You might have heard the term thrown around “relationship based training” or “balanced dog training” and wondered what it actually means in practice. Is it just being nice to your dog? Letting them do what they want? Treating them like a human?

If you've ever watched a skilled trainer work and thought how does the dog know exactly what they want? Marker words are usually a big part of the answer.

Put simply, marker words are specific words you use to communicate with your dog in real time during training. Not commands but feedback. They tell your dog "yes, that's it," or "keep going," or "nope, try again." Done consistently, they cut through the confusion and make training click so much faster.

Here's how they work in practice.