Clean Run - January 2013 - 65

properly, and that I have the mechanical skills to execute it properly.” With Juno, who will be three in December, Daisy is doing a lot of short sequences to build enthusiasm. “Juno is young and not very conﬁdent yet about what she is doing, so there’s lots of tugging and playing.” She may set the bars low to make it easy for Juno, and ask for things that Daisy knows the dog will do well. “This is what I would do with any young dog lacking in conﬁdence.”

“Recalls to heel start right away, in the sense that when the puppy runs toward me I have two choices: to give him the cookie in front of me or on the side. When he is on the leash and I walk behind him and he turns the right way, I reward him for doing a rear cross on the ﬂat.” Daisy introduces the puppy to boards very early, too, and considers any object with which the puppy interacts a piece of “agility equipment.” That means the food bowl, skateboard, kitty litter pan, or tunnel. “I try to make it a fun game right away. Anything the puppy does— poking, pawing, going over or under or around things—can all get rewarded.” She also makes sure that the puppy gets on lots of different surfaces. “I don’t bother teaching jumping skills until the dogs are physically and mentally ready to jump at the height they will jump in competition. I may have them run around wings or standards, but not low bars.” If she knows that she will be teaching a dog running contacts, she introduces the

puppy to the Manners Minder right away so that even at 10 or 11 weeks old, that piece is in place. But real contact training, like the jump training, won’t begin until she feels the puppy is physically and mentally ready for it. Weave poles are introduced between 10 and 12 months, or even older. “I want to be able to progress as quickly as I can, in very small increments. If they have been doing lots of tricks as small puppies then usually when they are presented with a set of 2x2s or a jump bar, they try to ﬁgure it out and then, when they interact properly, its just a matter of me marking it and properly rewarding it.” Ever the teacher, Daisy says that she doesn’t want to be in a huge rush to miss the best part. When choosing a puppy, temperament is important. “The parents have to have nice temperaments. I want them sensible, not crazy.” The puppy will also have to be physically able for the job she will be asking him or her to do, so she looks for parents that are good jumpers. “And I have to like the puppy. That’s the most important thing.”

Future Champions
Daisy also has a baby dog, Frodo, whelped June 2012, to start as well. She begins training from day one, and considers almost everything preparation for agility. “Usually with a puppy as young as 8 or 10 weeks, I always have food in my pocket. The puppy will only eat out of a bowl enough to know how to eat out of a bowl. I will teach him to put his feet into the bowl and then toss the treat, which is just kibble, into the bowl.” She plays tug in the yard, or runs with the puppy chasing her.

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Clean Run - January 2013

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