Reward Markers and Reinforcement Specific Cues
What is a reward marker?
Simply put, a reward marker is a signal that predicts that a reward is coming. In reward-based dog training, the sound of a clicker that is always followed by food would be an example of a reward marker.
In the beginning…
Since I first learned about clicker training in 1997, the art and science has become much more sophisticated. In those days you used a clicker, or a “tongue click” and then delivered the reinforcer however you wanted. Sometimes you threw it, sometimes you brought it right to their face and sometimes you might even deliver it in a specific location and have the animal come over to get it. What this usually meant was that upon hearing the click, the learner would look at the trainer to see where and how to collect their reward.
A shift in reward marker training toward reinforcement specific cues.
Today reward-based dog trainers understand better that taking the reward is a behaviour in and of itself that should also be trained explicitly. For more information on that, see my blog post on Reward Procedures. People might use a wide range of words as reward markers. This is because trainers have realized that it can help their learner reduce frustration by telling them what to expect as the reward (e.g., toy or food), where to expect the reward, and even how their reward will be delivered. Because of this new specificity, trainers are calling them Reinforcement Specific Cues.
The payoff.
It may seem like unnecessary work to train and use a variety of different words that mean “a food reward is coming” or “a toy reward is coming” but this has several big payoffs for the effort. One, as part of the process you will train your reinforcement behaviours more thoroughly than you may have done in the past. This clarity will enhance every training session from here on in. Two, your learner can confidently look ahead to the location of the reward delivery instead of intently watching your hands to see where the reward will come. Three, the behaviours are easy to train, and so your dog can already have quite a long list of verbals very quickly. Four, in a similar vein, your learner understands very early on in their training that your words carry meaning and are important to listen to.
My list of reinforcement specific cues.
The more I work with reinforcement specific cues, the more I like them, and the more I am considering including in my training. I will list both my active ones and the ones I’m thinking of adding below.
Active reinforcement specific cue list and what I hope it means to my dogs:
Search – chase a tossed food reward, or run and grab a food reward from the floor.
Catch – catch a tossed treat out of the air
Take it – bring your mouth to my hand to collect a food reward
Nice – no need to move, I’m going to bring a food reward right to your mouth
Dish – go collect a food reward from a dish
Get it – grab the toy in my hand, or retrieve the thrown toy or toy on the ground
Reinforcement specific cues I’m considering adding:
Behind – look turn around and collect a food reward from a dish behind you.
Tug – no need to move, I’m bringing a tug toy right to you
Strike – bring your mouth to the toy in my hand so we can tug
If you want a deeper dive into reinforcement specific cues, check out the Drinking from the Toilet Podcast, episode #57 all about it.
What reward markers do you use in your training? Do you use any reinforcement specific cues? Are you thinking of adding any more? Let me know in the comments.
Until next time,
Love That Dog…
Heather