Clean Run - April 2012 - 60

The Bully Handler
The Bully Handler is one who is very impatient and quick to lose her temper when, she assumes, the dog is doing things incorrectly on purpose. The fact that the dog is only following her handling seems an impossibility. Dogs can react in different ways in this situation. Some dogs will become demotivated, distracted, and stressed because of the unpredictability of the handler’s reactions, while others will become panicky and desperate to please; they will often quickly take alternative obstacles to try to hit on the correct one and therefore stave off any recriminations.The handler then thinks the dog is just being even naughtier and gets angrier.This is so very sad to see and people known to have a temper should be watched carefully after leaving the ring at shows and also at training. This behavior should not be tolerated within our sport and should be stamped out.

· Never shouts at her dog for any rea-

son, even if he is on the way to an off-course obstacle since she knows that she must have cued it and so it would be unfair to shout at him. ronment.

· Never uses negatives in any envi· Always rewards her dog. · Rarely breaks her dog’s flow on a
course by stopping the dog and bringing him back if he gets eliminated or misses an obstacle, since she sees no point in stalling her dog and making him go back for her own mistakes. She prefers to keep her dog’s flow around the course and drive him to his reward.

The Dog Handler
This is the type of handler that I feel we should all be striving to emulate.This handler:

· Constantly thinks about how she can best help her partner understand what
is required.

· Has taken the time and trouble to build value into the rewards she wants to use for
agility purposes; for example, she teaches her dog to play with toys in every environment and keeps them exclusively for agility. time she is training or competing. Her dog’s feelings come first.

This handler’s dog will be happy, confident, and fast! D

· Is concerned about how her dog feels, not only on leaving the ring but the whole
Dawn Weaver has been an agility trainer for over 25 years. She is a 7-time FCI World Team member, and a 3-time IFCS World Team member. She has won many gold medals with several dogs and has won the coveted 2011 Crufts in the large category with her dog Ag Ch It’s Easy with a Beezy (a Beardie-Border Collie cross). Dawn has won every major British final in recent years. Her Poodle Ag Ch Piquant Painted Sunshine has the most championship tickets of any dog in Britain, currently having 15. She is also the only dog to have won Olympia four years running and all the major Crufts finals. Ag Ch Tonring Just a Puzzle is the only Papillon in Britain ever to have become an agility champion and is the 2011 Crufts Singles winner. Dawn is the author of the training manual in the U.K., Knowledge Equals Speed! She also offers online handling and contacts video tuition via www.dawnweaveragility.com. To contact Dawn directly, send email to info@dawnweaveragility.com.
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Clean Run | April 12

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Clean Run - April 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run - April 2012