Clean Run Magazine - May 2008 - 65

Exiting Early Popping-out problems frequently happen when the dog anticipates getting his reward from the handler at the end of the weave poles. I encourage the handler to do some training sessions with the dog’s reward (a toy or food in a container) placed at the end of the weave poles, about 8' away. The dog may need some backchaining to learn not to go directly to his motivator without completing all the poles. If a handler is delivering the reward from her body, I encourage her to wait before she reaches for that toy or treat until the dog is 6-8' beyond the poles. Over time, I wean the dog from the motivator placed at the end of the weave poles and transition to the handler tossing the toy or food container once the dog has completed the poles. As the dog progresses, the handler should sometimes mix in directing the dog to another obstacle and then tossing the motivator. If the problem only occurs when the handler is sequencing and not when she is practicing the weave poles in isolation, I encourage her to become very aware of her body cues or any unintended motions, especially with her hands or shoulders. If a movement is If the dog has proper footwork and is popping out, I look very carefully at how the handler is delivering the reward. Popping-out problems frequently happen when the dog anticipates getting his reward from the handler at the end of the weave poles. the dog, and the timing of front and rear crosses. If it’s a cue that does not need to be given while the dog is weaving, such as the handler turning her head to look at the next obstacle, then she should practice delaying the cue until the dog has finished the weave poles. Similar to finding entries, some dogs are aided by attaching a wire to poles 9 and 11 to encourage doing all the weaves. This can be a handy aid if the handler wants to practice sequencing weaves in a class setting and avoid having the dog make mistakes. something the handler needs to do before the dog completes the weave poles, then she needs to spend some time training the cue while the dog performs the poles. For example, the handler may need to practice lagging behind the dog, going ahead of the dog, being off or moving laterally away from Cementing Understanding I firmly believe a dog learns the weaving behavior best if taught on a full set of 12 poles, either WAMs, a set of channel weaves, or a combination of both. It takes more than six poles for the dog to learn to establish footwork, develop muscle memory, and maintain a rhythm. Once footwork is established, however, the newly trained dog may have trouble transitioning to finding the entry on straightup poles at speed, or staying in the poles until finished. Likewise, learning to maintain a rhythm and do all the poles can be a challenge for some dogs. To work on this, I do some training sessions with just four stick-in-the-ground poles, which represent one complete weave behavior. At first, I tilt the poles just a bit or separate them slightly to help the dog get started. I want the poles straight as quickly as possible. Once the dog can do four poles reliably, I add poles two at a time if I want to work on exiting early. If I want to work on finding entries and generalization COURTESY ANN CROFT COURTESY ANN CROFT It’s important to work on finding entries in new environments. Practice on poles with different striping. to new environments, I can move my four poles around my training area and take them everywhere. I find taking the poles to the park and the beach, where the dogs may be especially excited, to be particularly helpful in teaching them to find and execute the weave poles. Some other tips to help your dog generalize his weave pole understanding are to stripe your poles in various ways, vary the spacing using stickin-the-ground poles, and vary the surfaces you train on. Be sure to practice going to and away from the weaves from all angles and all obstacles. In Conclusion Most speed, entry, popping out, and performance generalization problems can be solved by encouraging more independence by the dog when performing the weave poles. By following the steps outlined in my Clean Run articles (February 2007 and September 2007) or my Dream Weaves DVD, you should be able to improve your dog’s skills in these areas. Happy weaving! D Ann lives in San Diego, California, with her Boston Terrier, Prix, and three Border Collies, Trigger, Flurry, and Kit. Her Bostons, Mystic (1992-2004) and Chance (1992-2007), achieved many agility firsts for their breed. Chance, Caper (Border Collie, 1996- 2007), and Trigger are all double-agility champions, MACH and ADCH, and have all been AKC Nationals finalists, with Trigger placing second overall in 2003. Trigger and her teammates won the 2004 DAM National Team Championship. Ann now teaches full time at her training center, Paws on the Wind Dog Sports, is available for seminars, and is also an AKC and USDAA judge. Learn more at www.pawsonthewind.com. May 08 | Clean Run 65

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Clean Run Magazine - May 2008

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