Treating & Cueing

Appropriate Treats

If you're using treats rather than a toy or other reward your treats should be small, the same size, and easy to deliver. They should not take the dog long to eat. They should be convenient and not slimy or chewy nor should they bounce away when tossed on the floor.

The treats should be kept in separate baggies and the trainer should know what treats the dog likes best. Use a higher value treat for training a new or more difficult behavior.

Examples: kibble, small kibble-like treats, tiny pieces of chicken, beef, hotdogs, string cheese, or carrots cut into very small cubes.

Cueing Basics

"For the trainer the cue asks the animal for a specific behavior at a specific moment in time.
For the animal the cue is an opportunity to perform a behavior that has been positively reinforced and a chance to earn another reinforcer."

Karen Pryor Academy for Behavior and Animal Training


Choose a Cue:

  • that is easy to give repeatedly;
  • easily recognized by the animal;
  • singular in its meaning;
  • distinct from other cues the animal already knows;
  • easy for others to use with your dog.


When to Cue

Introduce the cue when the dog repeats the behavior at least ten times a minute. Until then remain silent, but click and reward when the behavior is performed.

Give the cue before the behavior starts.

Click the behavior just as it is starting.

Give the cue again as soon as the animal is finished eating so the dog will repeat the behavior.

Repeat the sequence of cue - behavior, click, treat - several times in a row.

Then pause and give the cue. The dog waiting for the cue is the beginning of communication.

Spontaneous offerings of the behavior are no longer reinforced.