Clean Run - July 2018 - 12

9. Wrap
A "wrap" cue allows you to direct your dog to make a tight, short turn over a jump. To get this tight turn, I teach my dogs to wrap
around a jump stanchion. I begin with a jump without any bars and lure the dog around the stanchion.

Mesa approaches jump and wraps around the stanchion toward me. I reward the wrap.

Here I am starting the wrap
at a distance.

10. Independent Performance
of Obstacles
If your dog can perform the weave
poles, contacts, and table correctly regardless of where you are, you will have
a significant advantage when running
any course.
You will need to determine what end
behavior you want on contacts. Two of
the most popular are two-on/two-off
(front feet of dog are on ground while
the rear feet are still on the contact)
and running contacts. There are many
videos and training tools available to
help you train whichever technique
you choose. Two of the more common
tools that have been used are targets at
the bottom of the contact for the dog
to touch, whether by nose or foot, and
hoops over the contacts that the dog
runs through. Both of these tools teach
the dog to keep his body and head low
and to exit the obstacle facing straight

ahead. I believe the two-on/two-off
method is the easiest (black and white)
method for the dog to learn. It's a good
idea to proof your dog on the contact
obstacles by running short of and running beyond the contacts.
For weave poles, I prefer to use the
channel method which teaches the dog
to run a straight path forward as long
as there are poles. You start with two
lines of poles about 1ft. apart to allow
the dog to run a straight line through
them. You then incrementally move the
poles closer together until they are in
one straight line. One advantage to this
method is that the dog learns from the
first day what his job is and can quickly
do the weaves on his own. As the two
lines of poles get closer to each other,
the dog's body shifts slightly (mainly a
shoulder shift to get around the pole)
while he continues moving forward.
Not having to turn his whole body in

and out around the poles increases the
dog's speed and is easier on their body.
For the table I teach a down since one
of the major venues requires it. If your
dog learns to down on the table, his
performance can always be consistent,
regardless of the venue. The down position can also help a dog not to overshoot the table and slide off.
"Around the clock" exercises on all of
the obstacles help dogs become more
independent as they improve their
obstacles entrances and exits. There
are many variations to this drill, but the
basic exercise is for you and the dog
to take the obstacle starting from a 6
o'clock position and ending at the 12
o'clock position. You would then start
at the 7 o'clock position and end at the
1 o'clock position. Practice this exercise
at every "hour" position on a clock. This
will cover almost every angle possible
for approaching an obstacle. D

Mary Watcher is a kennel owner and lead dog trainer at Amazing Canines, located southeast of Tucson, Arizona. She currently lives with three Yellow Labs and two
Golden Retrievers. She has trained dogs for over 20 years and completed the six-month Karen Pryor instructors' course. She trains using verbal reward and non-reward
markers. Three of her dogs qualified for several AKC Nationals. Her Lab Casey earned an AKC Master Bronze and a NADAC Outstanding Performance certificate. Her
Golden MACH2 Spice of Life earned a Master Gold Agility and a Master Century JWW title. Mary can be reached at mary@animalwatchers.com or through her website
at www.animalwatchers.com.
12

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