Want to train more than one dog at once? Forget holding multiple clunky clicker devices while struggling to hold treats and training props. With Multiclicker, you can easily access up to 4 clickers with one hand! Train multiple animals with just one device. Each clicker has a distinct sound, so your trainees can know who is being clicked.
To experience MultiClicker without ads, you can purchase the full version in the app store.
What is clicker training?
Clicker training is a form of training for animals, where desired behaviors are rewarded with the sound of a click. First, the animal is taught that when it hears a click, it will get a reward, like a treat. Afterwards, when the animal understands that clicks are followed by good things, the click sound can then be used to effectively communicate to the animal precisely which of its behaviors will earn a reward.
Clicker training has been used to train a variety of animals - including cats, horses, and even chickens. The concepts of clicker training have also successfully been used to train marine animals - including dolphins, fish, and crabs! Clicker training has even been effective on people in producing improvements in athletic performance much more rapidly, and with much more lasting results, than traditional verbal communication between trainer and trainee.
Why should I use a clicker over verbal markers such as “yes” or “good”?
Animal behaviorists describe many benefits of clicker training over training with the use of words.
Animals not only learn tricks and behaviors much more quickly, but tricks taught with clickers are remembered by the animal for much longer - even without practice. Animals also seem to enjoy clicker training immensely - sometimes to the point where they don’t want to the training session to end!
Training with a clicker is much different from training with spoken word because the click sound is unique, short, and always consistent. The briefness of the sound allows the click to act as an unambiguous indicator to the animal about which of the series of behaviors it performed was the desired one. Words like “yes” and “good” are short, but could be less consistent than a click, due to differences in tone and volume. Such inconsistencies in spoken word could lead to ambiguity or trainee confusion, but with the consistency of the click sound, clicker training can prevent such issues from arising. This clarity and efficiency of communication contributes to why clicker training is so much more enjoyable for both parties.
If I am new to clicker training, how can I most effectively use this app?
That depends on what you want to do! This app is a convenient substitute for a physical clicker device, but you will still need to know how to use it for it to be useful. If you want to teach your pet a specific trick, you can look online for a short guide or a video that can walk you through the steps of clicker training that specific trick. If you are trying to train a unique behavior, and are unable to find a guide, I would recommend learning the basics of clicker training, so that you can formulate your own steps to teach your animal that behavior. If you do not have a specific behavior or trick in mind for your animal, but just want to have fun with and provide mental stimulation for your pet, I would recommend learning the basics of clicker training or reading a short introduction to it. Such information can be found online and in training or animal behavior books.