Hämtat från: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/traininglevels/files/
From: Susan Ailsby
”(though I still have to lean in towards her to get her to move at all)”
Kylie, this is not only a great trick, but a conformation behaviour as well. That ”lean in” cue gets smaller and smaller until bystanters
can’t actually see it. You just sort of THINK about leaning towards her and she backs up. THINK about leaning back and she comes toward you.
Very cool. With conformation dogs, I make a point of moving my right leg toward the dog before actually stepping forward, and this becomes a
wonderful cue that nobody can see – I tighten my right thigh muscle and the dog moves back. Like dressage.
”she will come around in front of me and give me eye contact – only once I have encouraged her, and she also
seems to have to find position before she will give me eye contact.”
What finally got Stitch moving was doing all the fuss about making her meal – get the dish, put the food in it, add a little water – and then
stand there holding the dish with my back to her. All that buildup made her think we ”weren’t working” and she came around to see why I got
stuck. CLICK, and BAM the dish hits the floor. Try that a few times.
” Do you use you left hand folded at your waist?”
Depends on where you’re competing, the size of your dog, personal preference. When I was handling Giant Schnauzers, I had to keep my hand
at my waist or whomp them in the face with every stride. With the Porties, I prefer both hands down. Personal preference. How you carry
your body, length of stride, where you look – all part of the visual cue.
”is eye contact from heel position, or from any position? ”
From in front. Not Front, but in front of you. This – isn’t necessarily easy to get but – is easy for the dog to do, and we’ll use the Get Lost
game to show the dog where Heel position is later. Contact makes sure the dog is in the game, actively seeking the game. Without that, there
IS no Heel, so get that first.
”How do you help the dog distinguish between eye contact in front and eye contact at heel?”
Heel position requires the handler to be in a particular physical position as well as the dog. If I have fabulous eye contact from in
front, when I pivot to my right (do a right about turn), the dog MUST fall back close to Heel position as he comes around holding my eyes.
Later, If I do that initial about turn, take a single stop forward and do another about turn, the dog has automatically done two about turns
and a short straightaway in Heel position. And I haven’t touched him at all. Then I take TWO steps on the straightaway, then 3, etc. As soon as
the dog’s butt starts swinging forward on the straightaway, I do an about turn and he’s back in Heel position. I can click for Heel
position anywhere in there.
Then, when I get the dog following contact as I pivot left (left about turn), I can start clicking the butt for catching up instead of for
remaining behind as I did on the right pivot. As the dog continues to hold my eyes and moves his butt faster and faster, voila, a swing
finish. Now I can do the about turn, straightaway – and when his butt swings out, instead of doing a right about turn, I can do a left about
turn to make him swing it in.
Left about turns are harder than straightaways, and if I do a left about turn or ask for a swing finish every time his butt gets out of
line, he’ll stop swinging his butt forward – except on the right about turns, where I need it to get him around the corner. Ta Da, heeling.
”it doesnt take much to frustrate me to the point where I want to give up on it”
Read the end of Stitch’s 16 week blog and the start of this week’s – I’ve been working her on retrieving since 9 weeks. Thursday I tried
something new and the whole thing pretty much went to h*ll in a handbasket. We stuck it out and holy cow, it’s SO much better now. It’s
just a matter of trying to figure out how to explain something to someone who doesn’t speak English.
When you turn your back and call her, do you just call her, wonder where she is, or do you get hysterical? Hysterical works MUCH better
than curious. Like, you’re beside the freeway, she was here a second ago, now she’s gone AAAAHHH WHERE’S MY DOG? JOEY! AAAHHHH WHERE ARE
YOU? OHMYGAWD so the dog doesn’t come around trying to find the right spot but comes around ”I’m right here, mom, don’t have a heart attack,
geez, are you OK?” That little extra pressure seems to make them want you not to have to get hysterical again.
Sue Eh?
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