Clicker training gundogs: adding to the toolbox.
Collette May 
A clicker and place board can make it easier for handlers to communicate with their dog and helps gundog trainers achieve higher standards.
Clicker training gundogs: adding to the toolbox.
Gundog training is an art and science that requires patience, persistence, and dedication to achieve the desired results.
While the basics of training a gundog will always be the same, there are many modern dog training methods we can add to the toolbox to help us get the very best out of our dogs.
Positive reinforcement training is one of the most effective methods to train a high-drive dog, such as a gundog. A clicker and place board can make it easier for you to communicate with your dog what you want them to do and help you achieve higher standards.
For me, I have always seen great success using clicker training and place boards with my puppies and with my client’s older dogs who are struggling to understand what it is their owner wants them to do and are practising behaviours which we never want to see in the field or at competitions.
Sadly, there seems to be a stigma around clicker training and positive-reinforcement-only methods in the gundog world. Many believe the only trainers adopting these techniques are ‘snowflakes’ who would rather let their dogs run riot than risk ‘hurting’ their feelings.
I am sure there are people like this, but it's not my experience. By focusing solely on this stereotype, I truly believe many ambitious handlers are missing out on the incredible benefits clickers, and place boards can have when training a gundog to high standards.
Does clicker training actually work with a gundog?
Through genetics and good breeding, there are undoubtedly some gundogs who are naturally more talented and capable at their job than others.
These dogs do not need to be taught how to hunt or retrieve. It’s more about harnessing their capabilities and learning to work together as a team.
While this means they often need very little in the way of ‘training’, they still need to be taught the ‘rules’ of the game.
We can try to communicate these in many ways, but for me, nothing is more consistent and clear to our dogs than a clicker, or marker word.
Clicker training is a form of positive reinforcement training scientifically proven to work with dogs of all breeds and ages - including high-drive go-ey gundogs.
The click marks the precise behaviour you want from the dog. The behaviour is more likely to be repeated when followed up with a reward (something your dog finds reinforcing). Over time, we add the cues and stop using the clicker. It’s as simple as that.
For the dog, it takes the guessing out of the equation.
Instead of wondering why they got shouted at for running towards a dummy (which they are sometimes allowed to do), they understand that they are being rewarded for sitting still until they are sent for the dummy.
Instead of wondering why they got punished for walking next to but slightly ahead of you, they learn that the best place they can be, where all the good stuff happens, is in line with your leg.
Positive reinforcement training has been proven across a wide range of dog sports to be more effective than traditional methods that rely on punishment or coercion.
I have trained all my gundogs using positive reinforcement methods. All have won 1st place in working tests. All have competed in field trials. And all, except for Benji, who is now retired, come picking up with me several times a week through the season.
I believe this style and approach to training produces more reliable and enthusiastic gundogs that retain more character and are less shut down and robotic than some.
Positive reinforcement training is preemptive. You reward the dog and show them what you want before they ‘do it wrong’ and need correcting.
And when things do go wrong, which they will because dogs aren’t robots, the lack of the click and lack of reward becomes just as powerful a communicator as a harsh word or heavy hand.
What can you teach a gundog with a clicker?
In gundog training, clicker training can teach various behaviours, from basic obedience like heelwork, to advanced hunting and retrieving skills like stop-to-shot, steadiness and directional commands.
It can also teach the dog to work in different environments, such as getting a spaniel to focus in woodland, or making sure a retriever stops and takes directional cues in water.
The possibilities are endless, and with consistent training and patience, there is nothing you cannot teach a gundog using a clicker.
Clicker training is particularly effective when you add visual targets, like place boards.
Many trainers will be familiar with place boards as they have been successfully brought into the fold by Ian and Wendy Openshaw, two esteemed and very experienced members of the gundog world.
A placeboard is another simple tool. It’s a small, elevated platform, usually covered in fake grass, that the dog is taught to sit on and stay on until released. It can teach various skills, including heelwork, steadiness, stop whistle and directional commands.
Do you have to use a clicker and place board forever?
Using a clicker and place board does not have to be a lifelong commitment, and in my opinion, you should phase them out as soon as possible so your dog doesn’t become reliant on them.
It is, however, important to continue using positive reinforcement throughout the dog's life to maintain the behaviour. You may find that a quick refresher session can tighten up anything that may have got a bit sloppy over the shoot season!
What if I don’t want to use food to train my dog?
Good working lines produce ‘biddable’ dogs, which undoubtedly love working. This means you don’t have to use food if you don’t want to, but you will need to reward your dog after the click or marker word for this technique to work.
Before she passed away, I was successfully training my 10-month-old puppy Honey without food. She would work for praise or, even better, the promise of a retrieve.
Food rewards are, however, very powerful and shouldn’t be overlooked.
No two dogs are ever the same, and while I do see a lot of gundogs who easily learn what their handler wants them to do without them having to shove fistfuls of chicken in their face, some dogs will need food rewards to keep them motivated.
Equally, there are lots of skills which are more practically taught with food.
If you are trying to fix a delivery issues, for instance, you will want to use food so the dog doesn’t rehearse bad deliveries.
If you try to teach steadiness with a place board, you do not want to send your dog for a retrieve every 2 seconds to reward them for sitting still.
So, while other forms of reinforcement can be used if a trainer doesn’t want to use food, you do need to bear in mind that it is the most convenient and sometimes most effective form of reinforcement, especially with puppies.
What are the biggest challenges when it comes to clicker training a dog?
The biggest challenge when it comes to clicker training a gundog is consistency. Trainers must be patient and consistently use the clicker and reinforcement to ensure the dog understands the desired behaviour.
Getting the timing of the click right can be tricky if you are using one for the first time. That is why our clicker training workshop focuses on teaching you, the handler, the skills you’ll need to train any gundogs, not just the one(s) you have at the moment.
Using a clicker and place board in gundog training can be highly effective tools for trainers who want to achieve high-performance standards in their dogs using positive reinforcement methods. With patience, persistence, and consistency, gundog trainers can use these tools to teach various skills and behaviours, resulting in a more reliable and enthusiastic gundog.