Clean Run - February 2018 - 40

Stranded at the
Start Line

What to
Do When
Things
Go Wrong
Before
You Run
By Brenna Fender
© MATT ALLISON PHOTOGRAPHY

Have you ever stepped up to the start

line at an agility trial, ready to run, and
then had someone yell, "Wait"? A timer
eye needs to be realigned, a jump set, a
scribe sheet located. You and your dog
are ready to go, but instead you have
to wait. During the delay, your stress
grows, and you worry about how your
dog will handle running after the wait.
When the timer says, "Go," you may
no longer feel ready to run at all!
There are many ways you can be thrown
off your mental game before starting an
agility run: negative or unkind remarks
from other competitors, a scuffle between dogs, the run order changes and
you are late to the ring, etc. Unsettling
things can happen, so how do you get
focused and have a good run?

When You Are Ready,
But They Aren't
Having a delay at the start line is a common occurrence. How you handle it can
be the difference between success and
failure on the course.
It is important to keep both you and
your dog at optimal levels of readiness
while you are waiting for your turn during a delay. But an alternative to that is
40

to know how to return your team to "ready" quickly so that you can step away from
the start and then return to it focused and prepared to run. Dr. Kathrine McAleese,
mental management coach and author of the Strategies for Start-Line Confidence
DVD (and more), says, "Having a routine you follow as you set your dog up to lead
out can be great for your own mental focus and confidence, never mind for your
dog." When you have to wait, you can take a break from your routine and do other
behaviors or relax either inside the ring or out. Then, McAleese says, you can "return
to begin it again after the distraction has passed." At that point, you can step up to the
line anew and without mental baggage.
If the delay looks like it might be long, leaving the ring may be the best way to
handle the situation for your dog. If you rely on treats and toys as an important part
of your "warm-up and get focused" routine, stepping outside the ring gate allows
you to use those tools to maintain readiness. Competitor Kaitlyn Dreese says,
"My Border Collies have no issue with [waiting]. But when I run the PBGVs
(Petit Basset Griffon Vendeens) I literally have to walk in, drop them on the start
line, and go. Otherwise they'll find something else more fun to do and realize the
cookies are long gone. If there's any kind of delay, I just walk back out of the ring
until [the ring crew are] ready. I carry a cooler with me so it's nearby and full of
the best cookies. I'll grab a cookie and get [the dog's] attention back and go back
in when [the ring is] ready."
Many times, staying in the ring can be a successful strategy. Competitors sometimes
find that, when handled thoughtfully, wait time may actually improve their runs.
Barb Burri says, "If I see a delay, we play, we spin, we flip, we down. Sometimes
that has ended up in a very good run as we had a little bit of extra play time before
the leash comes off and the mayhem starts." Meredith Keraga has had similar positive results from a delayed run, "For my dog that needed [to be] jazzed up, I would
take the extra time to do some energetic play or tricks with her, like spins or weaving
through my legs. This usually benefited our run by getting her more excited. For my
dog that needs zero help getting excited, I would either do some obedience heeling if
the delay looked to be really long, or otherwise just leave him in his sit-stay. Delays
also usually benefited him by giving him more time to settle into his sit-stay and
Clean Run | February 18



Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run - February 2018

Contents
Clean Run - February 2018 - Cover1
Clean Run - February 2018 - Cover2
Clean Run - February 2018 - Contents
Clean Run - February 2018 - 4
Clean Run - February 2018 - 5
Clean Run - February 2018 - 6
Clean Run - February 2018 - 7
Clean Run - February 2018 - 8
Clean Run - February 2018 - 9
Clean Run - February 2018 - 10
Clean Run - February 2018 - 11
Clean Run - February 2018 - 12
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Clean Run - February 2018 - 14
Clean Run - February 2018 - 15
Clean Run - February 2018 - 16
Clean Run - February 2018 - 17
Clean Run - February 2018 - 18
Clean Run - February 2018 - 19
Clean Run - February 2018 - 20
Clean Run - February 2018 - 21
Clean Run - February 2018 - 22
Clean Run - February 2018 - 23
Clean Run - February 2018 - 24
Clean Run - February 2018 - 25
Clean Run - February 2018 - 26
Clean Run - February 2018 - 27
Clean Run - February 2018 - 28
Clean Run - February 2018 - 29
Clean Run - February 2018 - 30
Clean Run - February 2018 - 31
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Clean Run - February 2018 - 33
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Clean Run - February 2018 - 37
Clean Run - February 2018 - 38
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Clean Run - February 2018 - 40
Clean Run - February 2018 - 41
Clean Run - February 2018 - 42
Clean Run - February 2018 - 43
Clean Run - February 2018 - 44
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Clean Run - February 2018 - 49
Clean Run - February 2018 - 50
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Clean Run - February 2018 - 53
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Clean Run - February 2018 - 60
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Clean Run - February 2018 - 62
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Clean Run - February 2018 - 65
Clean Run - February 2018 - 66
Clean Run - February 2018 - Cover3
Clean Run - February 2018 - Cover4
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