Clean Run Magazine - June 2007 - 65

Teaching a Shoulder Target Teaching other body parts is only a bit trickier. The first one will be the hardest for you to “get the behavior,” but once you’ve gotten the idea, the dog will catch on very quickly. I like to start with a shoulder target because very few dogs resist being touched on their shoulders. What you need: Dog that is in the mood for treats A handful of tiny, easy-to-swallow treats End result: A dog that will go to and touch a target with his right (or left) shoulder on cue. What to do: 1 Spend a minute or two running through all the things your dog already knows—finger touch, foot touch, target stick, and so on. © SABY ROCHON/SPORTPHOTOGRAPHY.CA Shoulder targeting and reinforcement with the intermediate bridge may help to overcome an aversion to touching the poles. 2 Get comfortable and get the dog comfortable directly in front of you. If you are directionally challenged, sit with the dog more or less between your knees facing the same direction as you. Pet and massage the dog for a moment, then run the first two fingers of your right hand (just like your finger target) down to your dog’s right shoulder and gently massage the shoulder. Push just hard enough that the dog has to offer a tiny bit of resistance to stay put. Say Right Shoulder and start to intermediate bridge (Ex, Ex, Ex, Ex, Ex), while slowly moving your fingers a tiny bit away, no more than 1/4". If the dog was slightly resisting the pressure, you’ll find that the dog moves into your fingers as you pull them away. This is very subtle, a tiny, tiny movement that the dog is not aware of. As soon as you’ve moved away that quarter inch, gently push back into the shoulder while giving the terminal bridge Excellent and reward with a tiny treat from your other hand. After you do this a few times, you’ll develop a feel for how far and how slowly to pull back to encourage the dog to lean into your fingers. move the finger target ever so gradually away. Once the dog is able to lean an inch or so toward the target on cue, start from the beginning and teach Left Shoulder until the dog is able to lean an inch to the left. 4 Get comfortable with the dog; this time have finger targets at both shoulders. Your fingers should be very close, but not quite touching the dog. If the dog is heavily coated, your fingers will be touching fur. Ask for a right shoulder touch and intermediate bridge for any movement in the right direction. If the dog is confused, gently move your fingers a little closer to the right shoulder. Continue to move in until the dog moves toward the hand or until you are putting pressure on the right shoulder. Start to intermediate bridge, then immediately terminal bridge and reward. Repeat this a few times until the dog is able to target the right shoulder even though a left shoulder target is also being offered. Switch to the other side and repeat. 3 After a session or two, the dog will start to lean into your fingers on the cue Right Shoulder. At this point you can start to 5 When the dog is able to target each shoulder on cue reliably, start to increase the distance, then switch to targeting a target stick. Teaching Other Body-part Targets Each different body part is taught the same way, first with gentle pressure that the dog leans against, then gradually increasing distance. Each new target takes much less time to learn than the one before. While most body targets beyond nose, front feet, and back feet don’t have specific applications in agility, they do seem to help with body awareness and also being able to “explain” to the dog which body part needs moving or fixing when teaching new behaviors or working on problems. Although some people train using bridge and target exclusively, the techniques can also easily be combined with virtually any other training method to enhance understanding and speed up the learning process. As I mentioned above, I use the Hit It Board in conjunction with the intermediate bridge for teaching running contacts. Some dogs, when learning to weave with WAMs or channel weaves, balk at the last step when the poles are completely closed because they have to actually touch the poles to weave. Teaching a shoulder target and reinforcing brushing against the poles using the intermediate bridge is often helpful in overcoming this problem. Above all, bridge and target skills are another tool to aid in communication between two different species and communication makes all training easier. D The Bridge and Target technique is an element of SATS® a training system developed by Kayce Cover. For further information on SATS, visit http://synalia.com. , Sassie Joiris trains animal actors (birds, farm animals, cats, and dogs) for television and film. Having taught competitive obedience classes for 24 years, she started agility five years ago. Her Norfolk Terrier, Ch. MACH Stamp, OAC, NJC, TN-N, JE, is her first agility dog. She also has Boing!, a young Whippet who will soon start competing. Contact Sassie through her website: http://home.ix.netcom.com/~joiris. June 07 | Clean Run 65

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Clean Run Magazine - June 2007

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