Clean Run - March 2013 - 40

Distance work—the ability of a dog and handler to correctly navigate obstacles on a course
while separated from each other—is achievable by any dog, of any size. Like consistent contact
performances or proﬁcient weave poles, working at a distance must be trained and practiced.

To indicate lateral distance, you move
toward the dog, turning your shoulders
into the dog’s path and keeping your
arm extended to the side. The motion,
body language, and arm cues are accompanied by a verbal cue like Get out. You
can also use these cues to move away
from the dog laterally. The cues communicate that the dog should complete the
obstacle or series of obstacles while you
are moving away. See Figure 5 for an
example of a handler working with lateral distance from the dog.

Get
out!
3
4

Get
out!
5

Working dog with lateral distance

Forward distance is indicated by continued motion parallel to or angled slightly
toward the dog’s path.Your body is leaning forward, with your arm extended in
front. A verbal cue like Go on tells the
dog to continue moving forward as well.
Forward distance is particularly helpful
for courses with a series of jumps in a
straight line at the end. See Figure 6
for an example of forward distance.

6
6

1
2

Go
on!

The table below summarizes the cues
for lateral and forward distance:

Working dog with forward distance

4. DISTANCE
Having a dog perform an obstacle at a
distance is a skill that is not restricted to
certain breeds and is not dependent on
the size of the dog. There are two types
of distance: lateral distance, which is distance away from your side, and forward
distance, which is distance ahead of you.

Lateral
Distance

Forward
Distance

Motion toward
the dog’s path

Motion parallel to
or slightly angled
toward dog

Shoulders
turned toward
dog’s path

Facing forward to
the next obstacle

Arm extended
at side

Arm extended
in front

Verbal cue
Get out

Verbal cue
Go on

5. KNOWLEDGE
OF DOG’S SPEED
Knowing how fast a dog can execute obstacles or a series of obstacles is the last
skill needed for successful distance work.
It is particularly important for games like
Gamblers or Strategic Time Gamble, but
is also essential for planning a path during
the walk-through of any course. In games
like Gamblers, you plan a path for the ﬁrst
portion of the course, with the goal being
to end up near the gamble portion of the
course when the buzzer sounds. Knowing how many obstacles the dog can complete during that ﬁrst 25, 30, or 35 seconds allows you to arrive in the vicinity of
the gamble at the buzzer. Knowing a dog’s
speed is also necessary to determine
your path on Standard courses. During
the walk-through, you have to determine
where you will be in relation to your dog.
This allows you to decide if you can be in
position for a front cross, where a rear
cross would be a wiser choice, and what
portions of the course are best suited for
sending the dog to work at a distance.

CONCLUSION
Teams that possess the ﬁve skills described here can successfully navigate
any course that requires distance work.
Each of the skills can be trained as a
discrete element. Training methods and
exercises will be provided for each skill
in my upcoming articles. With practice,
you can communicate exactly where
your dog should go, and the dog can
independently perform the obstacles,
creating a team that can face any challenge in agility. D

Lorrie Reynolds has been involved with agility since 2002. She and her mixed breed NATCH-8, Versatility-NATCH-5, Gold-C-MEX, PDCH Maxx have qualified for national
championships every year in multiple venues, and have competed at the NADAC or DOCNA championships for the past nine years, never placing lower than 8th. Lorrie
is well known in Colorado for her distance work with mixed-breed rescues Maxx, C-MEX Storm (retired), and her newest dog, Pixie. Lorrie has been teaching her distance
seminar, “Gambling is Addictive,” in Colorado since 2006 and also offers private lessons. Contact her at coagilityinfo@yahoo.com.

Clean Run | March 13

Clean Run - March 2013

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