Was advised at the weekend to try clicker training my 12 month old girl to keep her tail over her back.
She is neither frightened nor wary of her surroundings, she is just very laid back and happy with her tail down.
There is no physical reason for her tail not to be over her back.

Looking for recommendations of book or dvd that explains the how to and does it matter what  clicker you use?

This is easy to do -in fact I'm just doing it with my pup. It's really simple and you don't even need a clicker unless you particularly want one, I myself never use clickers, I have a clicker word which is used instead.

Starting from scratch, you must first teach the dog what the click means. (That is either an actual click with a clicker, or a word used only AS a click and not in other situations.) Click, give the dog a treat. Click again, give another treat, repeat this a few times until the dog understand that the click means a treat will appear.

Next you can start training. When the tail is up, click. (Easiest to start this on the floor first, before moving to the table, as the tail is likelier to be up when the dog is on the floor.) Remember the reward must always follow the click, never click without rewarding. The good thing though is that it doesn't have to be as instant as the click. The click means the dog has done right and a reward will follow ASAP. Hence much easier than to get a treat out as soon as the right action is carried out.

If the dog stands nicely but doesn't have the tail up, no click. The great majority of dogs (and Paps are SO clever!) will soon try to work out what it was they did that earned the click. As soon as the tail goes up again, click. It's just a question of repetition. Tail down, nothing happens, tail up, click and treat.

Good luck!

Joan a great description given already but if you fancy at UK Toy dog I can pack a clicker and you can have a go in a quiet area somewhere. I trained obedience the old way and the clicker way and the speed of learning is amazing as the dog trains you when to click by exagerating the behaviour it knows brings the treat.

A good introduction to clicker training is "Clicker Training For Dogs" by Karen Pryor (Ringpress Books) - inexpensive & widely available in pet shops & stores. Everything is explained in simple terms, with lots of things to try, and well illustrated too. You can often find copies of this book in second-hand bookshops & charity shops as well: I have a spare copy I got for 50p specifically to lend to friends or neighbours who want to know more.

There are also many very good websites including Karen Pryor's own... but I found it's far easier to have a book to refer to in your hand while you are actually trying it out.  Clickers themselves are very cheap, a couple of quid or less, but I suggest getting a couple as they have a habit of hiding when you need one! Also look online for something called a Button Clicker. Unlike other clickers, the button is raised, meaning if you find you haven't got enough hands for everything - or you're just naturally cack-handed like me! - you can put it under your elbow or under your foot to click it instead.

Click to win by Karen pryor is a book aimed at clicker training dogs for the show ring.  It is very good.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions.  I first trained dogs in obedience 30 something years ago and it has certainly all changed since then.  Being fingers and thumbs a lot of the time I always considered the clicker as something esle to get in the way, but if I don't try I'll never know.  Someone offered to take her off me and take her to the USA to show train her there.  Thought about it for about a nanosecond then decided no thanks, would rather keep her with me even though I seem to be part of the problem (well according to others).

Annmarie, Thanks for the offer at UK Toydog but I haven't entered.  I'll get a copy of Karen Pryor's book and spend some time reading before I make any attempts at training.  Had it stressed to me that I must do it right first time or it could take forever to correct any mistakes I make.

Will let you know how we get on.

> Had it stressed to me that I must do it right first time or it could take forever to correct any mistakes I make.

It's not really that bad... it may take time to redo anything you get wrong, but thanks to the enthusiasm dogs show when introduced to the clicker, it's nowhere near as bad as making big mistakes in other types of training  

At the end of the day they are just trying to work out what they have to do to get a treat out of you (in the early stages) and believe me, they are extremely quick at thunking that one out! :D  They are very quick to suss what gets a positive response from you and what doesn't, so if you do make a mistake it won't last long, as it won't be rewarded. I love the way that once introduced to the clicker they are so eager to get involved and work, and even start to get excited when they see it in your hand, even though once well trained you don't need it any more. I only use it when teaching new things these days, but that's enough to get my lad on his toes and wondering what's going to happen next!

I always considered the clicker as something esle to get in the way, but if I don't try I'll never know.

As Marianne said - you don't have to actually use a clicker. You can have a word you use instead of the clicker - a word reserved only for that use such as "click" or you could make a sound such as clicking your tongue as you sometimes hear people doing with a horse. It is the association of that clicker/word/noise and the treat that always goes with it that you are teaching your dog. In fact a word or noise can actually be better as you always have your voice with you whereas you may not have the clicker present in certain situations.

Clicker training teaches the dog to think for itself and pinpoints a required action very precisely. Like other training the command is not introduced until the action has been learnt - you click the desired behaviour and reward the dog. Then you move on to introducing the command word for the dog to associate with that action and then you can move on to using the command to produce a desired action and  gradually phase the clicker out as you would treats, rewards etc.

My dogs get very enthusiastic when I get the clicker out and the larger dog will go through a whole repertoire of actions and tricks hoping that he will hit the jackpot

> My dogs get very enthusiastic when I get the clicker out and the larger dog will go through a whole repertoire of actions and tricks hoping that he will hit the jackpot.

Using these techniques you're actually teaching the dog from an early age, the most valuable life lesson of all... That learning and thinking and doing new stuff is fun, and he will never forget it. Even if he picks up some bad habits along the way, you will have a key to engage the dog's mind, and have educated him to being open to learning new ways.  If your dog's first lesson is how to open his mind and enjoy learning, then the rest follows.

> You can have a word you use instead of the clicker - a word reserved only for that use

I used a word instead of a clicker, but I stupidly used the word "good", knowing that timing is important I wanted a word that sprang out of my mouth without thinking. I took time to 'charge up' the word before using it as one would with a clicker, but totaly ignored the fact that 'good boy' is something EVERYBODY will say to a dog, regardless of wheather he is doing as asked or not

The word 'good' has & still works fantastic for me, but other people saying it can make the dog a bit confused (well, he just thinks he's done somthing treat-worthy!). So next time I will use a different word!

So for anybody thinking of 'clicker training' with a word, not a clicker - choose the 'click' word wisely

So for anybody thinking of 'clicker training' with a word, not a clicker - choose the 'click' word wisely

Choose any training word wisely I taught my dog left and right when we were out on walks. If he were ahead of me he would turn round to look at me when we reached a path junction and I would then either point left or right and say the corresponding word. Brilliant until I started to do agility with him. There he works ahead of me and is facing the same direction as me so the left and right that I taught him when he was looking at me are now in reverse and very confusing. I tried calling left when I wanted him to go right but my brain doesn't work quickly enough to transpose the direction and run round the course and work out how each piece of apparatus is going to  be approached - I have trouble just remembering the course:-) So I had to introduce totally new words for left and right and now use this way and that way instead.

I had the same thing with the weave poles. My dog has a very good response to a "leave" command  so when using the word "weave" he would come out of the poles so I have had to learn to use the word "poles" instead of weave now. With a future dog I shall think very carefully which command words I am going to use and make sure that words I wish to use are not too similar in sound.