Clean Run Magazine - February 2008 - 21

Adding Motion Once you and your dog have mastered 180° turns at the standstill, practice the turns when in motion. Walk back and forth with him at your side and perform a series of 180° turns on the ﬂat, mixing them up so your dog never knows which direction he will be asked to turn. Once you and your dog are doing 180° turns well, practice 90° turns which are more difﬁcult, especially the rear cross. It is particularly important to practice 90° turns as these emphasize the change of direction of your lateral motion. Ultimately how far you rotate through each turn will determine how far your dog turns. You should be able to do all four turns at a standstill, at a walk, and with your dog running by your side. Eventually work the turns as an extension of a recall to your side. That is, leave your dog 10'-20' away and recall him to your side, then execute one of the four turns. Remember when ﬁrst training the skill to reward at the completion of each turn. It is important to do so because at the completion of a turn your dog should remain at your side until released. Unless trained this way, many dogs will release themselves as soon as you stop rotating through a turn. Many dogs will look for an obstacle after a turn without waiting for release. That is not desirable because often the dog will take the ﬁrst obstacle that comes within his ﬁeld of view, without waiting for direction. Here I am performing a rear cross on the ﬂat after the weave poles. As I complete the cross, my dog is looking to me for direction, not at the wing jump. This results from lots of practice on his foundation turn where he received a treat at the completion of the turn. If my dog knows to remain at my side at the completion of a turn until released, I have much more precise control of his path. Adding Obstacles Once you and your dog have mastered turns in motion, combine the turns with obstacles: one jump with a 180° turn after it, then two jumps with a 90° turn between them. For each of the turns, the ﬁnal direction of your shoulders and feet when you complete your rotation determines your dog’s direction following the turn. When your dog is facing in the desired direction, simply release your dog to the desired obstacle. Not all turns are executed with your dog at your side, some are performed at a distance. But having the ability to bring your dog to your side, turn him and have him remain with you until released allows absolute control of your dog’s path between obstacles when you need it. BASIC TURNS TYPE OF TURN L AT E R A L M OT I O N STEP SHOULDER R OTAT I O N HAND SIGNAL SIDE CHANGE DOG TURNS Pull Front Cross Push Rear cross Away from dog Away from dog Toward dog Toward dog Away from dog Toward dog Toward dog Toward dog Inside hand Outside hand Inside hand Outside hand No Yes No Yes Toward handler Toward Handler Away from handler Away from handler Conclusion Remember that every change of direction is a variation of one of these basic turns. It is important to be able to perform each turn on the ﬂat; that is, without obstacles. For each turn your direction of lateral motion will be your dog’s primary cue as to which turn you want. It is important that you both know the secondary cues that tell your dog which direction to turn and whether there is a side change. Practicing the basic turns will not only improve the control of your dog’s path between obstacles, it lays the foundation for your dog’s understanding of lateral motion cues for changes of direction over jumps. Ultimately there are many variations of each turn that you will use on the agility course. Developing a good understanding of the four basic turns will give your dog a solid foundation on which to build his more advanced turning skills. D Linda Mecklenburg is one of the most accomplished dog agility trainers and instructors in the United States. She and her students have achieved the highest levels of success in dog agility. Linda has represented the United States in international competition on 12 different occasions with four different dogs. She has earned gold and silver medals at the prestigious FCI Agility World Championships, in addition to earning multiple top ten individual placements at that event. Linda teaches agility full time at her Awesome Paws Agility Center in Mt. Gilead, Ohio. Contact her at awesomepaws@aol.com. February 08 | Clean Run 21

Clean Run Magazine - February 2008

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run Magazine - February 2008