TARGET THIS!

By Barbara Cannon

One of the most useful tools for training our dogs and puppies is targeting.  Targeting is easy to teach to most dogs and they usually love doing it. So, what do we mean by targeting?  With targeting, you teach your dog to touch a designated body part to a designated location.  The body part is most commonly a nose or foot, but can be any part of the body (other body parts, such as a hip or tail, are usually reserved for more advanced training, such as agility.)

Why do we love targeting?  Targeting can help with loose leash walking, mat work, platform work, recall, and basic obedience.  Our curriculum suggests using a target hand to prevent jumping by putting a fist with kibble to the ground when the puppy comes towards you (Unit 1.7 in the STEP-BY-STEP PROGRAM).  Another targeting cue that is my favorite because of its versatility is the TOUCH cue (Unit 2.7 in the STEP-BY-STEP PROGRAM).  Teaching your puppy or dog a focus cue, such as WATCH ME or LOOK AT ME, is also a target cue as it asks your puppy or dog to make eye-to-eye contact.

Nose targeting can help your dog in stressful situations, such as walking through crowds.  It can also help with reactivity by teaching your dog to focus on you or another object instead of the trigger causing their reactivity.    Working with paws both front and back can help your pup work on core muscles, which can be important to your dog’s health and is helpful in sports such as agility.  Targeting can also help your dog during grooming or veterinary visits (see our wonderful course on Cooperative Care here: https://www.baxterandbella.com/4-cooperative-care-course ).  Tools for teaching targeting can be as simple as using your hand, using a target “stick”, either purchased or homemade, or using low stable platforms such as a solid box, a book, an overturned food bowl, or a training platform.  Platforms are useful for foot training, and again, you can use any low stable platform you already have or purchase surfaces made especially for this kind of training. 

The easiest way to start teaching targeting is by using a target hand.  With a target hand, you are simply teaching your puppy to touch your closed hand no matter where it is.  Start with kibble or treats inside your hand, make a fist, and when your pup touches your fist, open your hand and give a treat.   In a short amount of time, you will likely be able to start rewarding with your other hand.  Teaching TOUCH is similar. With TOUCH, you can use an open palm or two fingers, whichever is your preference. Make sure your hand is held in a horizontal position to differentiate it from other hand signals that use the vertical position.  When first teaching this cue, have a reward tucked under your thumb when you use the full palm, or under your fingers folded into the palm if you are using fingers.  Release the reward when your puppy touches your palm or fingers.  

I find that most puppies really enjoy doing this cue and you can quickly move to rewarding from the other hand.   With the TOUCH cue mastered, you now have a way to redirect your puppy away from things/people.  As you start to work with this cue, remember that it may need to be close to the puppy to be successful until they understand its meaning.   TOUCH can also be an excellent replacement cue for COME when our puppies aren’t listening to us.  You can also use TOUCH to generalize this cue to other objects, such as closing drawers and doors.  Service dog trainers commonly use targeting to teach their dogs to close drawers, refrigerators, and turn lights on and off.  Some trainers use a sticky note on their palm when teaching TOUCH, then generalize the cue by putting the sticky note on a drawer or door.  Other trainers may use a target stick instead. A target stick simply extends your arm and gives you more flexibility.  It can be especially useful for teaching sports such as leg weaves or pole weaves in agility. You can purchase a target stick – usually a 2–3-foot stick with a paper circle at one end- or you can make one yourself using piece of doweling or any kind of stick.   Just make sure it has a particular target at the end of it.   Again, keep in mind that as with any training, keep it simple and build out targeting with the 4 D’s – distance, distraction, duration, and difficulty.

When working with targeting with feet, start with the front paws.  Using a low platform, start by rewarding your dog anytime he wants to engage with the platform, using a marker word or clicker to reward that interaction.  This is called free shaping, and we have more about it in Unit 3.1 of our STEP-BY-STEP PROGRAM. Then start using a lure to lure your dog onto the platform. Try to capture the behavior before your dog puts all four paws on the platform by marking/rewarding the moment his paws touch the platform.  When working with the back feet only, use a larger low platform at first and try luring your dog to step on and off first, clicking and rewarding when the front feet are off the platform.  If your dog knows a BACK cue, you can also try having the dog back onto the platform.  Again, mark and reward when your dog gets into the desired position.  If your dog struggles even with a low platform, you can start with a towel or mat.

Make targeting a part of your daily dog training routine and we think you will find many uses for it.  Use your imagination and you may even come up with some new ideas for targeting for your puppy’s training.