Targeting means training your puppy to touch a target, in this case your hand, with his nose on cue. Being constantly rewarded for just touching something with your nose: What’s not to like? Pat Miller describes it this way in her brilliant book The Power of Positive Dog Training: "The target is like a treat vending machine; they touch the target, they get a treat." That’s exactly why most dogs love this game.
And why do we need this, you ask? Well, for one thing, how cool would it be to have something you’re sure your dog will rush to you to do, even if he won’t respond to Come or any or any other cue you’re using to get his attention. If you’re walking puppy and you spot a chicken bone, but you’re not sure he will Leave It if you ask him, you can ask him to Touch, Touch, Touch your hand as you’re walking by, avoiding the chicken bone. Or, if you see a dog you think he’ll react to and you want to avoid a conflict, you might be able to get him to Target instead of looking at the dog. Oh, also very cool: you can use it to teach your dog to turn lights on and off, open doors, and push things around the house!
Training Instructions:
Stand in front of your dog and keep one hand full of dog treats behind your back. You can rub the tip of the fingers on your free hand a little with treats so they also smell yummy (to your dog, not necessarily to you). Present your empty palm to your pup, fingers pointed down. Most dogs will be curious enough to sniff or lick your empty hand. If he does, mark it YES and give him a treat from the other hand. Present the hand again and mark and reward it if he touches. Keep doing that, and if one time he doesn’t touch, just retract the hand and stick it out again. If he touches, YES, if he doesn’t just retract and try again. Eventually he will learn that it’s touching your hand that will get him a treat. When you’re sure puppy will touch your hand, say the word TOUCH right before he touches.
Now you’re ready to start moving the target. Preset it farther away than you have before and your pup will likely follow and touch. Move it around, gradually increasing the degree of difficulty and distance from your puppy. When your dog is really into it, put the target close to the floor and higher in the air so your pup has to jump for it. You can use this to move your pup off the couch instead of dragging him off, or you can use it to get puppy’s attention on walks or simply for fun..
Once you’ve taught your puppy to target to your hand, you can easily teach him to touch an object like a button or a light switch.
