Teaching my dog to repeat random behavior: doable?

[papergirl]

Our boxer occasionally "sings"--not a full howl, but more of a communicative effort when he's super-excited and doesn't want to sit. I say "Sit!" and he responds by sitting but also cutting loose with this long, talkative howl. It's adorable.
I want him to do it on command, but so far he's not getting it. He's a smart boy, so I believe there is owner error here. Generally I just wait for it to happen, then give him lots of praise and petting. Sometimes he'll do it several times, other times he just teases us by doing it once.
So...how to train him to do when I want him to?
Thanks,
karol

[Khadaji]

I am fond of clicker training, especially for the kind of things you are trying to do. There are some good books on clicker training and some interesting info online.

I would give you a summary, but my head isn't really in the game right now, and it would be a mediocre report at best.

[Solfy]

Originally Posted by bodypoet

Our boxer occasionally "sings"--not a full howl, but more of a communicative effort when he's super-excited and doesn't want to sit. I say "Sit!" and he responds by sitting but also cutting loose with this long, talkative howl. It's adorable.
I want him to do it on command, but so far he's not getting it. He's a smart boy, so I believe there is owner error here. Generally I just wait for it to happen, then give him lots of praise and petting. Sometimes he'll do it several times, other times he just teases us by doing it once.
So...how to train him to do when I want him to?
Thanks,
karol

Karen Pryor's book "Don't Shoot the Dog" had some good info on clicker training for just such a scenario.
The general idea was that you establish with the dog that the *click* sound means, "Good job! There's a treat coming!" The click is more precise in timing than giving a treat could ever be. It very precisely indicates to the dog which behavior was the desired behavior. Then you get the dog to howl via whatever means possible. As soon as he does, you click and treat. The dog learns that howl = click n treat. Then you work on putting the behavior on cue.

[Sigmagirl]

Generally I just wait for it to happen, then give him lots of praise and petting.

This is the right technique, according to the dog trainer we used. It seems you're too far away to use her, but here's her web site just in case; we can't recommend her highly enough.

http://www.dogownerconnection.com/

[lizardling]

Would clicker training also work for my cats? I've often wished they'd learn to fetch -- they have the 'chase thrown object' trick down, but make me go retrieve it for them.

Maine Coons are supposed to be more interested in fetch, which is why I ask.

[Solfy]

Originally Posted by lizardling

Would clicker training also work for my cats? I've often wished they'd learn to fetch -- they have the 'chase thrown object' trick down, but make me go retrieve it for them.

Maine Coons are supposed to be more interested in fetch, which is why I ask.

According to the book I mentioned, any creature can be clicker trained, including humans. I recall a bit about teaching a hermit crab to ring a bell. I see no reason it shouldn't work for cats, given enough patience.
My oldest cat used to fetch, but we never taught him to.

[Khadaji]

Originally Posted by lizardling

Would clicker training also work for my cats? I've often wished they'd learn to fetch -- they have the 'chase thrown object' trick down, but make me go retrieve it for them.

Maine Coons are supposed to be more interested in fetch, which is why I ask.

I'm a big fan of the book that Solfy mentioned Don't Shoot the Dog and would have mentioned it in my post but as I said, my head wasn't in the game at the time.

I believe that the book would agree that you could use clicker training to train a cat. But IMO, it takes longer with cats than with dogs.