Unlike treats, which might not be feasible in every training scenario, clapping is readily available. Clapping can be used as a consistent and portable secondary reinforcer in a variety of settings—indoors, outdoors, at the park, or in any environment where it’s not safe or handy to use food reinforcers. In this video, KPA CTP Anna Wong is working with her dog Kempie on conditioning clapping as a secondary reinforcer. Each time she claps, she immediately follows up with a treat. As you will see in the video, Anna varies her location, distance, and body position as she claps, which helps ensure that Kempie associates clapping with positive outcomes regardless of the conditions. Anna says, “Conditioning clapping is a fun learning experience for both of us!”

What types of natural reinforcers would you like to try? Learn all about using non-food reinforcement effectively in Ken Ramirez's online course Smart Reinforcement!