Marker Words

What are marker words?

A marker word is a precursor to your dog receiving something great. It’s a word like “Yes” or “Good”, or a sound like a clicker that means the specific action they just did was perfect and they are about to receive a treat, praise or a toy.

Why is it important we use them?

It’s important we use marker words during training because it speeds up the process by pinpointing the exact behaviour you want your dog to repeat. It can also help dogs learn skills their finding difficult by being able to break them down into smaller increments. Once your marker word is charged up (e.g your dog knows the word “yes”), and instantly knows the behaviour was perfect and is then reinforced with a reward. This creates a connection. They are going to be more inclined to repeat what was perfect and got them a treat, toy or praise.

In short… What gets rewarded gets repeated!

How to teach/charge up your marker word?

Before you start using a marker word in training you need to teach your dog what it means. Say your marker word “Yes” or “Good”, a clicker sound or the word “Apple”. It doesn’t matter what word you use as long as you are consistent with it. Choose your marker word.

In this example I’m going to use the marker word “yes” and treats as the dogs reward.

Step one: Say “Yes” enthusiastically then place a treat between your feet for your dog to eat.

Repeat step one ten times.

Step two: Throw a treat away from you so your dog goes to get that treat and you have time to take a few steps away (creating a little bit of distance)

Step three: Say your marker word “Yes” and drop a treat between your feet.

Repeat step two and three until you see you dog reacting to the marker word.

Eg: Your dogs’ nose is to the ground, you say the marker word and your dogs head whips up and they come to receive a treat.

Once this happens you will know your marker word is charged up and ready to be used.

How do you use your marker word for training?

Once the marker word has been trained you can start using it to teach your dog other obedience skills and tricks. It’s important you master the correct sequence which will ensure you are using your marker word properly. The sequence is:

1. Ask or lur a behaviour

2. Marker word when you are happy with the behaviour produced

3. Treat delivered within two seconds of saying your marker word (NOT at the same time as saying your marker word)

4. Repeat

Example:

Ask for a sit – dog sits – marker word “yes” – reward

How important is the timing of our marker words?

Timing is incredibly important when training with a marker word because you don’t want to mark and reward the wrong or incomplete behaviour.

For example: You’re trying to train a sit, but mark before your dogs bum is completely on the floor. Now you have a dog that hovers in their sit.

An exercise you can do as an owner: When your dog is not around grab your clicker or marker word. Put on your favourite tv show and follow a character in it. Every single time you see them blink, say your marker. This will help your reactions and show you how fast you need to be able to mark a correct behaviour.

29th January 2025