• 14Jun

  Trial and Error

  Dog Agility Training No Comments

  I don’t know about anybody else, but I learn through trial and error.  So does my dog! (That’s not to say I set him up to fail; sometimes things  just happen!)

  The learning isn’t in the error, though.  The learning is in how you recover from that error and correct it.  For instance, when I was young in 4-H, when I made an error with my dog I would immediately overcompensate and start drilling her.  Now that I’m older (much older!) I sit back and laugh first, and then figure out where the error occurred, and how to work on fixing it.  Let your mistakes be moments to learn, not get frustrated.

  Remember! you’re not behind anybody. You’re right where you are, and that’s a good place to be, and a good place to move forward from.  Your dog’s all ready to go!

  
• 11Jun

  Contact Training

  Dog Agility Training No Comments

  Contact training is a necessary step in agility, both for your dogs’ safety and your sanity.  Stopping on a contact can give you enough time to catch up, lead out, or find where you are on course!   Training contact stops should be fun and rewarding for your dog, using a target to learn the behavior, and then fading the target.  Pay attention to your dogs.  Dogs may learn this behavior at different rates. It’s important not to bore them by drilling them in contacts, and it’s also important they feel that contacts are fun.

  REMEMBER: keep sessions very, very short, 1-2 minutes at most, since dogs burn out quickly on targets.

  • Shape the dog to target with his nose or paw, whichever you prefer.  Many handlers prefer the nose since it seems clearer to the dog that they MUST stop.  Reward repetitive touches, or ‘holding’ the touch.  Build value for touching enthusiastically!
  • Practice targeting on stairs, and then fade the target itself, thus leaving your dog with a nose touch to ground behavior. Use any stairs you can, in different settings. Keep sessions short and highly rewarding.
  • Begin practicing the targeting on contact behavior, again beginning with the target so your dog ‘gets it’, and then fading the target, leaving the dog with a nose touch to ground. Keep sessions short and highly rewarding! If at any time your dog’s behavior deteriorates, go back a bit in training, and work your way back up.  Never take a good contact stop for granted.
  • After the dogs are used to contact training, start them on proofing – so they know to stick it no matter WHAT you do!

  If you prefer not to train a 2on2off for any reason, these contact zoners will help your dog learn not to ‘fly off’.

  

  Tags: agility training

• 07Jun

  Scooter!

  Dog Agility Training, Dog Training (General) No Comments

  My dog ‘scoots’ their bum at the start line.  He never quite breaks his stay, but it’s close!!! What can I do? I’m afraid he will break his stay someday and go rocketing off course.

  Well, the first thing you need to do is realize that scooting is breaking a stay.  A stay means remain where you are, don’t move until released, right? Scooting is moving, so the dog isn’t staying.

  Next, think about why your dog is breaking his stay.  Is it rewarding for him? You bet!!!! each… little… scoot… gets him that much closer to the two joys of his life – you, and agility.

  Now, there are two options; work on a running start with your dog, or retrain the stay.  Maybe use a totally different command, since this one’s now meaning ‘scoot forward’ for him.  I like ‘wait’, personally.  Train the new word as an entirely new concept, with treats, rewards, and fun. Don’t compromise his stay behaviors, though. You don’t want him to move out of position at all.  If he does, don’t let him have his reward.  Train your boy that the only way to get to his agility is to wait.  He’ll get it, I promise!

  
• 23May

  Zoom zoom zoom!

  Dog Agility Competing, Dog Agility Training 1 Comment

  My question is this. I have a great agility dog. We have been competing for approximately 10 months. So we are a young team. My problem is this: It is pretty typical during her first run of the day for her to get what we call the zoomies. At some point during the run, she decides to take off running like the wind. Not necessarily taking obstacles, but just starts running all around the course. It’s like she is just showing off how fast she can run. Frequently I can’t get her back on course. She is having so much fun, but I get a little frustrated, because she rarely does that during training and does it when we are competing. We do focus work prior to running, acceleration, deceleration, circle work, playing tug, etc. 

  Any suggestions? 

  Hmm. As you say, you are a young team.  May I ask what you do when she  zooms?  Some competitors I have spoken to have success in scooping up their dog and ending their fun.  I also knew a lady who would remove all attention from her dog – look up at the sky and fold her arms so that she was in no way reinforcing the behavior (though I do understand you may not want to do that in a trial!)

  Does she start zooming after she’s made her first mistake, by any chance?  If so, she may be acting out of frustration – or an attempt to figure out what to do.

  There are a few other options as well;

  • You can start signing up for one fun run every time they are offered, just so you can have the opportunity to work through this with your dog, without the pressure of a points run.  You could try a variety of things, there –  the no more fun approach I described above, or simply getting her focus back on you.
  • You can evaluate yourself and see if you are more stressed going into the ring the first time, and she reacts to your stress.
  • How far are you from your dog?  Some people find that if they are in closer, they can keep better control.  On the flipside of that, are you giving clear signals quickly?  Maybe have someone film a run for you (thank goodness for smart phones, right?) so you can see if she’s lacking direction for even a few seconds.  That may be enough for her to decide it’s time to go on runabout!
  • Another idea is taking her somewhere at the trial (this may not be possible at all trials) for a running really fast fun time for her.   You say you do focus work, which is great, but it may also help for your dog to have a chance to blow off steam.

  Does anyone else have any ideas to help?

   

  
• 09May

  Fancy Footing

  Dog Agility Equipment, Dog Agility Training No Comments

  Dogs need to keep track of their paws in agility!  Sliding off the side of a narrow dogwalk or tumbling down an A-frame is a very real possibility.  Just think about how fast your dog flies through a course – then imagine what could happen with a mis-step.

  Agility ladders are wonderful training tools to keep your dog on the straight and narrow, so to speak!  To use your ladder, lay it flat on the ground at first and shape your dog to walk through it.  (It’s especially nice to have one of our Affordable Agility ladders at this point – you can start them off with a few steps and build them up to the full length.)  Once they’re trotting along with it flat, flip it up onto its legs (or put your regular ladder on bricks).  In addition to teaching paw dexterity and hind end awareness, ladders build up  dog’s shoulder muscles.  Conditioning with a ladder can help prevent injuries on the course and off it.

  

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