Charging the “YES” Marker
One of the crucial aspects of clear communication with your dog is a distinct, positive marker word that will give your dog a “snapshot” of the moment in time when they know, with absolute certainty, that they are doing a good job.
During any kind of training, it is necessary for you to have clear communication with your dog about when they do something wrong, and when they do something right.
Praise your dog the right way:
It is our job to teach our dogs how to properly behave and exist in the world, in order for them to have an enriching and fulfilled life. One of the most useful tools we can use in order to achieve this goal is clear communication with a positive marker word. This lets our dogs know exactly when they are doing something desirable.
What a Yes Marker Should Be:
Be “charged” first in order to have value *DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!
Can be built up with the food from a dog’s meal during every mealtime, that is hundreds of reps you could be utilizing!
Happen the INSTANT a desired behavior is presented
Should be pronounced at the same pitch, volume, and intonation EVERY TIME
How to charge a positive marker: YES
In this exercise, we are going to teach you how to charge up your positive marker as a “yes” command. Like a battery, we are going to charge this word with value. Since all dogs value their meals, we highly recommend everyone use mealtimes as an opportune time to practice multiple repetitions, several times a day.
We start simply, by having your dog in front of you and using part of your dog's meal. Tell them “yes” and then promptly reward them with food. Be sure to have a clear separation between the time that you say the word, and move forward with the food. Repeat this exercise daily for several days. Typically it takes around 50 repetitions for the ‘yes’ to be properly charged. You’ll know it has been charged when you say “yes”, and your dog shows you some sort of anticipatory behavior, like opening their mouth, looking at the hand that will give them food, or maybe it's as subtle as their ears perking up.
**Remember! YOUR TIMING IS ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL!!**
Be sure to state your command of “yes”, THEN reward with treats.
**Dogs live in 1-3 seconds, so being sure to have appropriate timing is crucial!
We build this repetition many times, in order to set a positive base for positive feedback for your dog, that they will experience for the rest of their lives. For example, think of this like someone tapping your shoulder, and everytime you look over, you get 100$. You’ll likely repeat that action next time you get tapped on the shoulder, and you might even offer the behavior of looking over your shoulder even when you don’t get tapped. Similarly, if that happens when you are young, or when you first meet that new person, you are likely to remember that lesson and carry it with you for the rest of your life.
This “Yes” command is simple now, but we will continue to build upon this in different environments and situations, until your dog’s brain is wired to respond to your praise. Eventually, the word “Yes” will be so charged that the treats will gradually fade out, and your dog will find value in the word alone.
This is the first building block on your dog’s path to success!
FAQ
Marker training vs clicker training:
Marker training is The same thing as clicker training! The clicker is simply used INSTEAD of a “yes”, as a positive marker. At FSO Dog Training we prefer using marker words, since we always have our voice on us, and having to keep track of holding a clicker while also guiding the dog can make things more complicated.
List of marker words for dog training:
The positive marker “yes” is just one of the marker words used in dog training. Read our blog HERE with a list of marker words.
