Customer Reviews:
 A great clicker training book! March 5, 2003
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
I loved this book. If you have had an introduction to the basics of clicker training, it describes in great detail how to shape even the most basic to more complex behaviours, and the theories behind it.
If you are new to clicker training, then try to attend a clicker clinic or even rent clicker videos first to help you visualize how it all works. Once you and your dog understand the principle and the "rules" , every training session will nothing short of fun! Anyone from the recreational dog owner to the more serious competitor will benefit from this book.
 Thorough, messy and a fundamental shortcoming January 23, 2003
17 out of 21 found this review helpful
This is a thorough work on clicker training, and the theories behind it. As such, it certainly makes worthwile reading for those with a serious interest in clicker training. And, more generally, for those whishing to understand modern humane dog training methods that are based on behavioral science. As others have noted, the book may not be well suited for the impatient novice, and it definitively isn't a simple 'how to' book.I find that the text is heavy not only due to the substance, but unfortunately also because the discussion tends to be lacking in clarity. The work would in my opinion benefit from compression and some reorganization. Although otherwise a thorough discussion on the subject, I find it has a fundamental shortcoming in the basic assumptions: Spector only considers using food rewards in clicker coniditioning, and simply discourages against using other types of rewards. While this is probably fine for training dogs that have a keen interest in food, it cannot work well with dogs which simply aren't very interested in *any* kind of treats. Moreover, in order to motivate dogs with a strong prey drive to work with very high intensity, a prey object, such as a ball, tends to be the ultimate reward. Using food treats (or a clicker associated to the treats) simply doesn't tend to motivate such a dog to work that hard. I believe that variying the type of reward (or correction, even) depending on the phase of the training of the particular movement, and the general character of the dog and perhaps also the trainer, would be more effective. I find that Susan Barwig's methods for Shutzhund training are well suited for the dogs with a strong prey drive that typically excel in this sport.
 Not for beginners!!! November 9, 2001
23 out of 28 found this review helpful
This book was way too technical for me. All I wanted was book that gave me the basics of clicker training and a how to guide for very simple tasks. This is definitely not for the beginner or nonprofessional.
DogRead book of the month October 31, 2001
4 out of 10 found this review helpful
This book was chose to be on the prestigious 'DogRead' as a book selection of the month. We only do 12 books a year and this was July 2001. The author comes on line for the whole month to answer questions on the book. It was very well received by our 3000 member email group. The author was very knowledgeable and easy to understand even though also very in depth.treshell owner DogRead
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A must have for competition training October 10, 2001
10 out of 11 found this review helpful
Morgan Spector's book is all about precision. It isn't as helpful for the owner who just wants to instill basic manners, but if you are looking for a book to help really make your dog stand out in the ring, this is it. This can be a dense read - I recommend Karen Pryor's book as an introduction to OC before attempting the techniques in this book. This book is a must have for the serious dog trainer.
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