stimuli and repeatedly, the next step can be taken. No longer click after every eye contact, but after every second eye contact, then after every third and then again every time. Alternate this. As soon as your dog also performs the desired behavior with a lot of stimuli and If you demonstrate alternating reinforcement of the clicker over and over again, you can give the exercise a name. So you are telling your dog what it is called and what he does all the time.

When your dog looks at you again, give the command (e.g. "watch!" or "look!"), then click and a treat follows. Of course, this step must also be repeated several times before you can assume that that your dog has associated the exercise with the command. Because he has worked towards the end result of the exercise all by himself, by first only turning his head and finally making eye contact with you, he knows exactly how the fork in the handle and he will eventually perform the exercise on command.

At a later stage it also goes without food.

After you have diligently practiced the command, you will no longer need the clicker – for this exercise. Now you can get the dog to show the desired behavior with just the command – without “click!” and without food. If you later on in the training If you click again, remember that every “click!” is followed by a reward.

2. “Follow”

If your dog pulls you behind him while you are walking him, you are teaching him to walk on a loose leash. This exercise can also be divided into several intermediate goals. If your dog pulls, just stand still and wait. Your dog will be surprised look back and for that he gets a “click!” and food. Your dog has now noticed that there is someone else on the other side of the line. Every time the line gets tight, you stop. At a certain point moment it is no longer sufficient that the dog only turns around to achieve the intermediate goal. The next “click!” only follows when your dog not only turns his head, but also his body. After that your dog is expected to , that he takes a step towards you himself, before a “click!” and a treat follows. After several training sessions, your dog will walk next to you on a loose leash. From now on, only a “click!” and food follows, when your dog walks next to you. The “following” is perfect, when your dog is also looking at you attentively.

3. “Off”

Learning to lie down on command is also an important exercise. Hide a few treats under your flat hand. Your dog will certainly find this interesting and will get the first “click!” for looking at your hand. Then lift your hand so that he can get to his reward. Then it continues with new reward treats under the hand. Now your dog has to work more intensively with your hand, to get the next “click!”. In the next step your dog sits and fishes with his paw for the food. These are two important intermediate goals on the way to "finished!". While your dog tries to reach the food with his paw, pull your hand back a bit. Your dog follows with his paw and is now almost there: "click!" and reward treat follow. If there is no more "click!",
your dog try something new. He will lie down. Perfect!

After a few times, you no longer need to put food under your hand. Your flat hand is the signal for your dog to lie down. With each new training session, hold your flat hand a little higher and you can give the command "down !” then also link it to it.

4. “Here”

For the exercise "here" you need a leash of about eight to ten meters long. The exercise is best performed with the necessary distraction around it. As soon as your dog looks at you, a "click!" follows, including a reward. Net As with walking on a loose leash, expect your dog to turn around at the next step.

Later, a “click!” will follow, when your dog takes a step towards you. In each subsequent training session, he should come a lot closer to you until he finally sits in front of you full of expectation. The most suitable reward jackpot for this exercise is the command “free!”.

5. “Fetch”

A fun trick that can also be very useful is bringing objects. If you want, you can teach your dog to bring your phone or slippers on command. Initially, a “click!” follows for showing interest in e.g. the line. Later your dog has to pick up the line, if he wants to earn the next reward treat. In a next training session your dog has to walk a little bit towards you with the line in his mouth. Retrieving is perfect, if your dog brings the leash all the way to you.

The main points

The different steps in which you can achieve the desired behavior of your
animal you can practice using the clicker, we have done it again
main points summarized:

1. Think about what your animal needs to learn.
2. Break the exercise down into small intermediate goals.
3. Go through a maximum of one intermediate goal with your animal per training session.
4. Don't forget to bet a jackpot every now and then. The training must remain interesting.
5. Build up the exercises with more and more stimuli.
6. Switch to variable reinforcement.
7. Link a command to it.

We wish you and your animal lots of fun and success with the different exercises. Make sure you set small intermediate goals to achieve the desired main goal. In this way you educate your animal in a playful way and the bond between you is strengthened. Save