Clean Run Magazine - March 2009 - 34

RELIABLE RUNNING A-FRAMES A-FRAMES Just the FAQs By Rachel Sanders, photos by Clean Run except where noted As more people attempt to train running A-frames and experiment with my box method, I have received many general questions about running A-frames as well as specific questions about my box method. I have gathered some of those questions, along with my answers to them, and would like to share them here. When starting with a new dog would you train a two-on/two-off A-frame and then change to a running one? No, I would always train the running behavior first. Changing to a two-on/two-off behavior is relatively easy if it becomes necessary to do so. The change is especially easy if your dog is already learning a two-on/two-off dogwalk or teeter. From my experience, I attempted a running A-frame (and dogwalk) with my Border Collie Fable. Due to the unreliable results I retrained her contacts to a two-on/two-off at four and a half years old. After running the contacts for over four years she was able to stop on the A-frame and dogwalk in competition after only a couple of months of training. Do you think all dogs should run the A-frame? Ideally, I would like most handlers to try to train a running A-frame since I believe it is better for the dog’s physical well-being. But not all handlers can handle the speed of a running A-frame. Not all handlers are comfortable with the process of training running A-frames, which often includes inconsistent results in the early stages. I give all my clients the option, encouraging the ones sitting on the fence to train a running A-frame (we can always go back and train a two-on/two-off ), but I support their choice either way. I want to teach my dog a two-on/two-off contact to use in training and just let him run the A-frame in competition. Do you think this approach will be successful? No, I do not. If this approach worked consistently, we’d all have running contacts in competition. What generally happens is your dog has some residual collection from the two-on/two-off training and produces a few great running A-frames in some of his first competitions. After a while, realizing that there is no stop required, he opens up and leaves out strides until he starts to miss the contact altogether. I have only known two dogs (both Aussies) that were consistently successful doing this. I believe that both of them probably would have been okay to run the A-frame in training. One of these dogs trained with me; but at the time, although I didn’t think it was correct to have two different performances, I decided if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. What types of dogs are candidates to retrain from a two-on/two-off contact to a running A-frame? There is no black-and-white answer. In competition some of my clients’ dogs were not maintaining the two-on/two-off performance on the A-frame, even though the handlers were using their two-on/two-off cue. As an instructor I have a problem when handlers use the cue but do not require the stop on the A-frame; yet they still expect the dog to be precise on all other contacts. Often the compromised A-frame performance bleeds into the performance of the other two contact obstacles and they become inaccurate also. Even if those handlers did not use the two-on/two-off cue on the A-frame, the dog still hadn’t Clean Run | March 09 Poodle Photo © Karen hocKer PhotograPhy 34

Clean Run Magazine - March 2009

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run Magazine - March 2009