Clean Run Magazine - August 2008 - 18

Trainer’s Forum By Brenna Fender Webb Anderson Webb is an AKC agility judge and currently competes with Nigel, an AKC top-ranked Miniature Schnauzer. Webb is a full-time agility trainer and coach. For seminars or lessons, contact him through his website at www.performanceplusk9s.com. I trained my dog to do two-on/two-off contacts. He does them with great precision in training, but he’s been releasing himself in competition. I see handlers take their dogs off the course to try to solve this problem. I’m thinking about trying this technique. Are there things I should be aware of before I do? Pulling a dog off the course is a very common method for marking the incorrect behavior of early release from a contact. I do believe it can be effective, as long as a few criteria are met: 1. You are certain your dog knows how to hold the two-on/two-off position and you have proofed this behavior in a variety of locations. If your dog has only been trained in one location and is holding his contacts beautifully there, but is blowing them in a trial, it is unfair to walk him off the course until he is reliably holding them in a variety of locations such as other training sites and during fun matches. Once he is reliably giving you the behavior in a variety of environments, it is reasonable for you to expect that behavior in the ring. 2. Your dog perceives going on to the next obstacle as a reward. For dogs that are driven to continue running, walking them off is an excellent way of saying, “I don’t like what you just did. You aren’t going to be allowed to finish the course because of that behavior.” If continuing to run is not what motivates your dog, consider another way of marking the incorrect behavior. For example, you can stop forward motion, make eye contact with your dog, and say, “Uh-oh. I can’t believe you just did that.” For dogs that are not pushing to go on to the next obstacle, this can be enough. Be aware that if you take this too far, some judges might consider it training in the ring. Also, remember to keep your voice pleasant. 3. Your dog is not a soft dog that will melt at this type of behavior. For extremely soft dogs, we have to be very careful not to go overboard. Some dogs will shut down if we stop what they are doing to carry them or make them heel out of the ring. So, if your dog knows his job both inside and outside of the ring, is motivated by continuing the course, and is not super-soft, walking him off after he misses contacts in a trial is an excellent way to make an impression on him. Those of you who have seen my wife, Leslie, and me run our dogs, know that we will walk them off for breaking start-line stays and giving us inappropriate table behaviors as well. It may take a couple of times and it requires discipline on your part as well. Running is fun and we don’t want to feel like we are “wasting” our money. Instead, think of it as investment in your dog’s future. Kim Collins I have taken a dog off the course before, but there are only two reasons why I will do that. The first is if the dog is getting so high that he clearly stops working and comes in to try to bite me. The second is if a dog leaves the start line before being released. Everything else is my problem as a trainer and handler. I tell my students to write down their “ring rules” so they know how to handle difficult situations. I have them do a list for contacts, start lines, and weave pole entries. It helps a lot if you know before Kim, owner of Pawsitive Steps Canine Sports Centre in British Columbia and a Masters AAC Judge, has been involved in agility for 12 years. She has won three AAC Championships and one USDAA National Championship, plus nine AAC Regional Championships with three different dogs. Kim was a member of the Canadian IFCS Team in 2004 with two of her dogs. She is also the author of “From the Ground Up,” a foundation book for puppies and young dogs in agility. Contact her via www.pawsitivesteps.ca. • What dog does: Doesn’t attempt to stop in two-on/two-off at all. My response: Call dog back to the end of board, using the same procedure as above, but release from the sit and take the dog back to the previous obstacle and ask the dog to do the sequence into the contact again. If he blows it a second time there is a training issue. I will do the sit again and release and carry on, making a note we need more work on the contacts! My responses are based on the rules for competing here in Canada. The AAC allows you to train in the ring, which is wonderful for building confidence in dogs because it allows handlers to feel comfortable maintaining their criteria you go into the ring what you will or won’t do if something goes wrong. My list for contacts might look something like this: • What dog does: Stops in two-on/twooff, but leaves before I release. My response: Take dog back to end of board (not on the board) and ask the dog to sit or lie down on ground at end of contact. Move behind the dog, run by to where I would have released, release from there, continue course. 18 Clean Run | August 08

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Clean Run Magazine - August 2008

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