[NAGDU] food rewards and guidework

[Al Sten-Clanton]

Greetings, wag wag, and the like!


First, Mike Hingson, you made a great presentation yesterday on mutual 
trust between our dogs and ourselves.


Second, if I heard correctly, Mike suggested that there are times when 
you can use a food reward during guidework.  If I'm wrong, please 
correct me.  If I'm right, can anybody tell me what situations might be 
good for that?  I was leery of clicker training when I first heard of 
Seeing Eye doing it because of the food involved, but, other than 
teaching my dog to take me to a particular place or thing, I did not use 
the clicker, and I did not use food at any time as a work reward.  Since 
class in 2018, I've used food as a reward only during the bit of clicker 
training I've done--for example, in trying to get him to put his nose on 
the knob of the front door.


I was leery of clicker training because, as you might expect, I wondered 
how long that training would stick after the food ran out.  Praise is at 
least something I always have, with no danger of putting it in my pocket 
for the trip.  I've also seen that, with the doorknob I used the clicker 
for, he will eventually respond to the magic phrase associated with the 
clicker, but without the food and the clicker I almost always have to 
use it two or three times.


What do people think?  Am I missing something?


Best!


Al