Clean Run - June 2013 - 10

A dab of this, a dash of that—the brilliant cook may or may not follow a recipe.
I myself cook two or three times a year; I read a bunch of recipes and then let the creativity
begin. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, but there is always an element of risk.

BUCKING THE SYSTEM
A Look at “Ad-Libbing” Handling Systems
By Sandy Rogers

When I learned competition obedience I did not take risks; I
“cooked” from a very strict recipe. Every step was clear and every step was built on the last. But when I started agility in 1990
we were totally winging it. We would cheer “nice call-off ” when
dog after dog would be sent almost off-course. In the end, it was
the handler who screamed the loudest who won. I remember
like it was yesterday, the first time I heard someone say, “That
dog did not know where he was going; if he had, there would
be no need for a call-off.” The celebrated call-offs were suddenly
looked at as a result of poor handling, poor training, or both,
and the world changed. “Recipes” for agility were written and
through Clean Run magazine they were shared.
These days there are lots of would be agility cooks seeking out
and trading recipes for success. From all the ringside chatter
about who is “cooking” what recipes correctly and who is cooking what recipes “wrong,” I thought exploring the use of recipes
was in order. So I decided to talk to the sport’s top chefs.
I consulted with both Linda Mecklenburg and Greg Derrett regarding the cueing systems they have designed to facilitate clear
and effective communication between dog and handler. I have
used their input extensively in the article and will take this opportunity to thank both of them for their dedication and commitment to the sport and their students. Their systems have been
developed through years of experience and have afforded them
and their students success at the highest levels of the sport. The
proof is indeed in the pudding.
10

Do You Know A System?
Let’s start by exploring if you are actually using a system, think
you are using a system, or just making due with what you’ve got.
It takes considerable time to fully learn and use a system as opposed to “picking up some tips and tricks” along the way to get
your team through the next course or two. A system could easily
take up to a full year or more of study to learn and that would
include understanding the theory and concepts of the system,
learning how to train the foundation required for the system,
and then the ever-challenging task of applying the system in
sequence and course work. True students of systems study year
after year from the inventor of the system or a qualified instructor who the system inventor endorses. This on-going study is
necessary in order to continue to apply the system as trends in
course design come and go. Submersion in a system at the highest level would make it extremely diﬃcult to claim being “fluent”
in more than one system.
There are some instructors teaching systems that they do not
fully comprehend. The problem is that if they are not teaching
the system correctly, it is likely they will be misrepresenting the
virtues of the system. In the worse cases, they are teaching skills
that are actually a huge conflict to the specific system they are
claiming to use. The fallout may not be obvious right away, but
the dog will show confusion at some point when he can’t process
the cues because of crossed wires in the training program.
Clean Run | June 13

Clean Run - June 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run - June 2013