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Clicker Training Dogs: DVDs Make It Easier |
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Clicker training dogs can go much faster if you learn from DVDs, or of course from a teacher if one is available... I've learned much of what I know about clicker training dogs from these dog DVDs (well, actually back when these things were on video) plus my own practice. O this page, I review Karen Pryor's Clicker Magic and two delightful DVDs from Virginia Broitman & Sherri Lippman. I've included links to Dogwise, but did not find these DVDs at Amazon. Karen Pryor: Clicker Magic!
In this 55 minute DVD, she teaches you everything you need to quickly start clicker training dogs! Some twenty demonstrations by Karen and other trainers provide you with lots to play with yourself... See clicker training in action with dogs of course, but also with cats and other animals. This was the first program on clicker training dogs that I used. I was so enthusiastic about it that I lent it out and lost track of it. Luckily, I had watched it a lot of times before that happened. It's at Dogwise for $29.95. Virginia Broitman & Sherri Lippman: Take a Bow... Wow / Bow Wow Take 2 (DVD made from 2 videos)
If so, Take a Bow... Wow! might be just your cup of tea. I first watched it on a dreary winter day when my mood was lower than the temperature, and almost immediately, I was giggling... and learning. Virginia Broitman & Sherri Lippman teach you how to get a dog to touch a wand with his nose, and then they draw on this to show a dog learning to push a ball with his nose and close the door with his nose. Next comes a segment on teaching a dog to push on a bell that's hanging on the door that leads to the yard where the dog goes potty, so you could let him out if he needed to go. I kept thinking that my dogs would also use this as a way to tell me they wanted to go out and play. This possibility was addressed by the advice to keep outdoor playtime separate from potty time. I don't see any reason to separate these activities, except briefly when housetraining a puppy, so if I used this procedure, I would just use it for any "I want to go out" communication from the dog. In another segment, they show how to teach a dog to wave, once it can already shake hands. Their "Chase Your Tail" sequence was a lot of fun. It was followed by "Get Your Leash," broken down into getting the leash, bringing it,, dropping it, and retrieving other things. Next came a section on the very functional skill of "pull," and this is demonstrated by an amusing sequence where a dog pulls open the refrigerator door, grabs a cold beverage can and delivers it to the person watching football on TV. Hmm... if MY dogs knew how to pull open the refrigerator, they would likely do it at all hours! Fittingly, the program ends with teaching a dog how to take a bow. The first program is combined on the DVD with Bow Wow, Take 2. This hilarious program has a clicker review so you will know the basics. It builds on "push" and "pull," taught in their first program, and teaches a variety of skills that would be useful for a service dog: turn your television on and off, find and bring your remote, turn lights on and off. It has a good section on teaching the retrieve, which is essential for service dogs. I also enjoyed the "cross your paws" segment. You can get this two-part dog clicker training DVD at Dogwise. It sells for $35.00. Curious what it's like? Click through on the link, and then you'll be at the page on Dogwise which has a link to a short selection from the DVD which you can watch online. Virginia Broitman & Sherri Lippman: The How of Bow Wow (DVD)
It covers the basic foundation skills that every dog should know. As in all their programs,, the well-trained dogs steal the show. Luckily it shows you what you need to know to head in the same direction yourself. This DVD has closed captioning. Get it at Dogwise -- and have fun!
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