I'll be going to a Kay Laurence (clicker trainer from the UK) seminar in two weeks, and Buster is going with me, so I figured we'd better brush up on our clicker skills.
I decided to teach Buster to pick up an item...figure that could be useful, and I kinda want to get in to Rally, and maybe even Obedience, so he'll need a retrieve. I really haven't done a whole lot of shaping...last thing I did was teach him to get in the wading pool, and that quite a few months ago.
It took me 15 minutes with a clicker to get Buster to reliably pick up an empty water bottle!! I still don't have the behavior named or on cue, and he'll probably need a refresher tomorrow, but still, he did it! I started with him just looking at the water bottle I had tossed on the ground...then he started touching it with his nose. He tried batting it around with his paws, and when that didn't earn a click, he tried picking it up. This is sooo cool, and Buster is so smart! I've always wanted a dog that would pick stuff up on command, so I figured I'd just teach Buster to do it. I'll start with easy stuff...empty water bottles, Nylabones, balls, etc, then work up to everyday stuff like a phone, keys, etc.
Madi really wanted to get in on the fun, so I just did some sits for click/treats with her, but I think she'd be really fun to do something with as well, she's a smart old girl.