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Summary: Shoot The Trainer, Not The Dog...
Review: Clicker training has become the New Age buzz word amongst the humanist-oriented dog training bunch-- as well as for many of the pet industry book publishers eager to capitalize on this latest trend.As the owners of the popular dog training web site, ..., we are frequently asked about our opinion of Karen Pryor's book, "Don't Shoot The Dog." Based on theories of operant conditioning first expounded by psychologist B.F. Skinner, and later popularized by dolphin trainer Karen Pryor in books such as, "Don't Shoot The Dog", clicker training involves attaching a positive, motivator (such as food) to an event marker (such as a clicking sound made by a child's toy known as a 'cricket') in order to improve timing and allow the dog to more easily understand which behavior he did correctly. One of the original uses for this type of training-- if I'm remembering correctly-- was to train dolphins. Instead of using a clicker, they used a whistle. Advocates of clicker training often argue that you can't put a prong collar on a dolphin, and since this approach was developed to train a beast as large as a dolphin that it is also the best method for training a dog. But let's not forget: Dolphins are kept in small containment areas, where they are surrounded by nothing but water. Ever. A dolphin can't accidentally [make a mess] on your sofa. A dolphin can't chew through the electrical wiring at the observation park where it is kept. So using clicker training to teach parlor tricks to a dolphin isn't exactly an apples-to-apples comparison. The problem I have with clicker training is not inherent to the use of a small child's toy to assist in training a dog (which, it could be argued, strays away from the natural way dog's communicate with each other) but rather in the promotion and word of mouth associated with this behavioral approach. An approach which closely resembles the ramblings of a college girl newly converted to Evangelism. Furthermore, clicker training has quickly evolved into the poster child of those who view traditional dog training as something closer to torture for the dog, rather than as a method of training new behaviors. (They refer to using a training collar and a leash as using "violence" against a dog.) Get real. The weak point of the clicker trainer's argument is in the assumption that using compulsion (giving a dog a correction) is the same as punishment and/or force. In reality, a well timed motivational correction is merely a method of telling the dog that he did something wrong. (I guess they think that the mother dog uses "violence" on the puppies, too?) Whatever. Imagine trying to learn how to drive a car with an instructor who only told you when you were doing something right. And refused to tell you when you were doing something wrong. Sure, you might eventually learn how to drive (if you didn't kill yourself first), but the fastest and easiest method of learning ANYTHING is to know when you are doing something right as well as when you are doing something wrong. I feel there is a definite place for clicker training in a trainer's bag of tricks... for movie and TV training for example... however, as a behavior modification tool... leave this one for the birds. Or dolphins.
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Summary: If you have a submissive dog, GET THIS BOOK, though...
Review: it is about behavior modification and not dog training per se.
Don't Shoot the Dog! is the best fundamental description of behaviorism I have ever read. My husband and I have used its principles in training our extremely submissive and abused by a former owner Jack Russell terrier to develop some mental health. This is not a cookbook, it is a philosophy. Pryor does not endorse pure behaviorism; in her work with dolphins described in Lads Before the Wind, she writes extensively about her philosophy falling between that of Konrad Lorenz, the ethologist, and B.F. Skinner. There are hard wired behavior traits present in all species and using operant conditioning via a method like clicker training actually uses those traits to the trainer's advantage, never forgetting that there are some instincts that are so hard wired that they are impossible to overcome. This training is not necessarily an easy to do BECAUSE IT REQUIRES REAL INSIGHT, PATIENCE AND SENSITIVITY ON THE PART OF THE TRAINER! Our dog had been beaten for being a submissive urinator which -- gues what!! -- made her more of a submissive urinator. Three months of hard work following the philosophy of this book have helped immensely. This book has applications in all of our dealings with other sensient beings.
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Summary: Treat Your Kids As Well As You Treat Your Dog!
Review: It's not necessary to spank your kids or swat your dog. You can raise disciplined children and well-behaved pets without violence, and have everyone happy with the results and the process. It also works with co-workers, bosses, neighbors, everyone! This book is as fine a book as you could ask for on the subject of training or dealing with any living creature- even yourself.
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Summary: A Must-Read for any parent or pet owner!
Review: Fun and clever, this book should be compulsory reading in every high school! It is not so much about training dogs as it is about general behaviour and how to treat your fellow people and animals, with the method of Positive Reinforcement. Karen Pryor explains with clear and simple language HOW and WHEN it came about (dolphin training) and WHY it actually works. (Later on, it was adopted by the dog training community as "clicker-training".) The theories and the training methods are supported by memorable anecdotes. Most importantly, this book is not about any hokus-pokus, but simply an explanation of why we (humans and animals) behave the way we do and how we can go about changing each other's behaviour without using force.
After having read the book, I couldn't wait to try out Positive Reinforcement on my cats, my husband, my sons and my mother - and it works really well! The more copies that are sold of this book, the better a place the world would be.
If you get hooked on this book and you have a dog, I recommend that you follow up with the more detailed "The Power of Positive Dog Training" by Pat Miller.
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Summary: but you can shoot your cat
Review: Ok, I agree with most of the reviews written here-- this book, and Karen's thinking, is life changing, and also a very enjoyable read. It is not really about "dog training" but is instead about behavior training of all types. (If you do have a dog, you will want to go to a petstore and buy her "clicker training" kit for dogs-- wow.) There was one really odd thing in the book-- Karen admits that she once owned a cat she could not get to stop peeing on her stove top, SO SHE KILLED THE CAT. What's up with that???????
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Summary: Not a dog training book!
Review: I don't normally comment on other reviews, but one has to wonder if those reviewers who grouse about this "dog training" book have read it very closely. Although the author draws on many anecdotes from her years as an animal trainer, this book is about *general* principles of behavior modification that apply to both animals and people. In her book "Lads Before the Wind", Pryor notes that she originally thought of naming this book "Positive Reinforcement". Her publisher changed the title to an obscure, playful reference in the book, because they thought it would be more catchy. It's a good, informal book that presents the general principles of reinforcement from the very practical perspective of a pioneering animal trainer. Yes, dog trainers can use the information in this book, but so can everyone else too. However, because the book gives general principles, you'll have to work to come up with a specific training program yourself...
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Summary: A highly recommended read.
Review: "Don't Shoot the Dog" is a gem of a book. Karen Pryor, a former dolphin trainer, offers instructions on shaping behavior that works not only on fido, but on the human members of your family. You will find it a facinating read.
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Summary: This is where you need to start .
Review: Karen Pryor not only knows how to train animals, she gets you started on the road to sanity if you have pets or even children. She is awsome and she'll make you laugh too.
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Summary: Best Book to Learn the Basics of B-Mod
Review: This is my favorite B-Mod book. Infinitely more readable than anything I read in grad school (M.S. Applied Psychometrics). The basics are reviewed in clear English and provide insightful examples. My favorite story: How psychologists make the best "animal." My favorites techniques (from this book): the "jackpot" and (of course) "backward chaining." Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in teaching and training.
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Summary: Excellent beginner foray into behavior modification
Review: I don't know where I and my dogs would be without DON'T SHOOT THE DOG. This book was the first book that opened my eyes to a new way a training -- a way based on understanding the principles underlying the "cookbook recipes" I'd been given. Now I'm so much more successful. I highly recommend this book to any person who wants to learn how to modify their dog's behavior and has been told (wrongly) that their dog is too "stubborn," "dominant," "fearful," "aggressive" or even the wrong breed(!) to train. Those words just mean that the trainer wasn't educated enough to work with your dog. Now you can be successful on your own! I'm awfully glad this "fad" got started. I never would have made it as a dog owner without it!
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