‘What’s New in Dog Training’ and ‘What’s New in Clicker Training’ are topics for a weekend workshop with internationally renowned clicker trainer Kay Laurence at the end of June in the UK which I will be attending. It was at her training centre in the Cotswolds area of Gloucestershire in 2006 that I first came across TAGteaching.

Kay, who has hosted multiple TAGteach seminars, says that "clicker competency is not directly measurable by a person who has a clicker in their hand being a clicker trainer! “Some clicker trainers”, she says, “are reaching for the sky and able to achieve astonishing results, some clicker trainers are simply adding the clicker to an existing program of training, which may or may not be coercive. To gain access to this powerful method the teacher (clicker trainer) needs to be skilled, very self aware, observant, able to analyse, adjust the teaching to suit that particular dog at that particular time. As they develop their skills their understanding of the process deepens and they are able to transfer the learning to other animals, other fields of interest and have genuinely learned to communicate with another species through skilled use of the clicker.'

"I believe the true power of clicker training is seeded in allowing the dog to self-teach and in particular through the method of capturing the behaviour. The canine ownership of the learning results in very secure cue association and reliability of quality. The dog truly becomes involved in the learning process, becomes highly motivated and teaches us poor humans a thing or two about learning.”
 
The Learning About Dogs ‘Competency Assessment Program” (CAP)  is designed to serve two purposes:

• to provide a clear pathway, with marked steps for learners to gain their skill, knowledge and understanding
• to provide a certification system validating the competency of clicker trainers.

Click HERE for further details of CAP Levels 1-4

Click HERE to see the winner of  ‘That dogs got talent’ at LADs

In September CLEAR Dog Training will be hosting the first ‘Teaching with Acoustical Guidance’ weekend accreditation workshop held in the Southern Hemisphere. If you are unable to attend there will be an introductory TAGteach seminar the evening before.

"Coaches tell you what you did wrong. The clicker tells you what you did right" - 4^th grade gymnast.

Sports coaches, gymnastic teachers, dog trainers, ballet teachers, people working with children diagnosed with autism and people from all walks of life will learn how to use audible markers so as to:

          ►Reduce verbal language when teaching.
          ►How to increase comprehension
          ►Move clients past the 'fear of failure'.
          ►To move the teacher past frustration. 
          ►How to create razor sharp focus in learners.         
          ►How to steepen the learning curve.
          ►How to quickly increase client success rate.
          ►How to retain full classes and avoid student drop out.
          ►How to turn NAG points into TAG points.
          ►How to increase the 'fun' quotient for both the learner & the teacher

For further details:

► Send email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with expression of interest

►Click HERE for TAGteach's website re the 2 day accreditation seminar on Saturday 11^th and Sunday September 12^th

►Click HERE for TAGteach's website re assisting children diagnosed with autism

Separation anxiety is one of the most common behavior problems reported by dog owners. Dogs experiencing this problem show distress, verging on panic, at being separated from individuals they are attached to, usually family members and other pets. The distress can be expressed by barking and howling, attempts to escape, destructive behaviour, house soiling, or signs of fear such as pacing, rapid breathing, whining, or drooling.

Many dogs have been diagnosed and treated for separation anxiety when in reality all they suffer from is bad manners. For further details, and suggestions as to how to treat genuine cases of separation anxiety, click on the link below or the dog on the sofa.

Click here for more details on seperation anxiety

Coming when called is probably the most important behaviour we can teach our dogs. It's about security, freedom, and can even be life-saving!

To teach a super fast and super reliable ‘come’ click on the DVD cover below. Watch the trailer of a 27 minute video by Pamela Dennison, one of America’s top positive reinforcement trainers on how to train the ‘whistle recall'.

It’s well worth spending 10 minutes a day for the next five weeks and the U$20 cost, + postage from USA, to have a dog that always comes flying in to us from the most distracting of distractions!

Click here for more info on the Training Whistle Recall

Karen Pryor, the author of 'Don't Shoot the Dog', biologist and dolphin trainer who changed the way we train dogs with clicker training and who has  been at the forefront of humane and science-based training for decades says, "TAGteach is wonderful for children. They learn so much faster, they are spared the emotional downside of endless corrections, they learn empathy and partnership as they tag each other, & learning through reinforcement is physiologically an elating, joyful experience. What a great way to learn."

I have implemented TAGteach with children diagnosed with autism & have experienced wonderful results. When I asked a student why he liked TAG he said, 'Because I win!' " Victoria Fogel  - Behavior Analyst, University of Florida.

Q. “Who should attend the seminar and/or workshop?”

A. “TAGteach is today being used worldwide with spectacular success in diverse fields such as professional golf, equestrian competition, national level athletics, amateur sports,  rock climbing, Special Olympics, speech and occupational therapy, precision teaching, behaviour analysis, school classrooms, physical education, gymnastics, dancing, special needs (e.g. autism), and in business consulting”.

"Coaches tell you what you did wrong. The clicker tells you what you did right" - 4thgrade gymnast.

Q.“How will people benefit from attending the seminar and/or workshop?”

A. They will learn why and how to use audible markers so as to:

          ►Reduce verbal language when teaching.
          ►How to increase comprehension& steepen the learning curve. 
          ►Move clients past the 'fear of failure'.
          ►To move the teacher past frustration. 
          ►How to create razor sharp focus in learners.
          ►How to quickly increase client success rate.
          ►How to retain full classes and avoid student drop out.
          ►How to turn NAG points into TAG points.
          ►How to increase the 'fun' quotient for both the learner & the teacher.

►Click HERE for TAGteach's website

        ►Click HERE for TAGteach's website re assisting children diagnosed with autism
                ► Click HERE for TAGteach's registration form