Levels-Training is a series of levels with definite criteria for the performance of any given behavior - Level-one is easiest, Two is harder, 3 harder yet.

the COOL thing about Levels-Training is that ** proofing ** is built-in, all thru the training process. that is the part where most trainers / handlers / owners fall-down - they do not proof the behavior + cue pair under any and every circumstance, in all possible settings, with every imaginable distraction. Levels-training proofs as U go along, so the dog does not get to practice a wrong-answer or an un-wanted behavior or get confused over what it is we are training, for a long-enuf time to make it hard to un-do.
it never gets to be a habit - U find the hole, fix the hole, and go on.

there is a Training-Levels list on Yahoo-Groups,
traininglevels : Training Levels Support

download the free book in pdf-format from the founders website
(dragonflyllama.com), and begin from the very start, in order to test where Ur dogs current training stands, and where they are in the Levels. if the dog scores Level 2 or even 3 on some behaviors, but only level-1 on others, that is fine -- U just work on each behavior from where they are, to a better fluency and more compliance.

there is even a training-log on-line to track the progress + score any tests as U and the dog reach planned goals, and move on to new skills - U can post the Levels U reach, pix, or embed U-Tube video-clips.
Training Levels Tracker - Welcome to Training Levels Tracker!

Levels-Training is goof-proof, humane and positive - the dogs learn very thoroughly but they also learn very happily, and clicker-training is PERFECT for Levels work.

if U do not know anything about clicker-training, it is using a unique marker to tell the student ** YES, that is what i was looking for! **, and then rewarding each correct performance, only adding a *cue* when they are performing the behavior 4 times of 5 attempts - or 80% success.

rewards for the dog can be ANYthing that makes *that* dog happy, but for early lessons, tiny but Excellent! treats are simple, and get the concept across to the dog rapidly. once the dog has the idea, dogs who adore fetch can be sent after a favorite fetch-object; dogs who are MAD! for tug-games can be given a short Tug-Of-Peace game as their pay-out.
obviously, giving a dog a single treat is much! much! faster per trial, and as it is the number of repetitions that teaches the cue + behavior pair, this would take far too long at the beginning, and the dog / pup would quit -
the amount of WORK and the amount of WAGES would be out of whack, and it would not be sufficiently rewarding.

if U want to start clicker-training, there are excellent videos all over U-Tube -
the Dog-Giggler is a wonderful series. there is also a FREE 7-day series of lessons on clicker-training on the Net - at Clicker training

all they require is a first-name and an e-addy - for the next week, U get a one-page lesson in a clear + simple format, and dogs LOVE it. they get to make *U* perform, by pushing the button that makes U pay-out - they perform, U reward!

this is why it is called *operant conditioning* - the student
[dog, whatever] is OPERATING the teacher / trainer.

let me know if there is anything U cannot find, or need help with.
happy training!

- terry

__________________
terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007